Activities within the Faculty to promote the first two elements of research-led teaching are listed below, and examples of scholarship projects are summarised in Projects and Research and Publications.

Bridging the theory-practice gap in first-year Pharmacy Practice
PHAR1821 Social Pharmacy includes an assessment task requiring students to interview a friend or family member with a chronic illness and use the interview data to illustrate a theory of illness behaviour. Students get practice at devising a structured interview schedule, interviewing, and qualitative data analysis. These data are then applied to theory. In this way the theory-practice gap is bridged. Lecture material on theoretical concepts is illustrated using results of pharmacy practice research projects.
CONTACT: Dr Lorraine Smith

Quantitative Structure Activity Relationship (QSAR) Workshops in Year 2 and Year 3 of the BPharm
In Medicinal Chemistry 2B and 3B students operate computer software used by researchers as part of drug design to investigate the qualitative and quantitative relationships between the structural or chemical features of compounds and their known biological activity. This enables the development of a predictive model that can be used with new compounds of unknown biological activity and from this model insight may be gained into which structural features and chemical characteristics of each compound lead to increased or decreased biological activity. The workshops are helpful for improving quantitative, particularly statistical, skills which are essential for quality research.
CONTACT: Dr Colin Duke, Dr Dai Hibbs, A/Prof Mary Collins

Herbal Medicines Workshops, and Associated Oral Presentation and Report in Year 3 of the BPharm
In the subject Medicinal Chemistry 3B, students work together in pairs to investigate scientific background (chemistry and pharmacology) and clinical efficacy of their choice of 1 of 34 herbs. In the last workshop, each pair gives an oral presentation of their findings and submits an associated report. Within this activity are embedded the learning of research skills such as literature searching using online citation databases, collaborative writing and editing, and oral presentation of one’s work. Also the quality of research evidence knowledge upon which pharmacists base their advice to patients is emphasized in the requirement of referencing at least 5 articles from peer-reviewed journals with an impact factor of 1.5 or more.
CONTACT: Dr Lenka Munoz

The role of the pharmacist in Home Medicines Review
This area of Dr Tim Chen’s research has been instrumental in informing the process of undertaking medication reviews, which is the main focus for third year Pharmacy Practice Units of Study.
CONTACT: Dr Tim Chen

Drug Action Workshops & Associated Essay in Year 2 of the BPharm
In Medicinal Chemistry 2B, students work together in teams of 5-6 students to write an essay on the pharmaceutical properties and medicinal chemistry of an assigned drug. Within this activity are embedded the learning of research skills such as information searching using online citation databases, managing references using the software Endnote, gaining an understanding of different types of peer-reviewed publications, collaborative writing and editing, writing an abstract for a piece of work, formatting an academic document, and the extrapolation of research literature findings to particular clinical situations.
CONTACT: Dr Alaina Ammit, Dr Colin Duke

Research exposure course for Advanced students
CONTACT: Associate Professor Ines Krass

Data management for Advanced students
CONTACT: Associate Professor Ines Krass

Vacation Scholarship: Psychotropic Drug Use Among Patients of a Community Mental Health Service
In 2005/6, a summer vacation scholarship project focused on the use of psychotropic medicines by consumers attending community mental health centres in Sydney. Findings were published in the journal Disease Management & Health Outcomes (2006; 14(6)).
CONTACT: Dr Tim Chen