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the xavier times n e w s l e t t e X avier U niversit y ’ s official news publication r xavier university school of medicine Provisionally accredited by CAAM-HP Vo l - I s s u e N o - S p r i n g what’s inside Nursing program MOU with Western Kentucky University Xavier University School of Medicine (XUSOM) is proud to announce that it has recently partnered with Western Kentucky University (WKU) in Bowling Green, Kentucky This partnership will allow nursing students to spend the first two years within our nursing program at XUSOM and then visit the US for the remaining two semesters in a US institution On January 27, 2014, Dean John Bonaguro and Dean Mary Bennett of WKU joined President Ravi Bhooplapur and faculty on campus to celebrate this collaboration for our BSN program and its students MOU Nursing Program Family Health Visits Health Fair Information Resources Small Group Learning Health Fair @ ISA My Experience at XUSOM Boosting Exam Performance Prof Dr Nayak person, languages Hospital Externship at HOH The “Limbo” Semester Aruba’s Sixtieth Carneval! Nauman’s Restaurant Review Pharmacology Practical Affiliation agreement with University of Western Kentucky Upon achievement of our program outcomes, our students will achieve the BSN degree and Commission for Graduates of Foreign Nursing Schools (CGFNS) review will permit our students to apply for NCLEX licensure in the US XUSOM and Western Kentucky University will share mutual opportunities for the benefit of students Baccalaureate of Nursing at XUSOM Unique to XUSOM, students will gain an inter-professional experience Nursing students will have the opportunity to learn alongside medical students, therefore acquiring experience in working with future colleagues Family Health Visits The family is considered as an integral part of all societies Family health visit (FHV) is an important public health initiative of XUSOM providing an excellent opportunity to the medical students to interact with the local families The purpose of the family visit is to explore and assess the health status of the families in the community Students will be able to learn in different healthcare settings with populations involving diversity, encouraging them to step out of their comfort zone and think critically in a variety of settings Students will take part in a Standardized Patient Program The community and the Ministry of Health in Aruba is looking forward to the arrival of the BSN nursing students, who will be able to interact and assist the community through health related events. At XUSOM, class sizes are small, allowing for all students to receive an individualized learning experience, therefore promoting constructive interaction with instructors The faculty of Xavier University are very excited to share this new program with our students from Aruba, the US, Brazil and students from other international settings. There are many colleges or universities that you can choose from that will educate you to practice as a registered nurse. The place you choose for your nursing education should prepare you for professional nursing practice in today’s healthcare environment. It should also prepare you to make a difference in the world. Xavier University’s School of Nursing’s mission is to prepare you for that difference FHV is especially meant for MD1 and MD2 students During the visit students gather information about maternal and child health, vaccination, socioeconomic status, communicable and non-communicable diseases Families from different cultures not speak English and still students were able to cross this barrier accentuating their communication skills complemented with gestures, facial expressions and added body language to make themselves understood as much as they could Signing affiliation agreement between XUSOM and University of Western Kentucky Dr Suzette Scheuermann, PhD MSN RN Dean - School of Nursing Health Fair The XUSOM Family Medicine Interest Group (FMIG) and Student Government Association (SGA) as well as Faculty members, participated in a health fair held on March 29, 2014 from 10am-3pm at International School of Aruba (ISA) The fair received a great response Family health visits make the students aware of community health needs and their health concerns and enhances their social skill and medical performance Dr Rishi Bharti, Assoc Prof of Epidemiology Information resources for medical students at Xavier University School of Medicine We offered free check-ups at the open house to ISA students, their parents, and members of the general public XUSOM students from PM4 to MD4 semesters participated in screening tests involving vision & color-blindness, body-mass index, hearing, and blood pressure for both children and adults The testing was followed by a consultation session with MD4 and MD5 students supervised by faculty members Approximately, 105 people were checked at the fair Overall, the health fair received a wonderful response on our effort to uplift the community’s quality of health through free screenings and education on how to maintain good health, raise awareness on the importance of check-ups, and prevention goals Students in all disciplines have the responsibility of learning and developing skills that can be used in their occupations and to accumulate knowledge that can be used to enrich society For students of medicine, this