Learning pharmacology????

VirginiaEMT

VirginiaEMT

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I was just accepted into our local EMT-I program after taking the entrance exam a couple of weeks ago;I am bridging from B to I. I was one of 22 picked out of 70 some test-takers.

My class starts on August 1 and I thought it might be a good idea to learn some of the drugs beforehand. Did you do something that made this easier for you? Should I work on a couple a week? Any ideas appreciated?????

This may be important: I am 47 years old, work 40 hours a week as an insurance agent, so no study time on the job.
 
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The way I learned the pharm for my medic school was notecards, then a whiteboard. Used a permanent marker to right out the different sections; class, mechanism, indications ect... then use a dry erase marker and write out everything you can remember about the drug, then fill in the stuff you don't know from your notecards, erase and repeat. IIRC intermediate is ~12 meds.
 
Well if you know what drugs are in your scope of practice then you can make notecards of them and just go over them repeatedly. What I did was go over one medication (indications, contraindications, mechanism of action, dosage, etc.) then move onto the next medication and after I finish the second I'll go over the first one in my head again, and I'll just repeat that until I finish all the meds. It takes awhile towards the end since you'll be starting at the beginning and reciting them all, but it really worked for me.
 
Drug cards.



Learn what the drug does, and it will make learning it much easier.
 
I've also been reading Dr. Guy's Pharmacology for the Prehospital Professional. Very well written and informative, in my opinion. But it is definitely geared for medic students.
 
Learn all of the paramedic drugs. Don't sell yourself short and NOT learn all o them. There is a good IPhone app called NREMT Paramedic that has all NREMT drugs.
 
8jimi8 said:
There is a good IPhone app called NREMT Paramedic that has all NREMT drugs.
Click to expand...

Now I would be all over this...too bad someone stole my brand new phone :wacko:
 
NVRob said:
The way I learned the pharm for my medic school was notecards, then a whiteboard. Used a permanent marker to right out the different sections; class, mechanism, indications ect... then use a dry erase marker and write out everything you can remember about the drug, then fill in the stuff you don't know from your notecards, erase and repeat. IIRC intermediate is ~12 meds.
Click to expand...

Im in VA as well, and since we are still on the I-99 standard, there are way more than 12 meds to learn. Scope of practice may limit Intermediates in some parts of the state but around here an Intermediate can give every drug that a Paramedic can.

There is VERY little distinction between I's and P's around here.

OP are you in the Northern VA area perhaps? I might be able to help you a bit if you are.

First of all, our Pharm class was a joke. A very basic overview. Learned very little there. And even during the Intermediate semesters it was basically up to us to study drugs on our own time. Some are talked about in class, others never at all.

If you want to have a leg up going into school in august i would really only focus on pain, anti nausea, ACLS, respiratory, and some metabolic drugs. Its not everything but its a very good start.
 
NVRob said:
a whiteboard. Used a permanent marker to right out the different sections; class, mechanism, indications ect... then use a dry erase marker and write out everything you can remember about the drug, then fill in the stuff you don't know from your notecards, erase and repeat. IIRC intermediate is ~12 meds.
Click to expand...

Wow, never heard the whiteboard method. that's AWESOME. i learn by writing... such a great idea. i normally just drill flashcards. love this idea, thanks!
 
A good study partner can help alot.

Quiz each other, and use the same few questions repeatedly until you are both answering all the questions correctly all the time. Then slowly start introducing new questions, but keep the ones you have just learned fresh, repetition is key.

But this is only rote memorization and will only get you so far. After you have established some sort of ground level knowledge about the topic at hand, start asking the hardest questions you can think of (that your partner has a fair chance of answering correctly). Use scenario type questions, any type of question that involves synthesis or application of the material.

If you study in this way, I do believe you can learn, and retain vast amounts of material in relatively short amounts of time. Of course, if both of you already know a little bit before quizzing each other, this method will work even better.
 
Chief Complaint said:
Im in VA as well, and since we are still on the I-99 standard, there are way more than 12 meds to learn..
Click to expand...

My mistake. We use the I/85 standard and we have no where near the scope of a medic.
 
Carry your notecards with you everywhere. Actually look at them in any downtime you have.

I really like the whiteboard idea. I do something like that when I'm memorizing something except on paper.

Also, look for a physiologic reason for every indication and contraindication. Anyone can memorize drugs, but understanding the pharmacology will be the difference between you being a technician and a practitioner.
 
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