A Historical Discourse Analysis of Pharmacist Identity in Pharmacy Education

Objective. To determine the discourses on professional identity in pharmacy education over the last century in North America and which one(s) currently dominate.

Methods. A Foucauldian critical discourse analysis using archival resources from the American Journal of Pharmaceutical Education (AJPE) and commissioned education reports was used to expose the identity discourses in pharmacy education.

Results. This study identified five prominent identity discourses in the pharmacy education literature: apothecary, dispenser, merchandiser, expert advisor, and health care provider. Each discourse constructs the pharmacist's professional identity in different ways and makes possible certain language, subjects, and objects. The health care provider discourse currently dominates the literature. However, an unexpected finding of this study was that the discourses identified did not shift clearly over time, but rather piled up, resulting in students being exposed to incompatible identities.

Conclusion. This study illustrates that pharmacist identity constructs are not simple, self-evident, or progressive. In exposing students to incompatible identity discourses, pharmacy education may be unintentionally impacting the formation of a strong, unified healthcare provider identity, which may impact widespread practice change.