Integrative Medicine Elective for the Wellbeing of Pharmacy Students.

Objective: To describe the impact of an integrative medicine elective on the wellbeing of pharmacy students at the University of Maryland School of Pharmacy and examine the relationship between perceived stress and happiness.

Methods: Students completed the Perceived Stress Scale (PSS) and Subjective Happiness Scale (SHS) prior to and three months after taking the course. Our study compared the outcomes of each composite score from the PSS and SHS before and after course participation to detect any difference. The interpretation of single composite scores was analyzed similarly. The correlation of the PSS and SHS was checked to determine their relationships, and the correlation between the change in PSS and the time the students spent practicing their identified integrative modality was also analyzed to detect whether any association existed.

Results: A total of 49 students completed both the pre and post wellness inventories over three offerings of the class (2020, 2022 and 2023). There was a decrease in PSS of 0.8 that was not statistically significant with most students reporting moderate perceived stress on both the pre-PSS and post-PSS. The average SHS was 4.7. There was a strong negative correlation between the PSS and SHS. There was a moderate negative correlation between the time practicing the integrative medicine modality and post-course PSS.

Conclusion: This practical, hands-on experience will add non-pharmacologic tools to the pharmacy student tool kit, which could be used in both patient care and pharmacy student wellness.