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Pharmacy Learning & Development Hub

Fundamentals of Intensive Care Pharmacy

Strengthen your intensive care medicine knowledge with Australia’s leading pharmacy experts 

Alfred Health operates one of the largest & most advanced Intensive Care Units in the southern hemisphere. Developed by expert ICU clinicians and pharmacist educators, this program is designed to provide learners with fundamental skills and knowledge in core ICU topics.  

The Fundamentals of Intensive Care Pharmacy course has been purposefully designed to train pharmacists who are new to Intensive Care pharmacy, usually with less than 6 months experience, or those in need of a refresher of the basics of critical care pharmacy practice.  

What You Will Gain:

  • Comprehensive ICU knowledge and an understanding of the critical role of pharmacists in optimising patient outcomes 
  • Confidence in managing complex conditions in critical care such as shock states, sepsis and acute kidney injury 
  • Advanced medication management skills and clinical reasoning to create evidence-based treatment plans that consider how critical illness alters pharmacokinetics and pharmacodynamics  

Need flexible learning as a busy pharmacist? Our e-learning package features self-paced modules that fit your schedule, providing comprehensive learning to validate your expertise. Learn from leaders in ICU pharmacy without leaving your current role.

 

Core Modules

The online component of the course comprises seven core e-Learning modules:

 

Experiential Activities

Transform your ICU learning into action and apply your knowledge with leading critical care pharmacists 

Interactive Workshops  

  • 2x 2-hour interactive face-to-face case-based workshops which allow learns to apply the knowledge learnt through the e-Learning modules to ICU patient cases 

Experiential Placement  

  • 2-day (8 hours per day) experiential placement in our state-of-the-art ICU where learners will observe and support the practice of experienced ICU pharmacists allowing them to apply their new knowledge and skills to clinical practice 
  • During this placement, learners will have the opportunity to undergo a Mini-Clinical Evaluation Exercise (Mini-CEX) and an Objective Structured Clinical Exam (OSCE) with an experienced ICU pharmacist 
 

This activity has been accredited for 14 hours of Group 1 CPD (or 14 CPD credits) suitable for inclusion in an individual pharmacist’s CPD plan which can be converted to 14 hrs of Group 2 CPD (or 28 CPD credits) upon successful completion of relevant assessment activities. 

The accreditation number is A2501FICP1.

This activity has been accredited against the Australian Pharmacy Council’s Accreditation Standards for Continuing Professional Development Activities (2013).

The 2016 Competency Standards addressed by this activity include:

  • 1.1 Uphold professionalism in practice
  • 1.2 Observe and promote ethical standards
  • 1.5 Apply expertise in professional practice
  • 1.6 Contribute to continuous improvement in quality and safety
  • 2.2 Collaborate with professional colleagues
  • 2.4 Apply interpersonal communication skills to address problems
  • 3.1 Develop a patient centred, culturally responsive approach to medication management
  • 3.2 Implement the medication management strategy or plan
  • 3.3 Monitor and evaluate medication management
  • 3.5 Support Quality Use of Medicines
  •  

On completion of the online e-Learning modules, participants should be able to: 

  1. Describe the purpose and indications for admission to intensive care, common ICU equipment and elements of care, and the role and impact of ICU pharmacy services 
  2. Identify some of the pharmacokinetic and pharmacodynamic (PK/PD) changes that occur in critical illness, and how these may impact medication management 
  3. Discuss common indications, pharmacological management and monitoring of sedation and analgesia in critically ill patients 
  4. Describe the stages, aetiologies, diagnostic methods and complications of AKI, as well as the assessment of renal function and key therapeutic interventions used to manage AKI in the ICU 
  5. Identify the common indications for renal replacement therapy (RRT) and explain the key principles of Continuous Renal Replacement Therapy (CRRT), including factors which influence medication clearance during CRRT and how these may impact medication management 
  6. Describe the types, causes, clinical presentation, evaluation and management of undifferentiated shock and discuss the key therapeutic interventions used in the management of sepsis/septic shock and cardiogenic shock in the ICU. 
  7. Discuss the basics of Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI), including classification and types of TBI, key therapeutic interventions and monitoring in the critical care context   

 

On completion of the Workshops and Experiential Placement, participants should be able to: 

  1. Systematically review critically ill patients to identify and resolve medicine-related issues using the FASTHUG mnemonic or similar 
  2. In the context of conditions commonly managed in the ICU, develop appropriate treatment and monitoring plans based on contemporary literature, clinical guidelines and patient-specific information 
  3. Modify treatment and monitoring plans in the context of PK/PD alterations in critically ill patients 
  4. Demonstrate the ability to apply clinical reasoning to communicate medication management plans that aim to optimise patient outcomes in an ICU setting 

Each online module will be followed by an online multiple-choice question assessment. 

If you register for the experiential placement at Alfred Health, you will also undergo a Mini-Clinical Evaluation Exercise (Mini-CEX) and an Objective Structured Clinical Exam (OSCE) with an experienced ICU pharmacist. 

Registrations now available

All registration options include 12 months of access to the e-Learning modules from the date of registration.

Option 1 -
e-Learning Component
only

$ 695
  • Prices include GST
  • Includes 14-hours of self-directed e-Learning modules on core ICU topics
Add to Cart

Option 2 -
e-Learning Component & Workshops

$ 995
  • Prices include GST
  • Includes 14-hours of self-directed e-Learning modules on core ICU topics AND
  • 2x 2-hour interactive virtual case-based workshops facilitated by a Lead or Senior ICU pharmacist
Add to Cart

Option 3 -
e-Learning Component, Workshops & Placement

$ 1395
  • Prices include GST
  • Includes 14-hours of self-directed e-Learning modules on core ICU topics AND
  • 2x 2-hour interactive virtual case-based workshops facilitated by a Lead or Senior ICU pharmacist AND
  • 2-day (8 hours per day) experiential placement in the Alfred ICU (includes a Mini-CEX & OSCE with an experienced ICU pharmacist)
Add to Cart

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