Current Favorites

Happy April! It doesn't feel like April here, since it snowed a little bit earlier. I can't wait until the weather warms up! I usually don't have enough favorites to do a blog post (I guess I just have impossibly high standards haha), but I actually do today! 

1. La Roche-Posay Toleriane Purifying Foaming Cleanser // I have never loved a cleanser so much! I have very sensitive, acne- and clog-prone skin, so it is hard for me to find a cleanser that doesn't dry my skin out or cause breakouts. This one does neither! It is the least drying foaming cleanser that I have found and I have tried many.

Update + My Top 3 Tips for Clinical Year!

Long time, no post! Since my last post, I have graduated from my PA program and passed the PANCE! I am now a PA-C! It still doesn't feel real! I am currently taking a much needed break at home with my family while looking for a position in dermatology.

As I was brainstorming post ideas, I thought that tips for clinical year could be very helpful. I wish that someone had told me these tips before I started my clinical rotations!

Pediatrics Rotation | My Experience + Tips

I just finished my pediatrics rotation, and I thought I got through it without catching something…but nope. A day after finishing my rotation, I came down with a cold! A gift from the little kiddos, I suppose…ha! 

Source: cdc.gov

I didn’t think that I would enjoy my pediatrics rotation, but I did. There were so many cute babies (but also annoying kids and parents)! It was cool to see the pediatric illnesses and conditions that we learned about in person. I saw patients with Fifth disease, impetigo, nursemaid's elbow, molluscum contagiosum, pinworms, erythema toxicum, and mongolian spots. I also gave a lot of vaccines, which was great since I was never able to do that during my previous rotations. There is a CDC Immunization Schedule app that you can use to quickly look up which vaccines are due. I didn't personally use it because I memorized the CDC immunization schedule for the EOR exam anyway. 

Behavioral Health Rotation | My Experience

I just finished my Behavioral Health rotation (my 7th rotation...just 3 more to go!) and I wanted to write a little about my experience and how I studied for the EOR exam. I did my rotation at an inpatient mental health facility with adult, adolescent, child, and dual (psychiatric illness + substance abuse) units. I worked with the adults for the majority of my rotation. To be honest, I was pretty nervous in the beginning, especially since the patients were acting out more than usual during my first week there...screaming at hallucinations, punching holes in the wall, banging heads against the wall, etc. As time went on, I became more comfortable working with the patients. It was a great experience and I learned a lot! I learned how to redirect patients who were easily distracted and deal with difficult substance abuse patients. You need to be careful because some patients can be very manipulative!

Emergency Medicine Rotation | Tips and Helpful Resources

via Google Images

I finished up my Emergency Medicine rotation a little over a week ago. It was definitely overwhelming at times, but I saw and learned a lot. Here are some tips and resources that I found helpful during my rotation!

1. Follow the residents around! // This depends on your rotation site of course, but I found that most residents, physicians, and PAs would be so busy that they forgot I was there. I learned to just follow them around everywhere, so I didn't miss out on anything!

2. Good pediatric resources // One of the residents I worked with showed me these two websites that are helpful when dealing with pediatric patients. Bonepit.com shows you normal x-rays for different ages. CHOP's Clinical Pathways are also very helpful. You can click on "Emergency" to limit the clinical pathways to only emergency medicine related clinical pathways.