(247) Self Knowledge and Meditation; an Elective Course in Pharmacy School Curriculum

Objective : Self-awareness is a critical component of pharmacy students' professional development. Recent reports have identified variations and gaps in defining self-awareness skills in pharmacy education. In most curricula, self-awareness education is within professional development courses. There are few objective methods for teaching and assessing broad self-awareness skills, such as evaluating self-perceptions, intelligence, creativity, and achievements. This study aims to determine the impact of a 15-week elective self-knowledge and meditation course on pharmacy students’ self-awareness, perceived stress, and mindfulness. The central hypothesis is that the course will improve students' scores on objective scales assessing the listed outcomes.

Methods: Shenandoah University IRB approved this study. Second- and third-year pharmacy students were enrolled in a 15-week elective course, "Self-Knowledge & Meditation''. The course was offered at Shenandoah University in collaboration with the Sufi Psychology Association. The course was composed of didactics and mandatory weekly meditation sessions. Before and after the course, students were asked to complete three validated scales, including the Perceived Stress Scale (PSS), the Self-Awareness Outcomes Questionnaire (SAOQ), and the Mindfulness Attention Awareness Scale (MAAS). Before and after survey scores were compared to evaluate the course's impact on the various scales. Statistical analysis was performed using paired student t-tests for cumulative scale scores. Two-tailed p< 0.05 was defined as statistical significance.

Results: A total of 25 students completed the course over the spring semester. Among the three scales, there was significant improvement for PSS and SAOQ (p-value 0.04 and 0.02, respectively). The score on the MAAS did not reach significance.

Conclusions: The study results show that incorporating a course on self-knowledge and meditation in the curriculum can significantly improve students' self-awareness, mindfulness, and stress levels during pharmacy school education.