Monday - Exam #1
With the morning off, I spent a good deal of time studying for the first exam of the year - Dermatology. I didn't think the test was that bad. Rumors were spread about the impossibility of this first exam. But the professors anticipated it and seemed to have changed the format. Then again, I never expected it to be too hard because the answer should usually be hydrocortisone, moisturizer, sunscreen, and/or antihistamine. I will admit that because of this section, I used moisturizer on my face for the first time. The result: several pimples on my nose. No thanks!By the way, the exam took about 30 minutes which meant a 90 minute break before the next class. Jumping on a bus to head home was a thought that crossed my mind. But I stayed for our Pre-Lab. We had our first MRAP - an action plan for the patient's medication problems - due this week. I wanted to make sure that I knew what I was doing. I am still not sure, but it is done and I have three more this semester.
Tuesday
Back in Drug Lit we went through examples of searches through Secondary Resources. We answered some questions by searching PubMed, EMBASE or Google (jk). Simple process. I like MeSH terms when applicable and I need to remember when to filter out options. I particularly liked the article about the professionalism of pharmacy students on Facebook. Hint: They are not too professional. But then again, is this?
Med Chem finished up a lecture about G-Protein Coupled Receptors (GPCR). Essentially a specific drug will either turn the receptor up, down or off. Therapy returned with our first day on Diabetes. It is a big section, and getting bigger. A full 40% of Americans will be diagnosed with Diabetes during their lifetime. Even more will have a loved one with Diabetes. I expect a lot of future questions about managing the disease.
Wednesday - 2 Quizzes, Again
Today we made Coal Tar in lab. We started with a quick quiz and more practice with Drug Information questions. In the lab, we combined coal tar and salicylic acid into a cream/ointment to treat a patient's psoriasis. The mixing process took a long time. It looked and sounded like a training session to work at Coldstone. We also made another batch using an unguator that only took 90 seconds. Much easier.
At lunch we had a CAPS meeting and I was forced to do a Phlash Mob dance. I ended up on the side out of the way expecting to follow the person next to me. But she didn't know it either. Oh well. It was all good fun. Afterwards we had another quiz in Kinetics about the basic equations that we used last semester - V, Cl, X, etc. I think that I will like kinetics. It's a math class. Basically plug and chug. But sitting in the class reminds me of my first year teaching physics. While I might think that the algebra is intuitive and easy. You have to go through everything step by step. I worked my way through the practice problems for the day and then worked on the crossword puzzle.
Thursday
Drug lit featured one of my favorite professors giving the classic scientific method lecture about randomized control trials. Instead of lima beans in saltwater, we talked about Cystic Fibrosis patients and hypertonic saline. Med chem flew through Histamine receptors and their role in the body. Histamine is released during an allergic reaction, but it also controls the acidity of your stomach and even your wakefulness. That's why Benadryl makes you sleepy and Prilosec treats acid reflux. After lunch, we had a second med chem presentation on diabetes drugs. The number of medications just to treat a diabetic patient's blood sugar keeps going up. They all have different methods of affecting the body. We get to learn/memorize all of them. Yeah!
It was a good week of classes. I get a bonus day by working in the Inpatient Pharmacy on Friday. I will be pulling drugs from the large, turning carousel from 7 until 3:30. But after that it is Labor Day Weekend and the beginning of College Football!!!
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