NZ Intern Pharmacist AC key terms

The structured, workplace-based programme that a New Zealand pharmacy graduate completes before applying for registration; it combines supervised practice with the PSNZ education and training requirements.

A registered pharmacist who supervises and signs off an intern's day-to-day practice, providing feedback, coaching and confirmation that competence statements have been met in the workplace.

Assessment of an intern's real practice, usually through direct observation, case discussion or record review, judged against defined competence standards rather than a written test.

The defined set of knowledge, skills and professional behaviours a pharmacist must demonstrate for safe, effective practice in New Zealand; interns are assessed against these throughout training.

A running record of an intern's learning activities, reflective notes and evidence of experience, used to demonstrate progress and support sign-off at the end of training.

The habit of reviewing your own actions and outcomes, identifying what went well and what to change, and recording that learning so it informs future practice.

Assessment used to guide learning, giving feedback during training without a pass or fail consequence, so the intern knows what to improve before summative assessment.

Assessment that produces a final judgement of competence, such as a formal examination or end-of-training sign-off, which determines whether the intern can progress.

A structured assessment event where candidates rotate through multiple stations, such as simulated consultations or case-based tasks, marked by trained assessors against set criteria.

A practical examination using timed stations where candidates demonstrate clinical and communication skills with simulated patients or tasks, scored against standardised checklists.

A trained person who portrays a patient in a teaching or assessment scenario, allowing candidates to practise consultation, counselling and clinical reasoning in a realistic setting.

A scripted practice situation in which the intern acts as the pharmacist while a colleague or actor plays a patient, prescriber or other health professional, followed by feedback.

A written plan agreed between intern and preceptor that sets learning goals, activities and timeframes for the training period, and is reviewed and updated as needs change.

A collection of documented examples, reflections and feedback that shows how an intern has met each competence requirement, submitted as part of training completion.

Formal confirmation by an authorised assessor or preceptor that an intern has demonstrated the required competence, allowing progression or completion of the training programme.

The statutory regulator for pharmacists in New Zealand, responsible for registration, setting standards of practice and handling complaints about competence or conduct.

The yearly certificate a pharmacist must hold to practise lawfully in New Zealand, issued by the regulator after confirming competence, fitness and recertification requirements are met.

A published statement by the regulator describing the expected level of conduct, competence or service delivery in a defined area, against which practice can be measured.

Non-mandatory advice issued by the regulator or professional body explaining how to meet standards in practice, including examples and recommended approaches.

The reference materials, tools and guidance a pharmacist uses in daily practice, such as treatment guidelines, formularies, protocols and professional body publications.

Tools or systems that give prescribers and pharmacists patient-specific information, such as alerts or dosing guidance, to improve the safety and quality of decisions.

The prevention of avoidable harm from medicines, including errors in prescribing, dispensing, administration and monitoring, and the systems used to reduce those risks.

The process of recording adverse events, near misses and errors so they can be investigated, learned from and used to improve systems and patient safety.

A structured method for investigating an incident to identify underlying system failures, rather than blaming individuals, so that effective corrective actions can be put in place.

A documented set of steps, responsibilities and deadlines created to fix a problem found in audit or incident review and to prevent it recurring.

A systematic review of records or practice against agreed standards, used to measure quality, identify gaps and drive improvement in a pharmacy service.

The repeating process of setting standards, measuring current practice, implementing change and re-measuring to confirm improvement, often called closing the loop.

Ongoing, structured efforts to make care safer and more effective by analysing performance data and testing changes, rather than relying on one-off fixes.

The periodic process by which a registered pharmacist demonstrates continued competence and fitness to practise, usually through a declared programme of learning and reflection.

Planned learning and reflection that maintains and develops a pharmacist's competence throughout their career, recorded and used to support recertification.

The documented evidence of a pharmacist's continuing professional development, including activities, learning outcomes and reflections, which may be reviewed at recertification or audit.

A review of a pharmacist's CPD record and recertification evidence to confirm the requirements have genuinely been met, often sampling a proportion of practitioners.

Evaluation of a pharmacist's practice or records by a professional colleague of similar standing, used to give independent feedback and support quality improvement.

A structured examination of a pharmacist's practice, sometimes triggered by a competence concern, to identify learning needs and agree a plan for improvement.

A raised issue suggesting a pharmacist may not be meeting required standards, which may prompt further assessment, support or a formal review by the regulator.

The New Zealand body that investigates complaints about health and disability services and promotes consumers' rights under the Code of Health and Disability Services Consumers' Rights.

The Code of Health and Disability Services Consumers' Rights, which sets out consumers' entitlements such as informed consent, respect and the right to complain.

A patient's agreement to a service or treatment after receiving and understanding the relevant information, including benefits, risks and alternatives, given freely.

Practice that recognises and respects a patient's culture and background, addresses power imbalances and ensures care is delivered in a way that is safe for them.