CHI Training and Anatomy Office Hours

Thursdays are supposed to be a day off for us, but I wound up having a very busy day. In the morning, I did my training for the Community Health Initiative (CHI). That is the new student-run CCLCM community health clinic that I mentioned before. It was pretty fun, actually. They had five different stations, and we learned to measure blood glucose levels and cholesterol, do urine dipsticks, conduct pregnancy tests, and take blood pressure. One of the other students practiced measuring glucose on me, and my glucose level was pretty good: 112 mg/dL nonfasting. That would almost be decent even if I had been fasting (normal fasting glucose level is less than 110 mg/dL). But I am especially excited to report that I FINALLY have learned to take blood pressure. I had tried a few times before, but I could never hear anything through the stethoscope. The trainers today had a two-eared stethoscope, so first I heard my own BP and then I heard one of my classmates' BP. Apparently I had been placing the stethoscope in the wrong place up until now. I guess it helps to know that the brachial artery (the one you put the stethoscope on while you take the BP) isn't right in the middle of the arm. It's actually a little bit toward the elbow. I've signed up for my first volunteer date on October 20.

In the afternoon, I went to the gym, studied a little, met with my PA, and then went to the anatomy office hours. Since we only have two hours of anatomy lab per week, there are extra optional office hours where they take out the cadavers and we can go look at them longer on our own. The anatomy professors are there in the lab to answer our questions, and it's a lot less stressful and hectic because fewer people are in the room and we can stay and look at each body for as long as we want instead of having to change stations at a set time. They are having the office hours on Monday, Tuesday, and Thursday afternoons from 3-5. The bodies were all of the same ones that we saw on Monday, but I knew a lot more of the structures this time. I think from now on though I will try to avoid coming on Thursdays, because I'd like to not go in to school at all on Thursdays. Since I have clinics every other Tuesday, that means I'll have to start going on Mondays. Well, I guess Mondays are just going to be my anatomy days.