Hello
everyone! As most of you guys know, I am currently in my 3rd
quarter of PA school (which I am still having a hard time coming to terms
with that), and as I am about to enter week 8, I thought I should give you guys
an update thus far.
This
quarter we are taking 19 credits with a total of 4 classes, ALE and small
group. This quarter has been pretty laid back compared to quarter 1 and 2, and
I have had a lot more spare time to do things that I did not have the pleasure of
engaging in previously such as watching TV 😊
We
are taking Behavioral Medicine, Musculoskeletal Care, Clinical Procedures and
Clinical Medicine, along with our weekly small group meetings and Applied
Learning Experience (ALE), which we only go to once a quarter. Though the
workload is far less demanding, I do not like the content as much compared to
the previous 2 quarters.
Behavioral
Medicine – in this class, we cover the most common psychiatric illness and how
to treat them. I took Abnormal Psychology in undergrad, and I was not too fond
of the class then, so I knew I would not really like this class. Surprisingly,
it is not bad BUT I still don’t think I will work in psychiatry. Knowing the
diseases are very important as I plan on working in the Emergency Room, and a
lot of the patients may present with these ailments, so it is imperative to
know how they present and how to treat them.
Musculoskeletal
Care – A lot of the information is memorization and mundane, but our professor
is very entertaining and funny, which makes up for it!! At one point, I thought
I wanted to be an orthopaedic surgeon, but after taking this class, I am
rethinking Orthopaedics all together. LOL
Clinical
Procedures – This is my favorite class because this is where we learn how to
place IVs, venipuncture, NG tubes, etc., which I love!!! We have lecture every
Tuesday morning at 10AM for an hour, and then we have the lab portion Friday’s.
The lab portion is self-paced, so we have to watch videos on how to do the
procedures prior to coming to lab, and then we have to perform the procedure in
lab and get checked off on it. So far, we have learned venipuncture, shave,
punch and snip biopsies, I&D, NG tube, how to place catheters, EKGs, injections, and this week we are
placing IV’s, which I am super excited about!!! 😊
Clinical
Medicine – So far, it hasn’t been too bad compared to last quarter. I
definitely do not like the material as much compared to last quarter. This
quarter we are covering GI, Oncology, Nephrology, Endocrinology, Hyperlipidemia,
Rheumatology, Diabetes, and HIV. It has been a lot harder for me to focus on
studying the material thus far as I do not have an interest in the majority of
it but I know how important it is for me to be an astute provider, so I am
trying to stay as motivated as possible.
Even
though I have not been as busy with my classes as I usually am, there has been
a lot of outside activities that I have participated in.
On
August 5, my class participated in the “Ready, Set, Go, Fair,” which is an
annual back to school event that the county puts on. At the fair, there are
health checks such as dental, blood pressure and blood glucose. Our class was
responsible for making posters about common health problems and presenting the
posters as well as taking blood pressure. I was so happy that we had the
opportunity to participate in this because this is some of the participants
only opportunity to be screened for high blood pressure and diabetes. It also
showed me how much I have learned over the past 8 months, and I was so
surprised about all the stuff that I DID know. Ultimately, it was a good way to
give back to the community, which I am an advocate for, and I wish more cities did
this.
We've also had grand rounds twice this quarter, which we did not have the previous 2 quarters. Grand rounds is when we go the local hospital here, and we listen to a guest speaker talk about new research in medicine, and how it is going to affect medicine in the future. It has been very interesting as it is another way to test my knowledge thus far in PA school, and see how far I have come since day 1.
I
have also been helping the Anesthesiologist Assistant students by being a
patient-actor for their Simulated Patient events. This has been very beneficial
to me as I can point out bad habits with physical exam techniques and
interviewing skills, and know what I will and will not incorporate when I am
seeing patients.
Quarter
3 so far has been a breeze and I cannot believe in 3 weeks it will be over, and
I will have 2 quarters left for didactic year!!!!! I am sooooooo happy that PA school
has flown by!! And I cannot wait to see what the future holds for the remainder
of it 😊
Make sure you comment below and do not forget to subscribe! Also, follow me on Instagram (@AmbzThePA___xo) for more updates!
--Amber
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