2023: Waterloo receives recognition with QS Reimagine Education Awards
Adapted from a story by Namid Modi on the Watspeed website
Our Management of Oral Anticoagulation Therapy (MOAT) course earned silver for the Best Use of Generative AI for the simulated clinical training at Quacquarelli Symonds (QS) Reimagine Education Conference Awards held in Abu Dhabi at Khalifa University.
Authored by Prof. Jeff Nagge and developed with WatSpeed and Ametros Learning, the MOAT course is fully online and provides pharmacists, registered nurses, and nurse practitioners with the knowledge and skills to effectively and safely manage oral anticoagulation therapy.
WatSPEED’s submission outlined how its MOAT program uses generative AI to enable learners to interact with a simulated roster of patients needing treatment. WatSPEED also created a video demonstrating how the clinical simulations work.
Designed for pharmacists, registered nurses, and nurse practitioners who aspire to manage oral anticoagulation therapy under a medical directive, the simulations enable learners to consult with a diverse range of AI-based patients with different clinical attributes. Learners receive feedback on the information they gather – including factors that might be critical to patient health – and determine treatment plans accordingly.
2020: Continuing education course on antimicrobial stewardship wins national education award
Note: this course is no longer live. The following is an excerpt from a news story that originally appeared in 2020.
A course created by the University of Waterloo School of Pharmacy and the Centre for Extended Learning (CEL) was recognized by the national association for university continuing education. The course, Antimicrobial Stewardship (AMS) in Primary Care, received the Credit Programming under 48 hours award from the Canadian Association for University Continuing Education (CAUCE) for 2020.
Financially supported by the Public Health Agency of Canada, the course is aimed at community-based health care professionals and shares the latest information on the judicious use of antimicrobial agents – also known as antibiotics.
The course was designed by a CEL team led by Felicia Pantazi. Content was generated by lead author Professor Brett Barrett, Dr. Susan Sutherland and Dr. Margaret Gale-Rowe, and support for both content and design came from the School of Pharmacy’s continuing education team, Rosemary Killeen and Sarah de Waal. The fully accredited online course employs best practices in instructional design and multimedia development.
The course is the culmination of many months of work by the authors, editorial and development teams, as well as an advisory and planning committee which includes nationally recognized experts in infectious disease, public health and primary care.
Aimed at practicing health care professionals, it also contains downloadable resources intended for patients. CAUCE is a national organization that works to advance continuing education (CE) from Canadian post-secondary education institutions, and their program awards recognize outstanding CE offerings. Courses are judged on the value and complexity of content, as well as on the innovation of the course and its content delivery.
We’re very proud of the accomplishments of Professor Barrett, our staff, and the Centre for Extended Learning. In all aspects of education, from the PharmD program to continuing professional development, we push the envelope for instructional design and content delivery, and we’re pleased to see our innovation recognized with this CAUCE award.
The AMS course – which caters to a broad audience including pharmacists, physicians, dentists, nurse practitioners and trainees, is modular in design, providing flexibility for busy professional learners. Course participants have complimented the course’s engaging design and user-friendly resources.
This is the fifth course developed by the Centre for Extended Learning and the School of Pharmacy that has received this award. Congratulations to the team!