Objective:

To quantify the proficiency of pharmacy trainees in reviewing prescriptions for anesthetics and Schedule-I psychotropics using learning curve analysis.

Approach:

• Participants: Twenty pharmacy trainees from Chengdu Third People’s Hospital completed a 10-step program involving 100 prescription reviews each.
• Methods: Accuracy, time to completion, and terminology use were recorded. Cumulative-sum charts for binary outcomes were constructed for each metric, and correlations were tested using Pearson and Spearman coefficients.

Key Findings:

• Group-level curves plateaued at step 7 for overall proficiency, step 6 for terminology, step 7 for accuracy, and step 8 for speed.
• Individual curves flattened between steps 4 and 9.
• A strong negative correlation (r = −0.521, p = 0.018) was found between years of prior front-line pharmacy experience and the number of steps to reach plateau.

Interpretation:

Learning-curve analysis effectively identifies when pharmacists achieve consistent and accurate prescription reviews, with proficiency reached after approximately 600–700 reviews.

Limitations:

• The study was limited to a single hospital and a small sample size of 20 trainees, which may affect the generalizability of the findings.

Conclusion:

Incorporating learning curve monitoring into training programs can guide individualized instruction and establish benchmarks for competence.