Gbpmk399132 Posted March 18, 2019 Share Posted March 18, 2019 Hello! Just wanted to see if anyone had any reviews suggestions for students who have been accepted and are awaiting the start of their PA schooling. I have already begun looking over some things anatomically, but wanted to inquire about any specific sources such as textbooks, internet sources, etc someone may have found helpful before your PA program began. And would you recommend focusing on anything specific that may pertain to the majority of programs? Thanks so much! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bubbles Posted March 18, 2019 Share Posted March 18, 2019 Most people recommend taking a break and enjoying yourself. While this is true, it can’t hurt to brush up on anatomy and physiology, especially if you haven’t taken these courses in awhile. I’d definitely focus on cardiology, but also recommend reviewing the other systems. First part of first semester, we had a condensed, fast-paced physiology course. I hadn’t taken physiology in almost 10 years and worked in a sub-speciality, so I had to spend a bit more time studying than classmates who’d taken it more recently. Brushing up on(or learning the basics of) EKGs would also be helpful. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fishbum Posted March 18, 2019 Share Posted March 18, 2019 I'd spend some time learning about how to study medicine. There is a lot of information out there for medical students and not as much for PA students, but it should translate well. Didactic year would have been SO much easier if I had a better approach from the start. Also, do try and have some fun before you start. Good luck. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Anachronist Posted March 18, 2019 Share Posted March 18, 2019 IMHO: Agree with above. "Take a break is common advice" and I took it, but knowing what I do now, I wouldn't have. Anything you can study that is concrete will help. In my experience: Anatomy was mind blowing, every class I had taken before (4, at 3 different institutions) barely scratched the surface. My advice would be "Acland Academy" videos, they are real cadaver videos, broken up into short sections for viewing. 100% worth the fee. I would have told myself to watch every single one at least once just to get my bearings. <- my #1 advice without question. Physiology was also very in-depth, and some of my UG, had prepared me well for some of it, but not all. I found the YouTube channel NinjaNerdScience EXTREMELY helpful. They are concise and hit all the key points with adequate but not excessive info (very tricky to find, most are either too much or too little). The people who make it are current PA students, so they are right on target, and I have not noticed any errors in their videos. Also it should give you a very good taste of "what you're in for." <- #2 advice, no question. If you are unfamiliar with EKGs, there are many concise books out there that are reasonably priced. I really liked "The Only EKG Book You'll Ever Need" but the others I've seen are also good. The big thing is knowing your way around a rhythm strip, and how the leads relate to the anatomy and how the axis works; if you know the mechanics, learning all the abnormalities will be a breeze. Once you start, DirtyUSMLE (on YouTube) is good for hitting the key points of a lot of stuff. Made for med students but as a study guide, so the depth of info is not over the top. Probably not very helpful until you have background info, just "keep it in mind." Osmosis and SmartyPANCE are also popular online programs. Probably better for when you start as supplemental info to go along with whatever you are learning. They are not cheap, but SmartyPANCE has been pretty helpful (it's just the one I went with; have heard good things about Osmosis too). The big thing for me was the massive volume of information, and the terminology. My medical terminology UG class was a joke (think a children's book about cars when you're trying to train a mechanic). If you can at least have your bearings in the aforementioned info, that will help. But "having your bearings" is probably a lot more than you think right now, it was for me (and I'm a BS Biology major). I haven't had any "conceptual" challenges, but I hammered upper level bio classes pretty hard. For me it has been more like "memorize this whole dictionary, in two weeks; then you'll have a new one to memorize, rinse and repeat." Pharm is an outlier. Programs are very different, and even how to study it is... "complicated." You'll see when you get there. Every rule has exceptions and there are 10 ways to do the same thing, but "which one is "best," is a common theme. I listened to an audio book "Memorizing Pharmacology: A Relaxed Approach," and it definitely helped, but was not "high yield" information. TLDR: 1 - Purchase the Acland videos and watch every single one (only the hands and feet exceeded what we had to know for exams, and not by a lot). 2 - If you're still game, start plugging away at the NinjaNerdScience videos on YouTube. 3 - If you're still wanting more, get a "condensed" EKG book and focus on the mechanics more than the diseases. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gbpmk399132 Posted March 19, 2019 Author Share Posted March 19, 2019 Wow thanks so much everyone. i appreciate the detailed responses Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ejohns20 Posted March 19, 2019 Share Posted March 19, 2019 18 hours ago, Anachronist said: IMHO: Agree with above. "Take a break is common advice" and I took it, but knowing what I do now, I wouldn't have. Anything you can study that is concrete will help. In my experience: Anatomy was mind blowing, every class I had taken before (4, at 3 different institutions) barely scratched the surface. My advice would be "Acland Academy" videos, they are real cadaver videos, broken up into short sections for viewing. 