wow... seems so weird that I've been here 6 weeks already...
I'm in a pretty good routine. which is to say I haven't really got one. I try to work when awake. thats about it.
The weather's been pretty crazy... I remember people in Ohio telling me if I didn't like the weather, I should wait 10 minutes. Even crazier here... Wednesday we got visited by Tropical depression Orphelia. (weird name for anything, not to mention a storm) that was spectacular. It was only a depression because the winds weren't very bad... 20 mph or so... but the rain... geez... I think we got a foot of rain in 12 hours... some of the roads that I normally walk down going to campus? I was literally wading down them... about 6 in of flowing water on them. I think we've probably got 6 feet of rain since i've been here...
So today I'm spending all afternoon studying and catching up on some lectures... Should be fun. lol embryology and some other stuff. That was a fun class, if a little detail heavy. so gotta study
Friday's our Mini 1 Part 2 (for those who don't know what that means I'll explain.)
Our curriculum is an example of the new style of Medical education that schools in the US have started to turn to. Instead of being a traditional style, or what is called a discipline-based education, we have a systems-based education. Discipline based is where you have a class on Histology, a class on Anatomy, a class on Biochemistry, etc. with midterms, finals, and what have you.
In a Systems based curriculum, they have taken all those disciplines and coordinated them so that when we deal with the histology of the liver, we are also dealing with the biochemistry of the liver, and the anatomy of the liver. It allows for the different classes to reinforce each other rather than compete with each other. Supposedly It makes things easier to learn, and so far I have to agree. It's something thats only possible in a school like a medical school where they only have one program.
So what that means, is that instead of each prof making up exams, they just make up questions that they contribute to a collective midterm, called a Mini. our semesters are split into 3 blocks, each of which is 2 modules. at the end of each block we have a Mini that covers that block and that block alone. After a semester's Mini 3 we have a week to study before a comprehensive final for that semester.
To help us adjust to the system, they actually split Mini 1 into 2 parts and we had part one after about 2.5 weeks. the second part of it will be the end of next week, at the end of Block 1. So I'm a week short of being 1/12th done with my time on the island... It's started to go fast...
Well, I need to head back to the books...
email me if you want.
I'm not great at replying but I am good at checking it. and its the fastest way to get my attention if you need to.