acquisition of knowledge is critically important, as their abilities and understanding of medical facts will be used to benefit many people Medical students have many resources available to help them master the immense amount of information that exists about medicine and health and to help them succeed in their coursework These resources include textbooks, study and review guides, medical books, medical journals, and online databases The Xavier University School of Medicine Library is instrumental in providing access to many of these information resources for its students Physical copies of every required textbook for each medical and premedical course at XUSOM are kept at the library These textbooks are available to students for use in completing assignments and for exam study and review In addition, the library collection includes many study guides and review manuals for the USMLE from prominent exam-review publishers such as Kaplan, Elsevier, McGraw-Hill, and Wolters-Kluwer The library collection also includes many current and significant book titles from all areas of medicine, from anatomy and physiology to pharmacology and radiology, providing a well-rounded assortment of books and guides for in-depth medical research Current and past issues of several medical journals are also available for use to medical students These journals include the New England Journal of Medicine and the American Journal of Medicine Both of these titles are available to students 24 hours a day, either online or in paper format at the library Both, the International School of Aruba and XUSOM enjoyed the event, and look forward to future endeavors together Gil C Apacible II, DDM, Associate Dean of Student Affairs Small group learning at XUSOM During the last two decades teaching-learning methods and the curriculum in medical schools has undergone tremendous changes Medicine like most other fields of activity is coping with an information explosion Doctors will have to make sense of increasing amounts of complex information during their careers and should develop the ability to learn and understand new information Lifelong learning and the ability to continue to learn even after finishing medical school is a vital component of the education of future doctors With the increasingly complexity of modern healthcare the ability to work in teams is also gaining importance Considering all these challenges, small group activity-based learning is becoming increasingly common in medical schools Students can access articles dating back to 1812 in the New England Journal of Medicine and the past five years of articles published by the American Journal of Medicine are also available These journals contain the most recent advances and findings in clinical research being conducted by the world’s leading medical professionals and provide an invaluable source of information for student research One of the library’s greatest sources of information is the many online databases that are available to students 24 hours a day via the library website These databases collect information and articles from peer-reviewed and evidence-based medical journals, health agency websites, and government publications and are managed by well-known database vendors, such as Ebsco The information is arranged in a way that makes student researching by topic, author, date range, etc quick and intuitive Some of the library’s well-known and frequently used databases include PubMed and Medline Plus In addition to databases with scholarly information, the library has several databases, such as A.D.A.M Problem-based learning (PBL) as an educational philosophy had its origins in McMaster University in Canada and Maastricht University in the Netherlands in the 1960s PBL has become a common educational methodology in medical schools in the ensuing five decades Medical schools use PBL either in combination with other teachinglearning methodologies (predominantly lectures) or as the predominant learning strategy We started PBL sessions at XUSOM from the summer 2013 semester in May Sessions are conducted once a week for a particular group of students Each problem runs over a two week period with the first session being devoted to studying the problem, identifying gaps in knowledge and formulating learning objectives During the second session students as a group present their learning objectives and the facilitator mentions areas which may require further study, assesses the group dynamics and provides feedback Medical humanities (MH) has been mentioned as using subjects traditionally known as the humanities like literature, philosophy and drama among others for specific purposes in medical education MH programs are common in the United States, the United Kingdom, Australia and Canada among others In the Caribbean MH programs are not common I was involved in initiating MH programs in the Himalayan country of Nepal After I joined XUSOM in January 2013, Dr Dubey was keen that students at XUSOM should be exposed to MH and I started a module for MD1 students during the Spring 13 semester Since them a MH module is conducted for all first semester students About seven or eight sessions are conducted during a module The activitybased, small group sessions are conducted every Monday afternoon Anatomy Practice and Blue Penguin, that assist with exam preparation and review They provide sample exam questions, topic