Use of simulation for education in hospital pharmaceutical technologies: a systematic review

Objectives: Because of the inherent risks facing pharmacy technicians, and consequently also patients, initial and continuing education on hospital pharmaceutical technologies is essential. Simulation is a pedagogical tool now widely used in healthcare education. This study's objectives are to provide an overview of simulation's current place in the field of hospital pharmaceutical technology education, to classify these uses, and to discuss how simulation technologies could be better used in the future.

Data sources: Two pharmacists independently searched PubMed, Embase, and Web of Science on 21 July 2020 and included studies in English or French that used simulation as an educational tool in the field of hospital pharmaceutical technologies, whether in academic teaching or professional practice.

Data summary: Our search criteria resulted in 6248 articles, of which 24 were assessed for eligibility and 13 included in the qualitative synthesis. Simulation in hospital pharmaceutical technology education is used in three different ways: first, as a playful pedagogical tool, with error-based simulations (cleanrooms and preparation sheets with errors), or game-based simulations (escape games, role-plays, and board games); second, as an electronic tool with virtual reality (virtual cleanrooms and serious games), or augmented reality (3D glasses); finally, to evaluate chemical contamination (fluorescein and quinine tests) and microbiological contamination (media-fill tests) during compounding to periodically requalify pharmacy technicians.

Conclusion: Further studies, including non-technical skills evaluations, are needed to confirm the usefulness of this innovative technique in training as efficiently as possible actual and future pharmacy professionals.