The Single Cycle Degree Programme in Pharmacy is a five year programme whose main goalis to provide the theoretical and practical knowledge to give graduates solid scientificbases in order to practice as professional pharmacists andwork in healthcare as experts in medicines and health products (cosmetic products ,dieteticproducts and food supplements, herbal products, medical devices, sanitarygoods, etc.).
The degree programme also aims to train professionalswith knowledge that will enable them:
- to perform the role of health educators and participate ininstitutional campaigns run in collaboration with the public administration invarious areas of healthcare;
- when dispensing medicines, to provide thepatient with information, instructions, warnings, advice and assessment beforeand after the use of such drugs;
- to play a key liaison role between the patient, the doctor andnational health service facilities.
The learning outcomes of the single cycle degree programme comply with thenew professional functions already outlined at the national and European Union levelsand which have also been identified through consultation with the representativeof the professions. These include: integrated home care, initial analysis, appropriatenessof medicine use, continuity of medicine supply for cases
of ongoing treatment,alongside specific in-depth studies on: pharmaceutical care, pharmacotherapy,pharmacovigilance, health promotion, information on medicinal drugs and medicaldevices, food/dietary and dietary
supplements, pharmacoepidemiology,pharmacoeconomics and biostatistics.
To achieve thelearning outcomes set out above, the singlecycle degree programme in Pharmacy is structured in a way that allowsprogressive learning by the student, It starts out with the study of the basicdisciplines during the first two years and is completed over the subsequentthree years which focus on specialist disciplines and include a suitable professionalinternship. This structure allows a gradual and ongoing progression in thestudent's acquisition of multidisciplinary knowledge with the aim of traininggraduates in Pharmacy for the professional role.
The disciplinaryareas studied during the first two years are:
1) basicphysics-mathematics, statistics-ITand chemistry areas;
2) basic biology and physiology areas.
During thesubsequent three years, students continue their specialist training withcourses grouped under the following learning areas:
3)physiopathology area;
4) pharmacology and toxicology areas;
4) chemistry-pharmaceutics area;
5) technological-legislative and professional training areas.
On completion ofthe teaching activities, the students acquire at least 9 CFU credits throughthe independent choice of teaching activities from among those offered by theUniversity, in order to complete the practical-professional training.
Finally, thesingle cycle degree programme gives students the opportunity to apply the interdisciplinaryknowledge they have gained during the degree programme through a professionalinternship carried out in a pharmacy open to the public (community pharmacy) orlocated within a hospital (hospital pharmacy), thanks to specific agreementsand under the guidance of a pharmacist acting as their contact person. Theinternship is full-time and lasts for a period of at least six months. At the endof the programme, students will take a final exam involving the discussion of a written library-based dissertation,practical-professional or experimental nature.
