Enhancing pharmaceutic education with digital tools: learning about excipients in marketed products through infographics

Despite their crucial role in drug formulation, excipients (non-active ingredients) often receive less attention than active ones. The process of teaching and learning through didactic lectures on the wide range of excipients available in the pharmaceutical industry is not favorable nowadays as students cannot visualize the functions and the significance of the use of its in formulating drug, precisely drugs in liquid dosage forms. Moreover, the appropriateness of excipients in drug formulation is often overlooked in standard pharmaceutics education. The review of existing literature suggests an increasing trend in the use of visual aids in education for various fields, including pharmaceutics. Therefore, this project focuses on developing infographics to improve understanding of excipient choices in the marketed products that are available in Malaysia. Through digital platforms such as Canva, students can creatively design infographics that visually present and assess the excipients from their product of choices, tackling a critical gap in their understanding of the liquid dosage forms course, especially on topics of excipients. The novelty of this project includes the utilization of digital tools to gain a deeper understanding of the use of excipients in drug formulation among students. In addition, this approach helps improve student engagement and develop digital literacy as well as critical thinking skills among pharmacy students. In conclusion, learning about excipients through the development of infographics provides an effective educational tool to enhance pharmaceutic education.