For the past three
summers, the
Hi
families and friends,
The trip
down yesterday was uneventful - it was the best travel day we have had coming
to
We got in
about
More
tomorrow!
Luisa
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
June 28; Day 2:
Hi
families and friends,
Last night
the kids had an orientation evening - forced to play games to get to know each
other. The best event was a dance contest. They were in their color groups and
were given 30 minutes to come up with a dance routine to a specific song. The
kids were amazing - of course, the girls did the choreography but the boys were
very good sports. They were all hilarious. Arrykka stole the show :-)
Today was
the second day of the camp. The kids are split into two large groups: 1 and 2.
Today Group 1 had a clinical day - topic was the Musculoskeletal System. Kara
was assigned as the chaperone on that group and Sam and I are with Group 2.
Today Group 2 went on a dolphin watch and afternoon on the beach. I'll have to
tell you more about the adventures of Group 2 - tomorrow we switch and Group 2
has a clinic day and Group 1 goes on the dolphin watch.
Group 1:
Rachel H, Shamika, Julie, Kaitlin S, Caitlin S, Aileen, Arrykka, Rachel P,
Philip, Kara
Group 2:
Katelyn R, Kayla, Mark, Meghan, Josh, Michael, Ashley, Nina, Hunter, Danielle,
Sam, Luisa
The day was
beautiful - we started with breakfast at
I had to
keep reminding them to put their sunscreen on - the sun is hot - no one too
badly burned but we do have pink cheeks. Josh and Mark discovered that some of
the sunscreen lotions need to dry on the body before jumping in the water. Josh
came up after snorkeling with Mark and he was white - seems that the sunscreen
turned into a glue-like substance - what to do?? - write
on his back, of course - Michael, his good buddy - wrote KICK ME on his
back....I have a picture which I will later share!
Group 1 was
engaged in a lecture in the dry lab by Dr. Curry (British professor) on the
musculoskeletal system - bit on bones, joints and muscles. The lecture was
about 1 1/2 hours followed by hands-on activities in the gross anatomy lab (wet
lab as it is called). There are about 5 -6 stations set up with
a professor at each station - the kids put their scrub shirts on and the
gloves and "go for it". They are at each station about 20 minutes -
small group interaction with teachings very similar to what occurs in gross
anatomy in med school. The stations had "headless cadavers" (Kara was
a little freaked out), various organs, legs and arms to demonstrate different
muscle groups and tendons, and ligaments, etc. Kara
said our kids were the best -they knew so much and answered so many questions!
After lunch - yes - they all ate - they experienced some clinical scenarios -
I'll give you more details tomorrow about that.
Tonight the
kids have a dance with a DJ outside - full moon, not too many stars, clear
evening and
More on the academic day tomorrow. Kara, Sam, and I are very proud of the kids. Sam
will be with the VET kids so I'll get input from him also.
Cheers,
Luisa
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
June 29; Day 3:
Hi
families and friends,
Technically
this is the 2nd day of camp but we have been here 3 days. Last night the
kids had a dance with a DJ - almost all attended - a few shy ones kept away.
The Scots brought their music and taught the kids how to dance some of the
Scottish jigs. Mainly our kids wanted to hear "their" music - makes
me realize that Americans are such a combo of so many cultures. Arrykka and
Rachel Huffman had a dance off - it was great :-)
Today Group
2 is having the academic experience while Group 1 has the Dolphin Watch -
actually - it started as a rainy morning so Group 1 went into town instead and
the watch will be rescheduled for them. I really hope they can experience as
nice a trip as we had yesterday. The crew on the boat had pictures and info on
the different varieties of dolphins and whales that are seen off the coast of
The
academics today are great and our kids are reinforcing much anatomy they
already know. They are appreciating what a great job Sam Hamilton did in
anatomy! Meghan G took Sports anatomy so her knowledge is more solid - I am
very proud of them all. After the 1.5 hour lecture they are experiencing the
gross anatomy lab - 5 stations: histology (slides of muscles tissues), skeletal
landmarks using their own bodies and skeleton models, how the skeleton is
arranged and why, x-rays and interpretations of fractures, how muscles work.
Each station is manned by a medical school professor - small groups of 4-6 students
at a station so they are getting very good hands on instruction. They use
models as well as full size cadavers - so far no one has gotten sick from the
formalin odor :-). The VET kids are doing the same but lecture is on
comparative anatomy not human and their models are of animals as well as animal
cadavers.
More later.
