Evaluating the feasibility and sustainability of longitudinal primary care placements for undergraduate pharmacy students in the United Kingdom (UK)

Abstract Introduction In the United Kingdom (UK), undergraduate pharmacy education must evolve to support graduates to deliver enhanced clinical care, including independent prescribing at the point of registration. Primary healthcare has the potential to offer opportunities for developing clinical skills but UK pharmacy undergraduate placements in this setting have been limited in scale.1 Aim This study aimed to evaluate the feasibility and sustainability of longitudinal primary care placements for pharmacy students and to assess students’ experiences of these placements. Methods Ten primary healthcare centres hosted 115 final-year pharmacy students for a 10-day longitudinal placement over 20 weeks of the 2024/25 academic year. Each site was supported by a university funded clinical link tutor and hosted two to four groups of students. A placement handbook was developed, which included an induction guide, placement tasks and workplace-based assessment tools. Placement activities included undertaking prescribing audits, medication safety activities, observation of clinics run by the multidisciplinary team and student/tutor-led clinics. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with representatives from placement sites to explore their experiences of hosting pharmacy students. Interview data were analysed thematically. Student experiences were assessed using the validated 19-item Placement Evaluation Tool (PET),2 which uses a five-point agreement scale (1 = strongly disagree to 5 = strongly agree). Quantitative PET data were analysed descriptively. Results Interviews were conducted with eight representatives from seven placement sites, including GP partners, pharmacists and practice managers. Representatives from three sites could not be recruited during the data collection period. Analysis identified four themes: placement structure and feasibility; student support and the learning environment; student experience and development; and service and patient impact. Respondents noted increased workload and logistical pressures but reported that students were well received and benefited from extended clinical exposure. Students contributed to aspects of service delivery, especially medication safety work. The presence of clinical link tutors was considered essential for sustaining the placements. A total of 103 out of 115 students completed the PET, giving a response rate of 90.51%. Overall, students rated the placements highly (median PET score = 86/95; mean = 83.3; quartile 1 = 77; quartile 2 = 86; quartile 3 = 94; quartile 4 = 95). Mean scores for all individual PET items exceeded 4. Patient safety was fundamental to the work of the unit received the highest mean score across placement sites (mean = 4.58, SD ±0.82), while I had opportunities to interact and learn with the multi-disciplinary team received the lowest (mean = 4.05, SD ±1.14), with greater variation observed across sites. Conclusion This study shows that longitudinal primary care placements are feasible and well received by students. The clinical link tutor was critical to placement success; long-term sustainability therefore depends on this role. Limitations of this study included potential selection bias in identifying placement sites, the non-participation of three sites in the final evaluation, and limited generalisability due to the single-institution scope. Despite these limitations, these findings provide insights into expanding primary care placements to support the evolving clinical role of pharmacy graduates.