Stop #8 on my Rotation Tour!

Diamond Headache Clinic, Chicago, IL

"Diamond Headache Clinic is the oldest and largest private headache center dedicated solely to the diagnosis and management of headache pain."

I am working in the inpatient unit with patients that suffer from severely debilitating headaches and migraines. Just from the first day, I know I will learn a lot from this rotation.

How lucky am I? On the second day of my rotation I have to drive through downtown Chicago with 18-24 inches of snow expected. Chicago weather and traffic....I am thinking small town Arizona right about now!

Sad To Leave

I HATE saying goodbye. Whether it is just leaving a party, finishing a phone conversation or seeing someone off at the airport, I absolutely dread saying goodbye. It makes me sad as if I may never see that person/people again. I would rather just leave or sneak out without saying anything because then it does not feel so permanent or sad.

So now comes the time, I have to say goodbye to Des Moines. My last rotation in Des Moines is complete and now I am off to Chicago for my next rotation. I have sold all my furniture, packed up my apartment and will be spending my last night in my apartment.

This is not to say I will never return to Des Moines (considering I have graduation in May), but leaving the place that I have been for the past six years brings a tear to my eye. I know I will miss my apartment, miss the lack of traffic and miss the low cost of living.

I will not say goodbye, since I cannot bring myself to do it. Instead, I will say "Until Next Time, Des Moines."

Folk Remedies

I started to feel sick last Friday and still feel crappy today. I have the runny nose, watery eyes, cough, sneezing, stuffy head and fatigue. I HATE being sick, as does everyone else. And NO, just because I am in pharmacy school does not mean I do not get sick or have a pill to take to magically get myself better.

I told a women that I was not feeling well and she told me to rub Vick's vapor rub on my feet which would help with my cough. Hard to believe that would cure my cough; however, it has been proven that the sole of the foot absorbs topicals very well.

So I looked up some other folk remedies and found some interesting treatments:


To get rid of freckles, rub a live frog on your face.

Passing a child under the belly of a horse three times can cure a child's cough.

To cure insomnia one should rub their temple with cat fat or eat chicken cooked with milkweed. Another cure for insomnia was to smoke a mixture of black tobacco, toad powder, and honey.

To treat mosquito bites, at one point or another all of these cures were popular; rub the bites with vinegar, oil, butter, onion, garlic, or lemon peel and the blow on them.

Drinking red pepper tea or using dried pepper in your stockings will cure the chills.

To cure an earache several cures were fashionable including plugging the ears with s shelled snail or a slice of warmed bacon. Other popular cures included pouring pig's milk, warm oil, or the sap of a male ash tree on or in the ear.

To cure a sore throat the afflicted was supposed to rub the soles of their feet with an ointment made with garlic cooked in lard.

Pierced ears were believed to ward off ear troubles.

Put earwax in your mouth to dull the pain of a toothache or burn.

Biology Majors Career Paths?

A friend of mine is a recent biology major and she is having a difficult time deciding on what she wants to do for the rest of her life (imagine that). She repeatedly asks me for ideas of what I believe she is good at and what a biology major can do with their degree. She likes math, science, planning and interacting with people.

Initially, I thought of the health care field...mostly because I am around it daily. She is not interested in that.

So I started to look for other options for biology majors and came up with some of the following:

Medical Field (various)

Zoology

Environmental Consultant

Food, Fragrance, Personal Care Scientist

Biology or Math Teacher

Chemical/Drug development

Forensic Scientist

Science Journalism

Marine Tourist worker

Human or Animal Behaviorist

Dietitian

Genetic Counselor

Mortician

Statistician

Taxidermist

Brew master

Food and Drug Inspector

Meteorologist

Any ideas of what a biology major could do?

Moving and Selling!

Since this is the last month in my current apartment in the Drake Neighborhood, I have some stuff to sell. I would rather not haul it back with me. Here is a list of items that are available. If you need something or know someone who may need some of the following let me know. I will let you know how much the stuff is and where you can pick it up!

Air Condition Window Unit

Futon

Over sized Comfy Chair

20" Panasonic TV

Black Wood TV Stand

Small Standing Fan

Street Sign

Old Fashion Glass Candy Jar

Two modern lamps

Lots of Pharmacy Books!

