Purpose: A Capstone project is used to show a synthesis of information students learned from the program and/or an application of the knowledge/skills that were developed. To write it well, you need to do research into your completed courses as well as external research to answer the questions fully.
The Capstone Project is designed to be conducted using only the resources available to the student. If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to ask your instructor.
Your Capstone Project consists of four parts/prompts.
- Pharmacy Workflow
- Case Scenario
- Answer Your Own Guiding Question
- Reflect on Your Program Knowledge
Each part/prompt should be researched fully and planned out by the student before written to address all aspects of the capstone requirements. For capstone requirements, please see your rubric.
Each part outlines a specific topic, format, and prompt description so please read the instructions carefully.
Formatting Requirements:
- Font: Your project should be word processed in 12-point Times New Roman
- Double space: Your entire essay should be double There should not be extra spaces between paragraphs.
- Heading: In the upper left corner of the first page of your essay, you should type your name, the instructor’s name, your class, and the date, as follows:
- Your Name
- Instructor Name
- Capstone Project
- Date
- Page Numbers: Your last name and the page number should appear in the upper right corner of each page of your essay, including the first page. Insert your name and the page number as a “header.” Do not type this information where the text of your essay should
- Title: Each part of your project should include a title. The title should be centered and should appear under the heading information on the first page and above the first line of your answer.
- Citations: Citations are
Part 1: Create a Pharmacy Workflow Topic: Community Pharmacy Procedures
Format: Written report [4-5 pages in length]
Description: Describe in detail the prescription workflow starting from the initial prescription received until the final dispensing of the prescription. Feel free to include visuals [panel, diagram, flow-chart].
The prescription workflow in pharmacy can start from different ways. Design your workflow starting from different options like:
- In person prescription at drop off
- Fax received from doctor’s
- Verbal prescription on
- Faxed prescription from
- Refill request by patient on
Explain the whole process of prescription intake [i.e., what is important on a script, what extra information to gather, how to communicate with the patient] and then explain different dispensing processes such as:
- Pick up in-Person.
- Delivery by
- Pick up by Friend or
Part 2: Case Scenario
Topic: Ethics and Pharmacy Procedures
Format: Written report [4-5 pages in length]
Description: Review any three of the four of the following cases and explain the appropriate response. Each case answer should be approximately 1-2 pages in length.
- Case 1: A mother with a crying baby, a very old man, one intellectually disabled kid and a person with his time priority. All are standing in a pickup line. Who would you prioritize and why?
- Case 2: A man comes into the pharmacy 5 minutes before close and is insisting that you to fill his Tylenol No. 2 prescription. You have a suspicion that the man may be showing some signs of How will you handle this case? Explain.
- Case 3: You are talking to a person at the drop off window and a second patient comes up to the pickup window at same time. The second patient is very eager and explains that she cannot wait any longer. The phone is ringing, and the pharmacist is busy in counselling some other patient. What should you prioritize and how will you handle the situation?
- Case 4: A patient comes to the pharmacy to get a re-fill for lorazepam. The pharmacy assistant investigates his profile and sees that there are no re-fills left. It is almost closing time on a Friday. How will you handle this case?
Part 3: Answer a Guiding Question Topic: Personalized Interest
Format: Written report [4-5 pages in length]
Description: Answer one of the following guiding questions or create your own guiding question. Guiding questions:
- Should pharmacies provide additional aids to support patient compliance? If yes, list at least 5 additional aids that pharmacies might use. Provide explanations for each. If no, list at least 5 current aids and explain why these provide adequate support to the average patient.
- What are some benefits and what are some controversies of Modern Medicine in a current society? List at least 5 of each and provide examples and explanations for
- Does providing pharmacological drugs for anxiety treatment increase the likelihood of pharmaceutical dependence later in life?
Be sure to include supporting evidence when answering each question. Example: case study examples, personal examples, textbook or other external research examples.
Part 4: Reflect on Your Program Knowledge
Topic: Personalized Interest
Format: Written or Visual [4-5 pages or 5-10 minutes]
Description: Reflect on the knowledge and skills that you have learned from studying. You may include example from all your courses, or you may focus on a few courses that have the greatest interest for you. When developing your reflection, please answer the following key questions:
- Which courses have had the most impact on you and your professional goals?
- What concepts have had the most impact on your understanding of your profession?
- What will you do to apply your knowledge in practice? Explain.
Your reflection can be presented in the following formats:
- JOURNAL ENTRY [written]
- POSTER BOARD [written]
- WRITTEN PAPER [written]
- POWERPOINT [visual]
- INTERVIEW WITH YOURSELF [visual]
- VIDEO PRESENTATION [visual]
- SKIT [visual]
If you choose a written format, your reflection must equal 4-5 pages.
If you choose a visual format, your reflection must equal 5-10 minutes.
Suggested Timeline:
Week 1: Review the four parts and begin brainstorming your question selections.
For example, for part one, what type of prescription workflow would you like to describe? For part 2, which three cases will you select? For part 3, which guiding question do you want to answer?
Week 2: Create an outline for how you will address each prompt.
Suggestion: start with smaller sections and then work your way to subheadings if needed. Note the content of each section and fill it with text, visuals, and other elements that will help support your answer. Make sure you review the rubric to make sure you are setting yourself up for success.
Week 3: Continue your research and writing.
Review the rubric to make sure you are on the right track.
Week 4: Continue your research and writing.
Review the rubric to make sure you are on the right track.
Week 5: Continue your research and writing. Add your citations.
All reports [including your reflection] must have in-text citations included. For tips on how to add citations please see the formatting requirements on first page. Review the rubric to make sure you are on the right track.
Week 6: Complete your reflection.
If you choose a visual presentation you will record your presentation and review before submitting. If you choose a written format you will proofread and review before submitting. Review the rubric to make sure you have covered all requirements.
Week 7: Submit your Capstone into Moodle and email your capstone instructor for review.
You may be asked to add to your project so be prepared to make any changes as requested. Once you receive a passing grade you will be all done your capstone portion on your program, congratulations!
APA Citation basics
For more information on how to site, please go to – https://owl.purdue.edu/owl/research_and_citation/apa6_style/apa_formatting_and_style_guide/i n_text_citations_the_basics.html#:~:text=APA%20citation%20basics,the%20end%20of%20the%20p aper.
When using in-text citations [APA], follow the author-date method of in-text citation. This means that the author’s last name and the year of publication for the source should appear in the text, for example, [Jones, 1998].
Direct quotations
If you are directly quoting from a work, you will need to include the author, year of publication, and page number for the reference [preceded by “p.”]. Introduce the quotation with a signal phrase that includes the author’s last name followed by the date of publication in parentheses.
Example:
According to Jones [1998], “Students often had difficulty using APA style, especially when it was their first time” [p. 199].
If the author is not named in a signal phrase, place the author’s last name, the year of publication, and the page number in parentheses after the quotation.
Example:
She stated, “Students often had difficulty using APA style” [Jones, 1998, p. 199], but she did not offer an explanation as to why.
Summary or paraphrase
If you are paraphrasing an idea from another work, you only have to make reference to the author and year of publication in your in-text reference, but APA guidelines encourage you to also provide the page number [although it is not required].
Example:
According to Jones [1998], APA style is a difficult citation format for first-time learners.
Please note that any information that is not your own must be cited. Any information that is not
cited would be considered “plagiarism”, resulting in an automatic failure on your project. If unsure,
please consult with your instructor.
