Since Christmas, I've finished two more modules of my medical school curriculum.
Medicine Across the Lifespan, which was intended to be a transitional and summative module integrating what we have learned so far into actual clinical practice, was actually more of a train wreck. We covered principles pertaining to geriatric, adolescent, and pediatric medicine, and revisited embryology. Sounds great, right? Well, imagine a 50 minute lecture which could have easily been condensed into a 20-30 minute lecture. Now, imagine sitting through 3 variations of the same material in 3 separate lectures given by 3 different professors. Did I mention it was all review-- we had seen it in some other module before?
But wait-- doesn't that mean an easy A, you ask? Actually, not at all. We were tested not on core principles which will carry us through our clinical years, but on detail, minutae, and things requiring rote memorization. So, the exam was surprisingly hard.
And finally, Infectious Disease. Oh, how I have grown to love infectious diseases. About as much as I would like to have anthrax or cholera. At least we were warned that this would be one of the hardest modules of the first 2 years. In 6 short weeks we covered every pathogen known to affect humans (and some that only affect animals, just for fun I guess) and how to treat them. One word: virulence factors. If you know what I mean then a chill just ran down your spine. We had to memorize a bowl of alphabet soup for each pathogen-- components of the given pathogen that actually cause harmful effects in the host that they infect. Protein A, toxin A, alpha toxin, SpeA, OspA, Opa... the list goes on and on and hits almost every letter of the alphabet. It was painful. I finished with my lowest exam grade ever, but I still maintained the overall grade I needed, so I should be thankful that I am not one of the 3-5 each year that fails and must retake the module the following year. We finished with an NBME Microbiology shelf exam, which was refreshingly easier than the course exams. I'm looking forward to seeing how I measure up to other medical students next week when we get our grade for that, which is a standardized exam.
One module to go, called Integration and Consolidation, and then I'm done with the first phase of my training. It's a mix of pharmacology and physiology review, designed to prepare us for the USMLE Step 1 exam. As much as I dislike pharmacology, I'm actually looking forward to it.
After IC, I study intensely for a month for Step 1, which I take on June 1. Then I'm done for 2 glorious weeks until 3rd year orientation brings me back to reality. And then, with clinicals, I begin to dominate the class of 2014. That's the plan at least.
I'm going to need prayers. Lots and lots of prayers.
Monday, March 12, 2012
Part 1: Home/Family Update
Well, here I am again.
Ok, it has been a while since my last post. Yep, you guessed it-- I must be on some sort of break from school. It is spring break!
I've been working hard at the med student and wife-mommy thing, and I seem to have gotten more used to the craziness than I was last semester.
On the home front:
--My middle son is finally using the big boy potty! Hooray! He has known what to do and when to do it for some time now, and after some relentless prodding by my husband he has decided that he's ready to give up diapers. Even better, he also no longer wears pull ups at night! He did not even make it through one full package of pull ups. My daughter used pull ups for at least a few months when she was potty training, so this was a nice surprise.
--My daughter has become quite the big girl. She is starting kindergarten this fall, and she is so ready. She soaks up everything she learns, and she doesn't forget anything (unlike her mommy)! She has her daddy's freakishly accurate long-term memory, which is a good thing! She is getting ready to learn how to ski, which will be fun to watch.
--The baby now is anything but. He's almost 1, and will be walking soon. Now he is cruising all over the place and getting into everything. It makes it hard to multitask sometimes but it is so exciting to see him grow and try to keep up with his siblings. It's going to be a race between him and his brother to see who the family funny guy will be. Both are extremely funny and love to make people laugh.
--My husband continues to me the awesome rock of the family, holding everything together when I get stressed with school. Last week was exam week, and not only did he suggest leftovers one night (leftovers that we were all sick of), but he actually made dinner another night. French toast and bacon, and it was awesome. I'm so grateful that he is plugged into his family 100% everyday, and that he continues to work a job that he does not particularly love so that I can live my dream. How can I even compete with that?
Ok, it has been a while since my last post. Yep, you guessed it-- I must be on some sort of break from school. It is spring break!
I've been working hard at the med student and wife-mommy thing, and I seem to have gotten more used to the craziness than I was last semester.
On the home front:
--My middle son is finally using the big boy potty! Hooray! He has known what to do and when to do it for some time now, and after some relentless prodding by my husband he has decided that he's ready to give up diapers. Even better, he also no longer wears pull ups at night! He did not even make it through one full package of pull ups. My daughter used pull ups for at least a few months when she was potty training, so this was a nice surprise.
--My daughter has become quite the big girl. She is starting kindergarten this fall, and she is so ready. She soaks up everything she learns, and she doesn't forget anything (unlike her mommy)! She has her daddy's freakishly accurate long-term memory, which is a good thing! She is getting ready to learn how to ski, which will be fun to watch.
--The baby now is anything but. He's almost 1, and will be walking soon. Now he is cruising all over the place and getting into everything. It makes it hard to multitask sometimes but it is so exciting to see him grow and try to keep up with his siblings. It's going to be a race between him and his brother to see who the family funny guy will be. Both are extremely funny and love to make people laugh.
--My husband continues to me the awesome rock of the family, holding everything together when I get stressed with school. Last week was exam week, and not only did he suggest leftovers one night (leftovers that we were all sick of), but he actually made dinner another night. French toast and bacon, and it was awesome. I'm so grateful that he is plugged into his family 100% everyday, and that he continues to work a job that he does not particularly love so that I can live my dream. How can I even compete with that?
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