NONTRADITIONAL CLERKSHIPS AT THE UNIVERSITY-OF-ARKANSAS

The clerkships of the nontraditional PharmD program at the University of Arkansas are described. Arkansas has a large nontraditional PharmD program with more than 400 students in the program. The majority of th e clerkship experience is conducted in the student's own practice envi ronment where a change in practice habits has maximal impact on the pr ofession and the public it serves. Clerkships were designed to minimiz e the amount of time the student must be on campus away from his/her p rofessional practice. The clerkships are accessible to the student bec ause they do not require a leave of absence during the clerkship train ing period. Clerkships compel the student to take the initiative in th e identification of patients with specific disease states who could be nefit from a pharmacist's knowledge and intervention.