Familiarize students with the wide range of maladies that are covered under the umbrella of "psychiatric disorders." Students may not realize the sheer scope of affected individuals, and may develop personal connections to the field as they learn about the impact psychopharmacology can have on themselves and their loved ones. Split disorders into related clusters to give a sense of cohesion to each lesson. Some suggested examples are mood disorders, personality disorders, sexual disorders, learning disabilities and pervasive developmental disorders.
Create interactive lessons and examples that can help students learn through action. A wealth of options is available from the Institute for Safe Medication Practices. A commonly used example splits students into small groups who are "prescribed" 5 to 10 medications. Students are then asked to study the medications to come up with a proper schedule for administration, taking into consideration all possible drug and dietary interactions. Encourage your students to actually participate in the lesson, replacing pills with candies or placebo. This will help them understand from the perspective of patients who need to manage all this information and scheduling on their own. This exercise can personalize the struggle of patients in the minds of students who may not be familiar with excessive medication regimens. It can also help to highlight areas of difficulty when working with special populations, such as those with mood or learning disorders.
Encourage students to participate in monthly webinars from the Institute for Safe Medication Practices. These webinars cover important information and recent trends within the field of psychopharmacology, and help cement the fundamentals of working in any pharmacological setting.
Offer practice tests to your students to gauge their progress. Practice tests can also be a great resource for study aids, and for putting together a midterm or final exam. A comprehensive repository of free practice exams and case studies is available online (see Resources).