summaries, anatomical illustrations, images, and radiographs All of the library materials and resources available from the library at Xavier University School of Medicine, from the hardbound books and journals to the electronic databases, serve as sources of valuable information to both students and faculty as they research various fields of medicine Ms Gera Roberts, Librarian Health Fair at the International School of Aruba On Saturday, March 29, 2014, students from MD though MD were invited to participate in a health fair at the International School of Aruba, an institution hidden on a serene campus in Wayaca It was a unique opportunity for XUSOM students to learn how to treat pediatric patients FMIG helped coordinate much of the health fair They set up blood pressure readings, BMI charts, hearing tests and vision tests MD students in conjunction with XUSOM’s professors helped consult patients Consultation included letting patients know what the results of their various tests meant and how they could improve their lifestyle There has been recent emphasis on improving prescribing skills among medical students Medical students should be able to prescribe rationally based on objective criteria and sessions on rational prescribing are being conducted in many medical schools The WHO Guide to good prescribing and the Ethical criteria for medicinal drug promotion have been widely used We started conducting a few sessions on personal (P) drug selection, and critical analysis of drug advertisements and promotional materials from the Spring 13 semester Students also carry out simple experiments in autonomic pharmacology using a computer aided learning (CAL) module Small group learning and students working in groups are also utilized during case presentations, Clinicopathological correlations (CPCs), and student seminars The desks in XUSOM class rooms can be easily rearranged to enable small group work The institution has invested in a new facility for small group learning in the annexe equipped with comfortable seating, work tables, flip boards, white boards and a LCD projector The exuberance of the young students along with the eagerness of the medical students made for an entertaining and educational day for everyone XUSOM students checked nearly 100 people throughout the day to tremendous applause The success of this health fair hopefully will ensure that XUSOM’s excellence will continue and that more health fairs are to come Mr Lokesh Bhatt, MD4 student, Student Editor My experience at XUSOM Student feedback about PBL and the small group sessions has been positive We had recently studied student perceptions about small group effectiveness during PBL sessions Student feedback about small group effectiveness was positive Students are also using small group learning on their own during evenings and holidays to learn various topics The process of explaining to other students significantly improves your own knowledge about a topic In forthcoming semesters we plan to further strengthen and enlarge small group learning in the institution! R efere n ces Burgess AW, McGregor DM, Mellis CM Applying Established Guidelines to Team-Based Learning Programs in Medical Schools: A Systematic Review Acad Med. 2014 Feb 19 [Epub ahead of print] Meo SA Basic steps in establishing effective small group teaching sessions in medical schools Pak J Med Sci. 2013 Jul;29(4):1071-1076 Neville AJ Problem-based learning and medical education forty years on A review of its effects on knowledge and clinical performance Med Princ Pract. 2009;18(1):1-9 Onyon C Problem-based learning: a review of the educational and psychological theory Clin Teach. 2012 Feb;9(1):22-6 I began my journey of becoming a doctor at Xavier University School of Medicine It was daunting at first but as days went on it became easier to grasp what needed to be done to be successful My first semester of medical school in Aruba, whose motto is “One Happy Island.” Am I actually happy? As I packed my bags to head out to Xavier University School of Medicine, I was very nervous I really did not know what to expect from the school or the island itself Upon arrival, Mr George, an employee at XUSOM was waiting at the arrival department to drive me to my apartment During the drive, I was very anxious I remember looking out the window and thinking to myself, wow I’m actually very far from home, all alone, hopefully everything goes well I arrived in Aruba one week before school started; during this time I frequently visited the campus The staff was very comforting and helpful Ms Lisa Koolman, the new student coordinator, was exceptionally accommodating Before classes started, I had the opportunity to have a short meeting with the Dean of Basic Sciences Dr Dubey He definitely made me feel very comfortable with my decision of choosing Xavier University School of Medicine Overall, the faculty did a tremendous job of making sure all the incoming students felt at ease at the new school Once classes started, the upperclassmen were very helpful The first day of classes, I felt overwhelmed by the helpful gestures from the upperclassmen Shankar PR (2011) Medical Humanities In R Biswas & CM Martin (Eds.), User-driven healthcare and narrative medicine: utilizing collaborative social networks and technologies. Hershey, PA: Medical Information Science Reference Shankar PR Developing and sustaining a medical humanities program at KIST Medical College, Nepal Indian J Med Ethics 2013:10:51-53 Gibson KR, Qureshi ZU, Ross MT, Maxwell SR Junior doctor-led ‘near-peer’ prescribing education for medical students Br J Clin Pharmacol. 