MSPA 5090 - History & Physical Examination II

2 credit hours

The History and Physical Examination series is a four course series that provides physician assistant students with techniques of taking a patient history and performing a physical examination. This course will also teach the PA student the proper use of medical diagnostic equipment, selected clinical procedures and effective skills for communicating with patients, their families, and other health professionals. Students will learn and practice basic counseling and patient education skills. The courses will include classroom activities and laboratory sessions. Students will be challenged to apply their knowledge through simulated patient encounters and problem-based case scenarios to develop skill in taking a patient history, performing a system-focused physical exam, documenting problem specific history and physical examinations in the SOAP note format, and presenting a clinical case through the completion of written and practical examinations. The History and Physical Examination series has been carefully organized to present material system by system to promote interaction of material from parallel courses in the curriculum, i.e. Clinical Medicine, Clinical Skills, and Body, Mind, & Spirit. Course content will be organized along the following broad themes:

History-taking and physical exam of the cardiovascular system
History-taking and physical exam of the gastrointestinal system