Q1 Begins!

With my mini-quarter now complete, I am diving into my first "real" quarter of medical school. Here is how my class schedule is shaping up so far:

Biochemistry
Medical Genetics
Developmental Biology
Practice of Medicine
Anatomy
Costs, Benefits, and Risks of Health Care
Healer's Art
PALS

It's a jam-packed schedule, but I'm excited about all my classes. There are also several lunch time seminars I'll be sitting in on, including Intro to Surgery, Intro to Internal Medicine, and Intro to Emergency Medicine.

Also, another ANATOMY UPDATE:
You can now quiz me on the thorax and upper limb. So basically the hand, arm, shoulder, heart, rib cage and lung. I know how to test if you have carpal tunnel syndrome, whether your dislocated shoulder caused nerve damage, and make sure you have a corotid pulse.

My Evolution into an AM Runner

It's come to this. I have finally given in to the pervasive idea that only by running in the morning can you ensure you will get a run in. For the mini-quarter I attempted to run after class, to workout at the gym at night, to run once I got home. Fail. Fail. Fail. If it ain't working, change it. So this morning I woke up, went for a light run, and voila, I fit my run into my day, before my 6 hours of class, before the evening OB/GYN interest meeting, before the interventional cardiology lunch time talk. I ran, I feel great, and I'm happy.

I also realized that it's not so much that I don't like running in the morning, it was pleasant today. I just HATE getting out of bed in the morning. There is nothing more satisfying then hitting the snooze alarm 10 times to me. This too can change, and today I only hit it twice and was out the door by 7:30. Desperate times call for desperate measures. I will only do well in medical school if I run regularly, thus my entry into the world as a newly minted AM runner.

Novel H1N1 Virus

Today I learned how to give a flu shot, I vaccinated someone and got vaccinated in return (with the seasonal flu vaccine). I learned a lot about the Novel H1N1 Virus. Right now the US government is prioritizing vaccination to certain groups who are at high risk. It appears that most of the public health community is on alert, ready to start vaccinating as soon as we get enough of the seasonal flu vaccine and the novel H1N1 vaccine.

Here at Stanford, all 1st and 2nd year medical students are being enlisted to vaccinate the entire Stanford community, all 30,000 or so that want the vaccine. I will let you know how it goes once we get started.

I also learned of the 3 key signs of influenza-like-illness (ILI): people must have a fever, and they must have either a cough OR a sore throat. If you're worried about catching the flu this year, stay away from people that cough (within 6 feet of them and you'll probably get the virus), and wash your hands regularly. Most importantly, don't touch your face! The best resource if you're concerned is the Center for Disease Control's website. They have weekly updates and more than enough information.

Survived Exams

I'm still alive. And I think I passed!

Sent from my iPhone
-Julia