Last Saturday, April 9th, our class had a clinical skills day. This is done once per term during the last 3 terms of the didactic phase of PA school at PCOM. During these days we get to learn techniques that will be useful on clinical rotations and for the rest or our PA careers. The last clinical skills day we learned NG tube placement, arterial blood gas, how to draw blood, and how to administer vaccines and medication amongst other things. This past clinical skills day had a lot of review from the first day in order to make sure we understand important concepts like taking blood and administering a shot to a patient. However, we also learned new skills like placing catheters, placing EKG leads, and starting an EKG machine. Some of the skills we perform on dummies or dummy arms, like placing IVs and catheters, although we do draw blood on each other.
I love clinical skills day! It makes PA school more real, in the sense that you know one day you will be doing this on a real patient. I also couldn’t help but notice that this clinical skills day we started to become more confident. Some of us even decided to do IVs on each other and not the dummy arms. I know that I felt comfortable enough to take blood from one of my teachers, something that would have caused anxiety before. I enjoy these days because we get to learn from our teachers and other healthcare professionals from local hospitals. Everyone is always very patient with you and they share personal experiences and tips. I also feel that it’s a great way to meet potential co-workers. Breakfast and lunch are always provided which is nice and it is a very low-key atmosphere for learning.
On a separate note, our class finds out our clinical rotation sites on Friday! We are all really excited to know where we will be going in August throughout the next year. Look for that update this weekend.
Something important to note for PA students or future PA students: sometimes we can get bogged down in work and stress and how many tests we have the next week. In times like that it is nice to focus on the positives and enjoy the stress-free moments in life. DO NOT lose yourself in this process. We were all chosen to be in PA school for a reason; they liked us for who we ARE. Clinical skills day and knowing where we are going on rotations are the hallmarks of this week and last. In the weeks to come I will have others. The point is stay true to yourself, enjoy school, lean on friends and family if you are stressed, and do the best you can.
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