Physician Assistant PAST 201 – 2 Credits Introduction to Medicine Introduces basic concepts of medicine, including the approach to the patient, gathering medical data, dosage calculation and review of medical terminology. PAST 211 – 2 Credits Professional Issues PAST 212 – 2 Credits Public Health and Preventive Medicine Presents the dynamics of health and disease in human populations and introduces services and facilities for the maintenance of health and prevention of illness. Explores concepts of demography, epidemiology, environmental health, provision of medical services, preventive medicine and infectious disease; addresses basic principles of health policy making. PAST 213 – 4 Credits Diagnostic Process Introduces the diagnostic process focusing on the proper methods of obtaining, recording, and presenting patient histories and physical examinations. Emphasizes interpersonal communication skills. Presents a system-by-system approach to performing the physical exam, an overview of the common symptoms and physical findings for each system, and a review of anatomy pathophysiology. Each week includes two hours history taking, four hours physical examination. 2 hours lecture, 2 hours lab. PAST 214 – 2 Credits Psychosocial Issues in Medicine I Covers psychological processes underlying human behavior in medical settings. Emphasizes the dynamics of the patient-health provider relationship, including communication skills, approaches to patients, working with special populations, cross-cultural communication, stress and disease, chronic illness, adherence, domestic violence, human sexuality issues, and death and dying. PAST 216 – 2 Credits Psychosocial Issues in Medicine II Covers psychological process underlying human behavior and psychiatric disorders. Emphasizes psychiatric principles in primary care; examines concepts in the diagnosis and treatment of the major classes of psychiatric disorders; psychiatric emergencies in primary care; special issues in geriatric mental health; and prevention, recognition and intervention of child abuse and sexual assault. PAST 217 – 3 Credits Pathophysiology Covers the reaction of the human body to disease from the cellular to the multi-system level; reviews human anatomy and physiology; includes a prosection cadaver laboratory; prepares the entering physician assistant student for future courses in medicine and prevention. PAST 230 – 2 Credits Diagnostic Studies I Provides proficiency in performing, ordering and interpreting diagnostic studies. Covers ordering and interpretation of radiographs, imaging studies, and electrocardiograms; gives students opportunity to perform 12 lead EKG studies. The first of three courses. Lab fee: $100.00 PAST 231 – 2 Credits Diagnostic Studies II Prepares students to perform and interpret basic diagnostic and laboratory tests; emphasizes those tests necessary to assess complaints common to the ambulatory, hospitalized, and emergency medicine patient. Lab fee: $100.00 PAST 232 – 2 Credits Diagnostic Studies III Prepares students to perform and interpret basic diagnostic and laboratory tests; emphasizes those tests necessary to assess complaints common to the ambulatory, hospitalized, and emergency medicine patient. PAST 250 – 4 Credits Introduction to Clinical Practice Develops basic clinical skills presented in PAST 213, focusing on the diagnostic process and elements of clinical management. Assigns students to the clinical setting for one or two 8-hour days per week and small groups with faculty members for 2 hours each week. Emphasizes eliciting the patient history, physical assessment, recording patient data and case presentation, diagnosis and basic management plans, and performing basic clinical skills with actual patients in the clinical setting. PAST 251 – 6 Credits Clinical Practicum I Gives the first of four clinical practical which provide a total of ten clinical rotations in family practice, internal medicine, obstetrics and gynecology, pediatrics, surgery, emergency medicine, community medicine, psychiatry, and two general elective areas in primary care and general medicine. During this 10-week course, each student is assigned to two 5-week rotations. PAST 252 – 12 Credits Clinical Practicum II Continues the sequence of clinical practica which provide a total of ten clinical rotations in family practice, internal medicine, obstetrics and gynecology, pediatrics, surgery, emergency medicine, community medicine, psychiatry, a general elective and a primary care elective. During this 15-week course, the student is assigned to three 5-week rotations. PAST 253 – 3 Credits Clinical Practicum III Continues the sequence of four courses which provide supervised clinical experiences in internal medicine, family practice, pediatrics, obstetrics/gynecology, emergency medicine, surgery, psychiatry, community medicine, and an additional rotation of the student's choice. PAST 254 – 11 Credits Clinical Practicum IV Concludes the sequence of four clinical courses which provide supervised clinical experiences in internal medicine, family practice, pediatrics, obstetrics/gynecology, emergency medicine, surgery, psychiatry, community medicine, and an additional rotation of the student's choice. PAST 299 – 5 Credits Primary Care Preceptorship Provides an 8-week final clinical experience; enables the student to apply principles of the practice of medicine covered throughout the program in a primary care or rural/underserved location; allows the student to function as a full member of the medical team and be responsible for patient care from presentation through follow-up, including diagnostic evaluation and patient management.