2014;77:122-9 Ross S, Loke YK Do educational interventions improve prescribing by medical students and junior doctors? A systematic review Br J Clin Pharmacol. 2009;67:662-70 Shankar PR, Nandy A, Balasubramanium R, Chakravarty S Small group effectiveness during PBL sessions in a Caribbean medical school J Educ Eval Health Prof 2014, 11:4 • http://dx.doi.org/10.3352/ jeehp.2014.11.4 Dr P Ravi Shankar, Faculty Editor, Chair, Curriculum Committee Although I have been at XUSOM for just a couple of months, the students and faculty have made me feel like we are one big family There have been days when studying for exams got very overwhelming, it was nice to have my fellow classmates help each other get through those periods Academically speaking, the newly adapted curriculum was very challenging at first I found myself struggling during my first integrated quiz I remember thinking to myself; how am I supposed to study for seven subjects all at once? It has definitely been a learning experience for me After the first half of the semester, I can say the new curriculum is actually very efficient I really like the fact that all our classes somehow connect with one another Like any medical school student, I had moments when I was just freaking out about certain classes or exams I feel very blessed to have classmates and professors that helped me through those moments Finally, back to answering my question Yes, this island is indeed a happy island I can proudly say I am very content attending medical school at Xavier University School of Medicine OFFICIAL MATCH RESULT 2014 Hassan Mahdi Al-khalisy Pinnacle Health Hosps-PA; Internal Medicine Gabriel Anzueto Cook County-Stroger Hospital-IL; Pediatrics Amreen Sajjad Aziz West Virginia University SOM; Family Medicine Sameer Baig Griffin Hospital-CT; Internal Medicine Amany Bashir St Elizabeth Med Ctr-NY; Family Medicine Hafsa Aziz Bhatti Med Ctr of Columbus-GA; Family Medicine David Brual MacNeal Hospital-IL; Internal Medicine Frances Denu Harlem Hospital Ctr-NY; Internal Medicine Ramona Grewal Louisville SOM-KY; Psychiatry 10 Michelle Lim MidMichigan Med Center-MI; Family Medicine Ms Manpreet Kaur, MD student “Bonbini a Aruba!” Back to school…again I’m 29 years old but I still felt like a freshman, the same nervous butterflies in my stomach and a voice in my head constantly doubting my decision to accept a seat in medical school My whole scholastic and professional career had led me up to this moment, I should be prepared right? In a few short months, I had packed up my life, said goodbye to my California home, and moved to a country where I would be completely alone for the next two years Fortunately, I was wrong Barry and Dr Reddy were the first friendly faces to greet me outside the airport upon my arrival and the first words I heard were “umm I’m not sure we can fit five suitcases and a guitar in this van.” I was immediately put at ease as we piled into the gold Xavier van and I listened to the chatter of what I should and shouldn’t during my stay It seemed similar to my parents’ advice reminding me to behave and not anything overly idiotic 11 Gargi Patel Creedmoor Psych Ctr-NY; Psychiatry 12 Vipin Philip Geisinger Health System-PA; Pediatrics 13 Ashvin Kumar Punnyamurthi Concord Hospital-NH; Family Medicine 14 Sumeet Singh Howard Univ Hosp-DC; Psychiatry 15 Janelle Yee Mount Sinai; Internal Medicine 16 Lee Berman Delaware Health and Social Services; Psychiatry 17 Chinmay Dalal University British Columbia, Vancouver; Family Medicine 18 David Ibrahim Southern Illinois University (Decatur); Family Medicine Boosting Exam Performance – last minute preparations It is that time of the semester again when even the most sluggish and easygoing students pick up their study material and start camping at the library With the exams looming ahead, everyone turns their utmost attention towards their all-too-soon arrival and starts devoting sincere attention towards preparation; usually for the first time all semester long While the atmosphere of revision, and first time learning for some, has started to gain ground, perhaps some study pointers and tips need to be highlighted so that the students can efficiently utilize their time and make the most of their efforts Among numerous ways through which studying can be maximally optimized, I will discuss three extremely important ones which cannot be neglected and provide a good boost to scores when time is limited First and foremost, the biggest mistake students make, as they sit down to review, is start taking extensive notes of everything they come across Whether textbooks or PowerPoint presentations, the time for detailed note-taking is long past and with little time left this exercise does not facilitate retention; only slight familiarization Detailed note-taking is a tool which is best exercised on a daily basis as the classes progress in earlier stages of the semester; at this late however, only very high yield notes such as tables and concept maps should be focused on provided they were not compiled earlier in the semester The best method would be to revise the PowerPoint presentations over and over again until you are intimately familiar with them Print them out