Medical School: Week 8-9
We just finished another set of exams focusing on the cardiovascular system. There was some respiratory and neck anatomy pushed in there too but it looks like that will be the focus of the next three weeks. I don't think I've really explained the format for these exams yet so prepared to be wowed.
Every three weeks we have four hours of exams. The class is split into two halves. One half does two hours of a physiology exam while the other half is further split into a histology and anatomy sections. Histology is basically an hour of identifying tissue samples on a computer and answering questions about them. Anatomy is held in the cadaver lab with anatomical structures pinned and questions about their clinical significance. These two groups rotate and then trade off with the physiology group. Physiology is just under two hours covering the last three weeks of material. If you thought it was fun reading about it, just imagine how fun it is to do it.
Everyone develops their own routine for handling these three week blocks. Personally, I try to stay on top of things for two weeks and then realize I wasn't really on top of things by week three. This means I spend week three frantically trying to catch up. Once the test is over on Friday a lot of people go out and party a little. Having a family changes things for me a little bit so I came home and did dishes this last time (which is a party in its own sort of way).
I've also begun to realize what parts of medical school I really like and really don't like. For example, I love a good physiology lecture. Sometimes they get a little dry, but we have scientists in the field teaching us the practical application of the science behind organ systems. Sometimes we even have clinicians give lectures about how they are currently applying the science in the clinic. On the other hand, sometimes we talk about feelings....like a lot. Sometimes these lecture/discussions about feelings are somewhat relevant to doctor patient interactions. However, these discussions often degenerate into a contest of who can demonstrate the most open minded humanitarian attitude or a deep analysis of hypothetical situations. For example, a couple weeks ago a discussion about professional dress turned into a 20 minute tangent about wearing jeans. Personally, I hoped they trusted me to dress myself before accepting me to medical school.
While life may come to a screeching halt for medical school students to learn how to put on pants, everyone else's life goes on. Lexi planned a wonderful family halloween costume for the family. It was a Paw Patrol themed costume. Addie dressed as Sky, Lexi as Rock, Zoey as a sheep (that was saved by the Paw Patrol), and I dressed as Jake (I loath Jake).
Every three weeks we have four hours of exams. The class is split into two halves. One half does two hours of a physiology exam while the other half is further split into a histology and anatomy sections. Histology is basically an hour of identifying tissue samples on a computer and answering questions about them. Anatomy is held in the cadaver lab with anatomical structures pinned and questions about their clinical significance. These two groups rotate and then trade off with the physiology group. Physiology is just under two hours covering the last three weeks of material. If you thought it was fun reading about it, just imagine how fun it is to do it.
Everyone develops their own routine for handling these three week blocks. Personally, I try to stay on top of things for two weeks and then realize I wasn't really on top of things by week three. This means I spend week three frantically trying to catch up. Once the test is over on Friday a lot of people go out and party a little. Having a family changes things for me a little bit so I came home and did dishes this last time (which is a party in its own sort of way).
I've also begun to realize what parts of medical school I really like and really don't like. For example, I love a good physiology lecture. Sometimes they get a little dry, but we have scientists in the field teaching us the practical application of the science behind organ systems. Sometimes we even have clinicians give lectures about how they are currently applying the science in the clinic. On the other hand, sometimes we talk about feelings....like a lot. Sometimes these lecture/discussions about feelings are somewhat relevant to doctor patient interactions. However, these discussions often degenerate into a contest of who can demonstrate the most open minded humanitarian attitude or a deep analysis of hypothetical situations. For example, a couple weeks ago a discussion about professional dress turned into a 20 minute tangent about wearing jeans. Personally, I hoped they trusted me to dress myself before accepting me to medical school.
While life may come to a screeching halt for medical school students to learn how to put on pants, everyone else's life goes on. Lexi planned a wonderful family halloween costume for the family. It was a Paw Patrol themed costume. Addie dressed as Sky, Lexi as Rock, Zoey as a sheep (that was saved by the Paw Patrol), and I dressed as Jake (I loath Jake).
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