Intro to Med School: Medical Mysteries. Can You Solve the Case? Weekly Challenge

Experience: 
1). Your learner will join me each week to discusses new patient cases, and work as a group to solve the medical mystery. (THE CASES THOUGH DRAWN MOSTLY FROM MY EXPERIENCE, WILL BE DESIGNED TO SUIT OUR LEARNERS AGES AND UNDERSTANDING, AND ARE OFTEN TAKEN FROM REAL LIFE CASES. 

2). As a Pediatrician and mom I will never discuss topics that are above the average learners age range and comfort level. (Cases are designed with my own children in mind, so it is set up to provide interest, and never discomfort). 
3). Medical cases will be taken from most subspecialties. 


MATERIALS USED: 
I will draw mostly from my own personal case studies that I have encountered in my practice of Pediatric medicine, as I have taken care of newborns through 21 year old patients.  

( I have seen THOUSANDS of patients, over 10 + years, and have a wealth of experience to draw from!!!)

I will also use  clinical cases from open sourced documents, and transform them into age appropriate and student friendly cases that the students will enjoy solving.  

SOURCE: The National Library of Medicine presents MedPix", with over 12,000 patient cases. 

For each lesson we will focus on one case providing the students with the following: 
SHORT CLINICAL VIGNETTE INCLUDING: 
HISTORY
SIGNS AND SYMPTOMS 
EXAM FINDINGS PERTINENT TO THE CASE
PREVIOUS TREATMENTS 
DIFFERENTIAL DIAGNOSIS 
FINDINGS AND FINAL DIAGNOSIS 
TREATMENT 

SAMPLE EXAMPLE PATIENT CASES INCLUDE: Common and Uncommon SCENARIOS: 
- Abdominal pain in a 14 yo old presenting with right sided discomfort 
- Eye redness presenting in an 30 yo adult that recently went to a petting zoo 
- Skin rash in a 4 mo baby that recently traveled overseas 
- Tenderness and joint swelling in a 40 year old with chronic headaches 
- Headaches in a 15 yo teenager with heavy media usage
- Rapid loss of weight in a 35 year old woman with a family history of autoimmune disease
- Ear discomfort in a 2 year old that was left alone while playing with new toys 
- Arm pain in a 60 year old with a recent fall while at home 
- Mood changes in an 80 year old that has recently been forgetting things more often 
- Increased fatigue in a 35 year old mom with a history of anemia 


4). Designed for those that want to do a Pre-medical track and even for those just interested in medicine, the human body, and intriguing and challenging patient cases. 

Specialities to include: 
Pediatrics: 
Family Medicine 
Internal Medicine 
Rheumatology 
Hematology 
Cardiology 
Gastroenterology 
Dermatology 
Neurology 
Allergy/Immunology 
Infectious Disease
Nephrology 
Endocrinology 
Emergency Medicine 
Genetics 
Pulmonology 
Radiology 
Sports Medicine 

5). For each medical mystery, a CLUE will be given  prior to each class that corresponds somehow with our case of discussion to spark thinking.

6). Again, the course topics are suited and designed for a young audience, and will never go beyond what I feel is excessive for young learners, as a home school mom myself. 

7). These sessions can also be used as a SUPPLEMENTAL SCIENCE ACTIVITY for HOMESCHOOLING families, wanting to add additional material for their learners. 


Class Structure/Teaching Style: 
1). The sessions are relaxed and goes at the pace of our learners. 

2). My teaching style is one of direct interaction, and dialogue, to ensure students are engaged, and active in the cases. 

Homework: 
1). Learners can gain further optional study by delving deeper into the specific ailments and treatments discussed with parental guidance.  

Grading/Assessment: 
1). Grades and assessments shall be determined by parental choice and discretion. Grades if given, are to be distributed by the parent, based on their observation of student skills, since this is specific to family choice. However, guidance can be given upon parental request. Note: The main goal of this course is not to provide a final grade, but to impart a love of learning and a lifelong skill.