Impact of a stroke interprofessional simulation on health professional students.

Introduction: The objective was to describe the interprofessional stroke simulation delivered across three campuses with seven types of health professions students and the impact the activity had on the students.

Methods: An interprofessional stroke simulation event was completed with pharmacy, medical, nursing, physician assistant, occupational therapy, physical therapy, and speech pathology students across a multi-site campus. Pre-activity, demographic information was requested including age, gender, discipline, year in respective program, number of experiences in prior interprofessional events, and comfort working with other health care professionals.

Speaking up: using OSTEs to understand how medical students address professionalism lapses.

Background: Objective-structured teaching encounters (OSTEs) are used across many disciplines to assess teaching ability. The OSTE detailed in this paper assesses 191 fourth-year medical students' (M4) ability to identify and address lapses in professionalism based on Association of American Medical Colleges' professionalism competencies. The research questions addressed are How frequently do M4s address professionalism lapses observed during an OSTE? What factors influence whether M4s provide feedback when they observe professionalism lapses in an OSTE?

Methods: Standardized patients (SPs) and standardized learners (SLs) were recruited and trained to participate in a standardized encounter with specific cognitive, social, and behavioral errors, including professionalism lapses.

Respiratory infections: respiratory infections in immigrants to the United States.

Immigration has brought millions of individuals into the United States over the past decade. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the US Public Health Service are charged with ensuring that immigrants who enter do not pose a public health risk. Health examinations and immunization regimens are required for individuals wishing to live in the United States.

Respiratory infections: fungal infections.

Fungal infections cause pneumonia but are less common than bacterial or viral etiologies; therefore, fungal infections often are diagnosed late and can be lethal in a small percentage of cases. Although traditionally thought to affect mostly individuals with impaired immunity, fungal infections also occur in immunocompetent individuals and can be severe, even in the latter group. Important advances in the diagnosis and management of fungal infections have occurred in the past decade.

Respiratory infections: pulmonary tuberculosis.

Family physicians can prevent mortality and disability due to pulmonary tuberculosis (TB) by identifying high-risk patients. Recognition of symptoms (eg, cough for 3 weeks or longer) helps prevent overlooked diagnoses because results of tuberculin skin tests and interferon-gamma release assays are negative in up to 25% and 21%, respectively, of severe acute cases. The typical x-ray findings of cavities, infiltrates, and lymphadenopathy are minimal among immunosuppressed patients.

Respiratory infections: community-acquired pneumonia.

Pneumonia causes substantial morbidity and mortality. Older age, suppressed immune function, and certain drugs increase the risk of community-acquired pneumonia (CAP), whereas adequate dental care and high socioeconomic status decrease the risk. For patients without other significant cardiopulmonary disease, the diagnosis of pneumonia can be straightforward.

Graves' disease and treatment effects on warfarin anticoagulation.

Background. Hyperthyroidism causes an increased hypoprothrombinemic response to warfarin anticoagulation. Previous studies have demonstrated that patients with hyperthyroidism require lower dosages of warfarin to achieve a therapeutic effect.

Adolescent bipolar disorder: a clinical vignette.

Adolescence is a vulnerable developmental phase marked by physical, psychological, and social changes that rapidly expose young people to a wide range of new stressors. When differentiating between bipolar disorder and teenage "acting out," a careful history is important. Adolescent bipolar disorder is a psychiatric illness characterized by fluctuating episodes of mood elevation and depression that is frequently neither recognized nor formally diagnosed.

Diagnosis and treatment of streptococcal pharyngitis.

Common signs and symptoms of streptococcal pharyngitis include sore throat, temperature greater than 100.4 degrees F (38 degrees C), tonsillar exudates, and cervical adenopathy. Cough, coryza, and diarrhea are more common with viral pharyngitis.

Toilet training.

Toilet training is a developmental task that impacts families with small children. All healthy children are eventually toilet trained, and most complete the task without medical intervention. Most research on toilet training is descriptive, although some is evidence based.