Cheers,
Luisa
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
End email on June 29:
Today
has been a little overcast and rainy....but we are in the rainforest. The rain
has made the air very thick and muggy for a few hours but it is already
improving.
Try
the website for pictures and updates of the camp - each day more pics will be
loaded. At the end of the camp, the teachers are given a CD with tons of
pics (last year's CD had 2,000 pics) - plus I take a lot of pics also of
our kids.
Website
is: www.sgu.edu
Here's a
direct link - may not work...
https://angel.sgu.edu/Angel/section/default.asp?format=course&id=CampMedicine&title=Camp+Medicine
If
not - follow this:
Go to www.sgu.edu, Click on
SCHOOLS - click on SCHOOL of Medicine - Click MORE - Click Summer Camp and Click MORE - Click on Visit this year's experience - a new
screen will pop up - there will be some pictures there. Then click Content and then High School Daily Updates - Day 1 (power point of a few pics).
The
afternoon session for academics consisted of clinical applications in
musculoskeletal disorders and conditions. Activities included: how to evaluate a patient with various
conditions, matching x-rays to the clinical scenarios, how to test reflexes on
each other, and prosthetics in orthopedics, muscles and paralysis. Also Dr.
Rooney gave a lecture and handout on the importance of Effective Communication
Skills and Effective Clinical History Taking. Later in the camp, each student
will have the opportunity to interview a patient and perform a complete history
evaluation in an attempt to figure out the diagnosis - very challenging and
sophisticated activity. The kids are a little nervous about doing this - it
will be great :-)
Cheers, Luisa
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
From Sam on the VET
Camp:
Friday
- the vet kids had an exciting day today. They had a lecture on bones, muscles,
and joints. During lab, they worked with partners to answer questions on what
they learned in lecture. Then they were surprised when the
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
July 2:
HI families and friends,
The kids
are dragging a bit - this is half way and they are feeling very tired so they
are very quiet this morning.
A little
about
The
people are lovely, very courteous every where. They greet everyone and we are
trying to get the kids to do the same. It is painfully obvious how rude
Americans seem sometimes because we just don't go around greeting everyone we
see on the street - they do - some of the more outgoing kids love it and have
begun doing it also. We have been on several excursions - the roads are very
narrow and winding, they drive on the opposite side so that freaked out the
kids a bit at first. Beautiful colors everywhere - all the houses are
painted vibrant colors and the trees and foliage and gorgeous flowers - the
kids keep saying how drab the
Today
Group 1 is on the Dolphin Watch and rainforest hike - gorgeous day, so
hopefully they will have a successful day on both excursions.
Group 2
has an academic day - Cardiopulmonary System. Began with
a 2 hour lecture (with a break) on the anatomy and phys of the heart and lungs.
Dr. Curry reviewed the chambers and valves concentrating on the differences
between atrial and ventricular functions, diff between arterial and venous
blood and circulation, cardiac and pulmonary circulation, cardiac cycle,
coronaries, ECG, pulmonary anatomy, diff between ventilation and respiration.
After lecture - the kids are spending several hours in the wet lab with
cadavers, hearts, diseased hearts, and models. By viewing a real cadaver they
can see the organs "in situ" - meaning in their true location - much
more effective than just pictures. Dr. Loukas explains
the hypertrophic heart - cardiomegaly - a patient with a myocardial
infarction to show how much bigger this heart is than normal. In histology,
they are viewing the different tissues of arteries and veins and capillaries.
There are models to help learn the respiratory system and its interaction with
the heart. They can see several ECGs and compare a normal rhythm with
tachycardia and fibrillation, etc. This afternoon will be more clinical
applications - ex. how to assess, diagnose, and treat an MI, or coronary
disease; what are risk factors and preventative measures, etc. I always enjoy
this part the most. More tomorrow on the afternoon session.
Yesterday
all the kids were together - sailboat ride, snorkeling and afternoon on the
beach with a yummy barbeque on the beach. They really enjoyed snorkeling - some
swallowed some water :-) but they saw a lot of sea life. They also had fun
riding the banana boat.
Tonight
is dinner at one the nicest restaurants on the island - The Aquarium. More tomorrow. Also - Sam will give an update on the VET
kids.
Make sure
you visit the website - some pics out there but we have many more :-)
Cheers, Luisa
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
July 3:
More
on the cardiopulmonary activities:
In the lab,
the kids were able to handle different lungs - normal, fibrotic, cancer,
emphysema and COPD.
