PAS 501 - History and Physical Diagnosis

Prerequisite, physician assistant studies major. Corequisite, PAS 501L. This course will prepare students for their clinical role in patient-centered care. It will introduce the fundamental physical examination techniques, documentation requirements, and communication skills necessary to conduct age-appropriate, culturally sensitive histories and physicals on a variety of patients across the life span. This is a lecture course taken concurrently with the lab course, and will incorporate textbooks readings, lectures, videos, small group demonstrations, and hands-on practice sessions. Students will practice history-taking and non-sensitive physical examination techniques on each other. This course will emphasize normal history and physical exam findings and prepare students for the problem-focused exams they will learn and practice in the clinical medicine modules. (Offered spring semester.) 3 credits