Ethics in pharmacy education: a research on pharmacy students' ethical awareness and views

Abstract

This study was conducted to determine the ethical awareness of pharmacy students. Additionally, it intends to find the similarities and differences between ethical orientations of the pharmacy students having done the course "Pharmacy Deontology" or not. Moreover, the views and evaluations of the students who have completed the course are determined. Two hundred pharmacy students from Istanbul University Faculty of Pharmacy participated in the research. The research data was collected through questionnaires prepared by the researchers based on Deontology Charter by the Turkish Pharmacists' Association and the Pharmacies and Pharmacists Law no. 6197 and analyzed via t-test. The general results reflect a great deal of ethical awareness except the issues such as, providing prescription medicine and non-medical health products, promotional activities and use of advertisements. Moreover, there is a statistical significant difference between the two groups' of ethical orientations (participants having completed the course or not). As an overall evaluation, the pharmacy deontology course seems to add value for pharmacicst candidates to make ethical decisions.