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Flinders Uni Info Page (Undergrad AND Postgrad Information)

Tue, 10 Apr 2012 19:17:00 +1000

Flinders University

Flinders Uni- a brief introduction
Flinders was founded in 1966 and is situated in Bedford Park, an outer suburb of Adelaide. Transport wise it�s around 35 minutes by bus, perhaps quicker by car, from the city centre (traffic dependant, but it�s Adelaide, traffic is NOTHING compared to Melbourne or Sydney.) It�s quite close (3km) to Marion, as massive shopping complex with anything you�re need and around 5 km from Brighton beach. It�s a nice campus, not as opulent as say Melbourne Uni but the views over to the nearby beachside suburb of Brighton are quite stunning when walking to lectures. The medical school itself is integrated into the

A Guide To Stethoscopes: 8 Common Scopes in Review

Sat, 10 Mar 2012 14:21:00 +1100

Preamble
These are common questions often asked by budding medical students when tasked with buying their first stethoscope - Which stethoscope should I buy? Are they all the same? Do I really need one? This article will attempt to quantify and qualify a group of common stethoscopes used.

Do I need a stethoscope?
Auscultation is an important part of the physical examination and every medical student should have one with them on the wards. Even if you don't know what to listen for, it's great to have one with you just in case something interesting

Making a good dermatology referral over the phone

Thu, 01 Mar 2012 22:12:00 +1100

There are a few words a dermatologist likes to hear over the phone and which will indicate that you have at least some minute interest in the specialty. It�s like a mental diagnostic flow chart that allows the person on the other end of the phone to start thinking about the possible causes for the problem that you are describing. No the word is not �rash� or �lesion� or anything vague like that. First of all, is what you are seeing red and scaly or red and non-scaly? Or is the rash pustular/blistering/vesicular? By using terminologies like these you are leading the dermatologist over the phone down a certain diagnostic pathway and hence also treatment pathway. Not to mention they will be greatly impressed.
From a history perspective, it is not dissimilar to how you would

How to write a clinical review note

Mon, 13 Feb 2012 21:13:00 +1100

How to write a clinical review note
Aside from an admission note or a progress note the other type of entry in the notes worth familiarising yourself with is the clinical review note. In NSW hospitals a nurse will call the junior doctor to review their patient if any of their observations do not fall �between the flags� (high ADDs score in QLD), but a nurse may ask to review the patient for other reasons such as a high blood sugar or pain.
The structure of this note will, again, depend on the person writing it. The format outlined here though is commonly used and, I think, a useful way of doing things.

How to write an effective admissions note

Sat, 11 Feb 2012 14:40:00 +1100

The admission note for a patient is really important. For the nurses it signifies that the medical team treating the patient is aware of them and their current level of stability and that there is a plan in place for their admission. For the doctors involved in treatment it is one of the most read entries in the notes because it provides a summary of why the patient is in hospital, and their background. This is crucially important for an after-hours doctor reviewing a patient they may not be familiar with or if another medical team is consulting on the patient. When it comes time to write the discharge summary the admission note is also really useful.

1. Housekeeping, this is the same as for progress notes, see this post

Common symbols and diagrams used in the medical notes

Sat, 21 Jan 2012 13:19:00 +1100

Everyone develops their own style for writing in the notes but these symbols and diagrams are fairly commonly recognised and effectively give a lot of information very quickly.

How to write an effective progress note

Sat, 21 Jan 2012 12:53:00 +1100

As a medical student on the wards you�re allowed to slowly take on some responsibility for ward work and one of the things you can really be of help with is writing in the notes. While this sounds like a simple task, and is a simple task, it�s one that can be done well or done poorly. In particular I remember during my pre-internship term the fellow writing in the notes for the consultant ward-round and being stunned by how efficient and effective she was. You wouldn�t think there�d be that much room for improvement with such a simple task but clearly there is. To be fair, part of her advantage was being so senior and knowing what the consultant was thinking the whole time.

This is a topic that is loosely taught in medical schools so I hope this guide