USING E-LEARNING TO IMPROVE PRESCRIBING PRACTICE IN EMERGING PRESCRIBERS

This paper reports on The National Prescribing Curriculum (NPC), a series of online, casebased modules designed to improve prescribing performance and confidence in emerging Australian prescribers. The modules mirror the decision-making process outlined in the WHO Guide to Good Prescribing (de Vries et al., 1994) and were developed as an initiative to combat emerging data that, increasingly, medical graduates demonstrate shortfalls in basic pharmacological knowledge and prescribing skills (Hilmer et al., 2009). The modules are situated in real life situations and include complex, authentic tasks. As most learners access the modules in a self-paced mode, sophisticated levels of expert and peer feedback have been integrated into the modules.