I can send pictures of the items and guarantee that they are all in good condition!

Top 10 Best-Selling Prescription Drugs in America

Lipitor, the cholesterol-lowering treatment, remains the best-selling drug in America. But Pfizer, the drug's maker, is facing renewed competition from biotechs like Amgen that were hardly on the map a decade ago-- and renewed threats from cheap generic drugs.

1.
LIPITOR - Treats: High cholesterol - Pfizer - $8.4 billion
2.
ZOCOR - Treats: High cholesterol - Merck - $4.4 billion (2005 sales)
3.
NEXIUM - Treats: Heartburn - AstraZeneca - $4.4 billion
4.
PREVACID - Treats: Heartburn - Abbott & Takeda - $3.8 billion
5.
ADVAIR DISKUS - Treats: Asthma - GlaxoSmithKline - $3.6 billion
6.
PLAVIX - Treats: Heart disease - Bristol-Myers Squibb & Sanofi-Aventis - $3.5 billion
7.
ZOLOFT - Treats: Depression - Pfizer - $3.1 billion
8.
EPOGEN - Treats: Anemia - Amgen - $3.0 billion
9.
PROCRIT - Treats: Anemia - Johnson & Johnson - $3.0 billion
10.
ARANESP - Treats: Anemia - Amgen - $2.8 billion


This list does not necessarily reflect the most used, most effective or most highly rated drugs but just the best selling drugs in the past few years.

Rumor Vs. Truth #2

RUMOR: Taking aspirin at bedtime LOWERS blood pressure.


TRUTH: Patients who take aspirin 100 mg at bedtime can see a drop of about 6/4 points in systolic/diastolic blood pressure. But taking the same dose in the morning does NOT give this same benefit. This may seem counter intuitive since we associate NSAIDs with decreased renal function, edema, and increased blood pressure. Aspirin inhibits the powerful vasoconstrictor angiotensin II...which is most active at night. This might explain the dip in BP.

Some experts suggest that nighttime aspirin may even delay the progression of pre-hypertension to hypertension. It's too soon to say that the same blood pressure lowering effects will be seen in patients taking just 81 mg aspirin daily. There's not enough evidence aspirin at bedtime is more beneficial at preventing outcomes that matter...stroke, heart attacks, etc.




RUMOR: Vick's Vaporub can be used to treat nail fungus.


TRUTH: Many people with nail fungus say that applying Vicks VapoRub seems to help. There may be something to it.

Vicks VapoRub contains a mixture of menthol, eucalyptus oil, camphor, and thymol. These ingredients are active against several fungal organisms that cause onychomycosis.

One observational study suggests that applying Vicks VapoRub to the infected toenail daily until it grows out appears to clear the infection in some patients. This isn't enough proof to say that it works. But given the high cost and risk of side effects with systemic therapy, it may be worth a try in mild cases.

Tea tree oil is another natural treatment that's sometimes tried by patients; however, there is not sufficient evidence to recommend its use for nail fungus.

Topical treatments have to be used faithfully for at least 6 months. This is because topicals work by inhibiting new fungal growth and it takes at least that long for new nail to grow in.

Stop #7 On My Rotation Tour

My first stop of the new year is back in good ole Des Moines. I am completing my acute care rotation at the Des Moines County Hospital, Broadlawns Hospital.

An acute care rotation is a portion of the hospital where treatment of a disease is for only a short period of time in which a patient is treated for a brief but severe episode of illness. Serious illnesses such as tuberculosis, pneumonia, diabetic ketoacidosis, meningitis, etc are treated in these areas with the help of doctors, nurses and pharmacists. Most of the patients are in the ICU or main medical floors.

I am completing the rotation with two other students from Drake and the preceptor is a Drake professor and alum. It is only my second day but the preceptor, my fellow rotation students, the nurses, the medical fellows and the doctors all seem welcoming and interested in helping students learn. The preceptor so far is a great teacher and I think I will like the rotation.

I know that my long break, which seemed as long as an eye blink, did not help my memory or education but it was deserved. I now need to get back into the groove of studying and learning. This rotation will definitely teach me a lot but only after some very hard work on my part....

Here we GO!