PAs in Myanmar: Courage and humanitarianism required.

ABSTRACT: Myanmar might be the most recent country to graduate its first class of physician assistants (PAs). The country has a history of medics serving in underserved areas, but graduated its first six PAs in 2020, after a 5-year training program. These clinicians will care for a largely rural population, who live in areas of unreliable infrastructure and security. The PA profession in Myanmar aims to reduce maternal mortality, graduate 75 PAs by 2029, and improve access to healthcare in remote regions.

A review of inherited cancer susceptibility syndromes.

Inherited cancer syndromes are caused by genetic mutations that place patients at an increased risk for developing cancer. Although most cancers are not caused by genetic inheritance, clinicians must understand these syndromes and be able to recognize their common characteristics. A thorough family history and identification of common patterns as well as specific clinical signs and symptoms can help with early recognition. This article describes symptoms of the more common cancer syndromes, including hereditary breast and ovarian cancer, Li-Fraumeni, Lynch, familial adenomatous polyposis, retinoblastoma, multiple endocrine neoplasia, and von Hippel-Lindau. Important patient education regarding genetic testing also is covered.

Effective patient education techniques for preventing unintended pregnancies.

Ample resources exist detailing the variety of contraceptive options for patients who want to prevent an unintended pregnancy; however, few resources provide tools to guide clinicians in best practices for history taking and patient education about contraceptive use. This article attempts to fill this gap by reviewing current recommendations on timing of patient education, techniques to open a discussion, and common patient misunderstandings about pregnancy and contraception.

Identifying and treating patients with synthetic psychoactive drug intoxication.

Tens of thousands of ED visits each year are related to synthetic psychoactive drug intoxication. Signs, symptoms, and treatment of toxicity with synthetic cathinones, synthetic cannabinoids, or dextromethorphan overlap greatly and can be challenging. This article describes signs and symptoms of psychoactive drug abuse and how to properly manage these symptoms.

Provider-performed microscopy empowers PAs at the point of care.

Provider-performed microscopy (PPM) is a diagnostic tool recommended when patients present with several types of gynecologic infections or fungal infections of skin or nails. PPM allows for immediate and accurate treatment, and can strengthen the relationship between clinician and patient. This article reviews two microscopy techniques, the saline wet mount and the potassium hydroxide (KOH) preparation, and discusses their indications for use.

Evaluating and treating mammalian bites.

Mammalian bites, typically from dogs, cats, or humans, are a common presentation in EDs and family practice settings, and patients present with varying degrees of complexity. Injuries can range from local to systemic, including aggressive bacterial infections and permanent limb impairment. Using a systematic approach to initial wound assessment, followed by appropriate diagnostic testing and treatment, is critical to improved long-term patient outcomes.

Student reflections following exposure to a case-based interprofessional learning experience: Preliminary findings.

This study analyzed students' written reflections following their initial exposure to interprofessional teamwork in case-based problem-solving. A three-hour seminar featuring three sequenced scenarios was developed and offered 12-times over two semesters. A total of 305 students from a variety of healthcare programs worked together with standardized patients in an on-campus laboratory simulating hospital ward and rehabilitation settings. A thematic analysis of students' reflections showed that they valued the shared learning and realistic case study. However, they felt the experience would be strengthened by working in smaller, more representative teams that included students from medicine, psychology, and social work to enable more effective communication and comprehensive case discussion. While useful for future planning, the identified themes did not enable a comparative statistical analysis of what students found helpful and difficult and a re-coding of students' responses now is underway. Implications for measuring the effectiveness of future interprofessional case-based learning center on addressing the identified weaknesses, and establishing a research design that enables a comparison of pre- and post-seminar data, and the effectiveness of the IPE experience compared to profession-specific experiences.