Over recent decades, interactions between pharmacists and patients have transformed, and the expansion of clinical pharmacy has led pharmacists to assume more patient-centered roles. Fulfilling these roles demands particular competencies, including skills in patient-focused communication. Assessing students’ abilities in patient-centered communication within academic environments is difficult, and alternative or complementary evaluation strategies may be required to address the limitations of conventional preceptor assessments or objective structured clinical examinations (OSCE). At the same time, interest in actively involving patients in the education of healthcare professionals has increased, yet reports describing patient-led teaching within pharmacy settings remain scarce. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to design and implement a patient-teaching workshop and to evaluate its effect on pharmacy students’ patient-centered communication competencies. The workshop was co-created by four patients, an experienced clinical pharmacist, and an education sciences lecturer, and was delivered within a hospital pharmacy residency program. The primary educational goal was to develop the three competencies described in the Calgary–Cambridge guide to the medical interview: (i) establishing a relationship, (ii) performing a structured interview, and (iii) collecting relevant information. The learning process included reflection on participants’ perceptions of pharmacist–patient communication, an initial simulated interview, didactic instruction, and a second simulated interview. Following each simulation, patients and peer residents evaluated learners using a competency assessment chart and provided individualized feedback. Evaluation methods consisted of comparing scores from the first and second interviews and analyzing responses from an anonymous post-workshop questionnaire. A total of 47 residents and 19 patient teachers participated in the workshop. Scores for all three competencies increased after the second simulated interview, as assessed by both patients (+25%) and peer residents (+29%).Residents reported high overall satisfaction and indicated that they gained knowledge about interview techniques and interpersonal skills that support relationship building with patients. The “involvement of patients” was identified as the most valued aspect in most evaluation forms (87%), and participants highlighted the importance of collaborative and interprofessional learning during the workshop. Three key themes emerged: (1) patients’ expertise, (2) credibility, and (3) relationship, demonstrating that students perceived patients as trustworthy and legitimate sources of knowledge within this educational setting. This patient-teaching strategy enhanced patient-centered communication competencies among pharmacy residents and strengthened collaborative partnerships between patients and pharmacy students.
