PharmaQuest is an educational tool developed by the University of East Anglia to improve medicines knowledge for healthcare professionals.
It was originally designed as a pack of cards to help pharmacy students at the University of East Anglia learn basic facts about the most commonly used medicines.
It has very quickly become clear that pharmacy, medical and nursing healthcare professionals as well as students in these fields would also benefit from learning the same information. So, to widen access and to enable learners to test their knowledge, an app seemed to be a sensible next step. The app supports UK pharmacy undergraduates to learn about key drugs.
The app includes common indications, methods of action, chemical structure, side effects and points of interest on each drug and is presented in a card format to aid revision. The app can also generate random tests of the whole database or of a specific subsection so users can test their own knowledge and learning.
Professor David Wright, who initiated the project and managed the app’s development, said that the idea for the app was an innovation on drug cards previously introduced at UEA to better prepare graduates for their pre-registration year.
"We all recognise that the app only supports basic knowledge development but it will make graduates more confident when undertaking their pre-registration year and therefore enable them to focus more on meeting performance standards from the outset. We also think it will help them to better prepare for their pre-registration exam."
Working pharmacists can also use the app to check that their knowledge is still up to date, he added.
Principal Investigator
Team led by Professor David Wright
Further Details
Download the app from the App Store or Google Play Store, or for more information please contact the IP Office.