Afternoon
session: the students had their first patient interview - they interviewed the
patient as a group and each student had the opportunity to ask the patient
questions in an attempt to discover the diagnosis. The patient had angina and
the kids did a nice job - the group I saw forgot to introduce themselves so I
think next time they will remember that.
Other
activities: took blood pressure and auscultated with stethoscopes, examined
jugular distension and I am always the example for pitting edema since my
ankles stay swollen the whole time I am here. One of the docs discussed
peripheral signs of cardiovascular diseases; another discussed and showed
slides of pathology of the Cardiac system. It's great to have real medical
school professors and MDs be able to teach the kids.
The kids
will get a chance to rest up before their evening out. More
tomorrow.
Luisa
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
July 3 -2nd email:
Hi
All,
Today Group
1 had an academic day - Nervous System. 2 hour lecture in the morning followed
by 2.5 hours in the wet lab - normal and diseased brains, spinal cords, how to
recognize and assess a variety of neuropathies, etc. The afternoon
was spent with the docs studying a variety of neurological disorders and
conditions. I will give more details tomorrow when I have the neuro day.
Group 2 had
a very active day - morning bus ride to one of the many waterfalls in
Tonight
they have crab races! I have to do some laundry. More details about the neuro
lab tomorrow.
Cheers,
Luisa
I
forgot - last night was a very nice evening out - dinner and dancing at a
restaurant called the Aquarium. Dinner - grilled chicken, lamb, shrimp and
veggie skewers, scalloped potatoes, rice pilaf, veggies, salad, rolls (the kids
loved the those rolls), sorbet and fruit for dessert. Then the kids danced
until
Sam and
Kara have been great - we are also feeling a bit fatigued. More
tomorrow.
Luisa
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
July 5:
Good
morning families and friends,
The
day is beautiful - sun shining and the temp is very warm but there is a nice
breeze blowing, the sea is so blue and clear......oh yeah....we're in the
Group
1 is visiting the waterfall and the
http://belmontestate.net/
(the fermentary link describes the process that we saw)
Group 2 -
More on Neuro lecture (Vets have a similar day but using animals, of course):
The Nervous
System is covered in depth in 12th grade so our kids are very rusty since they
have not had any work with neuro since anatomy in 10th grade.
Lecture
began with a description of the organization of the
Topics
covered by Dr. Curry (and Dr. Gupta - vet):
1) the parts of the brain and cranial and spinal nerves
2) the functional components - somatic (body wall) and visceral
(internal) pathways; sensory (pain, temperature) and motor pathways
3) types of neurons or nerves - shape and function
4) description of how a reflex works
5) topographic organization (homunculus) of the cortex
(what parts of the brain are responsible for somatic innervations)
During the
lab and clinical portions the students will be able to see how this knowledge
is applied clinically to diagnose CNS and PNS conditions and diseases. More later.
I hope all
families are doing well - I am sure you are missing your children - they are
doing well and really enjoying themselves.
Cheers,
Luisa
Vet
information from Sam:
Our
vet children had their final lecture this morning over the nervous, urinary,
and reproductive system. In the lab Dr. Gupta showed the children the brain of
a dog and cross-sections of the skull and spinal column. Our little ones then
worked for about thirty minutes answering lab questions on the ear, brain, and
nervous system. They also looked at x-rays of a dolphin and slides of cells of
the nervous system. Destinee then talked to the children about stranded whales
and dolphins and showed them how a stranding team would examine an animal. Emma
gave a brief PowerPoint on common animal behaviors and then broke the children
into small groups to discuss and then present behavior studies. This afternoon
the children will tour the small animal hospital and then meet at the farm to
continue looking at large animals. Tomorrow is their last clinical day and then
Vet Olympics.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
July 6:
Hi
all,
A
bit more info on yesterday's afternoon in the medical clinical applications
lab:
The
docs had four stations regarding the assessment of neurological conditions and
pathology:
1)
assessment of hearing and ear infections, hearing
loss, etc. The kids learned how to use otoscopes, tuning forks (Weber test),
and a speculum for looking into the nose. They learned about the difference
between otitis externa and otitis media (ear infections), and what the lining
of the nose looks like when there is an upper respiratory infection.
2)
Pathology - photos and discussion of venous and arterial system of the brain,
coverings (meninges), hemorrhaging in the brain - interventricular, subdural
vs. epidural hematomas, hypertensive emergency, neoplasms of the brain and
brain stem, surgical procedures for removing neoplasms, spinal neoplasms. In
addition, they also saw some congenital deformities_ spina bifida,
hydrocephalus, and anencephaly.