100% worth the fee. I would have told myself to watch every single one at least once just to get my bearings. <- my #1 advice without question. Physiology was also very in-depth, and some of my UG, had prepared me well for some of it, but not all. I found the YouTube channel NinjaNerdScience EXTREMELY helpful. They are concise and hit all the key points with adequate but not excessive info (very tricky to find, most are either too much or too little). The people who make it are current PA students, so they are right on target, and I have not noticed any errors in their videos. Also it should give you a very good taste of "what you're in for." <- #2 advice, no question. TLDR: 1 - Purchase the Acland videos and watch every single one (only the hands and feet exceeded what we had to know for exams, and not by a lot). 2 - If you're still game, start plugging away at the NinjaNerdScience videos on YouTube. 3 - If you're still wanting more, get a "condensed" EKG book and focus on the mechanics more than the diseases. Is Acland also on YouTube? If so, what's the channel name? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Anachronist Posted March 19, 2019 Share Posted March 19, 2019 31 minutes ago, Ejohns20 said: Is Acland also on YouTube? If so, what's the channel name? It is not, it is old (like the originals were VHS), and requires a subscription. But nothing else I've seen even comes close. (Disclaimer: I'm not affiliated with them in any way, I only found out about Acland because a couple clips were used in some of our lectures and I was like "wow these are amazing, are there more?" So I googled the watermark from the video... there is A LOT more). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Monet Posted March 20, 2019 Share Posted March 20, 2019 On 3/18/2019 at 3:35 PM, fishbum said: I'd spend some time learning about how to study medicine. There is a lot of information out there for medical students and not as much for PA students, but it should translate well. Didactic year would have been SO much easier if I had a better approach from the start. Also, do try and have some fun before you start. Good luck. Hello @fishbum. You mentioned that you would have spent time learning how to study medicine. Since you have completed didactic year, how would you suggest studying medicine and what are ways that you found effective? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fishbum Posted March 20, 2019 Share Posted March 20, 2019 My study approach is probably nothing that you want to model. I would take the PANCE topic list, group the disorders logically, then outline patho/signs&symptoms/exam findings/diagnostics/therapeutics &pharm for each. One good recommendation I have is to get a test bank (kaplan, rosh, etc) and use it as soon as you're learning clinical medicine. It'll be good studying for your exams, and it'll start your PANCE prep early. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AllisonH Posted March 23, 2019 Share Posted March 23, 2019 Anyone utilize PA School prep? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Endeavor Posted March 23, 2019 Share Posted March 23, 2019 I second medical terminology. If you start in the fall I would highly recommend getting a Scribe job that way it'll incentivize you learning the medical lingo. If not you can search up some quizlets or look for a free online class, but definitely brushing up on A&P and Medical Term would be the most helpful. Also, every PA school has its own method to the madness. Reach out to current students (1st and 2nd years) and see how they approached your future classes. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JD2012 Posted March 26, 2019 Share Posted March 26, 2019 About to finish up my 1st year in PA school, and I am in the camp of not touching anything medically related. Go travel and spend time with family. Let your brain relax. I go weeks without seeing my parents sometimes and they live 3 miles away, that's how hectic it can get. You will be devoting plenty of time for reading and learning. PA school will teach you everything you need to know to pass the exams. I have no idea why you want to hit the books when for the next 2 years that's all you're going to be doing? I am also the kind of person that like balance in their lives, I will take a B and use the little spare time for fun rather than just grinding hard for that A. It's how I have kept my sanity so far. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gbpmk399132 Posted March 27, 2019 Author Share Posted March 27, 2019 Thanks for the replies everyone!! Some great info. And as JD2012 and some others have said relaxing before it all begins is definitely great advice, as well. Personally, I think a balance of both is what I'll do. I feel that since this will be our careers pretty soon and this a field I am highly interested in, it couldn't hurt to study a bit extra Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ket131 Posted March 29, 2019 Share Posted March 29, 2019 You will have plenty of time to be miserable in PA school studying. Repeat number 1. Repeat number 1 and 2. What you think you will retain, you will likely not with casual studying. Repeat number 1, 2 and 3. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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