3)
Dr. Loukas (very handsome young Greek doctor who is into body building
...mmmmm) - very humorously described the 12 cranial nerves and how they are
all involved and stimulated during a passionate kiss - this was hilarious
watching the kids’ faces. Since Nina admitted to having a boyfriend - she was
picked on in her group
- they had a blast with Dr. Loukas - he definitely knows how to get the teens
to pay attention!
4) Practice
patient interview and clinical history taking: learned about disk herniation in
the spine, sciatica and how to assess that condition. Practiced 2 point
discrimination - ask them to show you what that is when they return home.
Last night:
Rhum Runner cruise and dinner - great food (pork tenderloin, marinated chicken,
fish, several potato dishes, veggies, mac and cheese, saffron rice, salad and
rolls) and DJ - lots of dancing on the bottom deck or they could sit on the top
deck (2 decker pontoon) and look at the sky and stars and water and all the
lights on the shore.
Today the
Vet kids have medical cases in the morning and Vet Olympics in the afternoon
- more from Sam later.
This
morning, the med kids, in groups, are interviewing 5 patients. They
are all dressed very nicely and are doing a great job. The patients are
"actors" that the school uses - they are great and claim the HS kids
are better than the medical students - not sure why - but the HS kids
are less intimidated and are much more at ease asking questions. 2 students
interview a patient by themselves in each group - they can then discuss their
patients within their groups and try to come up with a differential diagnosis.
This afternoon each group will present one case - they have to research the
differential diagnoses, explain their findings and their reasons for the
selected diagnosis, and explain treatment and prognosis. The patient cases
range from angina, schizophrenia (this lady is wonderful - really throws the
kids for a loop - they are not expecting a psych patient), a case of
impotence due to diabetes complications, concussion, stroke, rheumatoid
arthritis to name a few.
More later.
Cheers,
Luisa
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Vet
update,
Hi
again,
Here
is the update on the VET adventures:
Wednesday
afternoon - During the afternoon session the vet students toured the small
animal hospital and listened to the local resident present the current cases
(all dogs) that were in the hospital receiving care. After that, we continued
with large animal care on the farm. First, the students got to stick their
hands into the stomach of a live cow through a ruminal fistula. They
were directed by the vet students to find and touch the various
compartments inside the stomach. Danielle found out what happens when you
tickle a compartment causing the cow to cough (it made a great picture -
hint....nasty stuff all over her :-). Then they went to examine the other end
of the cow and palpated the lower GI tract and reproductive tract by reaching
through the cow's rectum (another great picture). The cows were very
patient. Then they practiced their knots, tool identification, and donkey
riding for the vet Olympics that will be Thursday afternoon.
Thursday
morning - We had a very busy morning session. The children presented their case
studies to the group. Then we had a PowerPoint presentation explaining the path
to becoming a vet. Emma brought in her turtles (as an example of exotic pets -
she breeds and raises endangered turtles). Another second year vet student
presented a PowerPoint presentation on aquatic animal medicine (whales,
dolphins, fish, seals, etc). Lastly a local turtle organization called Ocean Spirits
talked to the children for an hour on the various sea turtles that lived around
Grenada, how they lay their eggs, their habits, and what is being done to
document their life and protect them from poaching, the fisheries, and conserve
their habitats.
We
have about an hour and a half off and then it's back to the farm for the VET
Olympics.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
July 7:
Hi
folks,
This
will be the last email you receive from us - the library closes at lunch. A few
campers left this morning but many are still here. The Scots are here until
Tuesday. Last night we had a very nice barbeque (ribs, chicken, fish, macaroni
salad, veggie burgers, baked potatoes, corn on the cob, salad) followed by a
slide show outside projected against one of the large buildings. It was a
beautiful evening - lovely sundown, bright stars, and slightly breezy. The
slide show was great - several Nutmeg Awards. Hunter received the "Leadership"
Award - Bayside is very proud! Danielle received the "Deep
Plunger" Award - when she slipped her arm in the fistula of the cow, she
did that so well that it made the cow cough and well.....lots of stuff
came right out all over Danielle and several others standing near her. She was
a great sport! Rachel Huffman received the "Congeniality" Award - she
says Hi to everyone all day long and really made an effort to get to know as
many students as possible. Mark and Arrykka got awards for winning some games
at the beginning of the camp. Josh was the "King of the Jungle" -
very cute!. All our kids did a wonderful job - I am
very proud of them.
We are all
ready to come home - very tired and ready for flat land. See you all Sunday
night hopefully at
Cheers,
Luisa