perhaps and write additional keywords on the side as reminders of key concepts associated with the subject material Thus, the first study tip is: not make any detailed notes last minute before the exams as they eat up a lot of time and retention is very poor with regards to the amount of time spent on the endeavor So, while taking detailed notes is discouraged as much as charting concept maps and review tables encouraged, perhaps the most guaranteed method of excelling in any subject is to as many multiple choice questions, MCQs, as possible There are numerous benefits associated with this habit They help understand which aspects of each topic are clinically relevant and thus most often tested One thing is understood: there are only so many concepts which can be tested and further, only so many ways these key concepts can be tested in Tests and exams assess these concepts in numerous ways and doing MCQs exposes students to a vast majority, if not all, of the possible ways a concept can be tested This is what elevates and decides between top students vying each other for scholarships or the sheer pride of finishing first in their batch In addition, MCQs also serve as excellent learning objectives The wrong answers need not necessarily be skipped over while practicing; rather, they can be used as means of revising other concepts not tested in the question Lastly, these MCQs can be even more useful if solved during a group study session Group study, admittedly, is akin to playing with fire; if not given utmost attention and care, the handlers will end up burning themselves However, optimization through modifications is very easy to achieve Every member present should have gained individual mastery of the topics of discussion prior to convening for discussion with others Otherwise, they turn into tutoring sessions which are not as efficient use of the time; especially close to the exams This one simple modification is usually enough to resolve problems associated with group study matters As for the benefits of doing questions in groups, solving MCQs in groups can be the most effective way of solidifying concepts as this exercise includes the positives of practicing MCQs as well as studying in a group setting The benefits associated with MCQs are already highlighted and their effect is greatly increased in group settings because in case of someone getting answers wrong, those who correctly answered the question can explain the concepts associated with the answer; thus revising themselves while resolving any knowledge gaps in other group members Conclusively, these three methods are excellent ways of providing late semester boosts to scores and performance Best of luck to everyone on their exams! Mr Junaid Sargana, MD student One Person, Six Languages an interview with Mrs Emma J Carlton Mrs Emma J Carlton, the new English as second language (ESL) program teacher at Xavier University, is a UK native with the ability of speaking four different languages, including: English, Spanish, German and French Mrs Emma has been living in Aruba since July, 2013 and has been teaching at Xavier since January 2014 Previously, Mrs Emma visited the island on four different occasions, during which she fell in love with it Her first visit was when she was 22 years old Not too long after, she decided to move to Aruba because of personal reasons as well as the “One happy island” feeling that stayed with her from her past visits Interestingly, medicine has been one of Mrs Emma’s passions since she was a kid She volunteered in the Red Cross, worked in different hospitals and was involved in the health world for a few years She even worked in India for six months at a Tuberculosis and Leprosy hospital Simultaneously, Mrs Emma dedicated her spare time towards doing workshops and fundraising in order to raise awareness about such diseases In the middle of her travels around the globe working in the health field, she had a realization and she became passionate about languages Since that moment, she decided to go to school to learn French and Spanish Mrs Emma graduated from Lancaster University in the UK Her first teaching experience did not start after the diploma though, Mrs Emma taught French for seven months as part of an internship to complete her degree Then, she taught in different places including Argentina, where she taught English to young children for about two years The ESL program at Xavier University consists of two classes at the moment, the beginner class consisting of 12 students and the advanced class, consisting of 17 students Most of the students are from different nationalities including Colombia, Venezuela, and natives from Aruba The classes usually take place in the evenings throughout the week In short, Mrs Emma is a great addition to the Xavier family, and she reinforces it by loving the environment in which she is working in at Xavier; and who knows, soon she might be speaking Papiamento and Dutch as well, adding to a total of different languages ”Talking about a well-developed Broca’s and Wernicke’s area” Mr Roberto J Rivero, MD student Webinars as a method of faculty development at XUSOM Orientation day arrived and walking down the halls of Xavier University for the first time was the most daunting moment I’ve had since arriving to this One Happy Island The lost and insecure “high school” sensation left me immediately as I was greeted warmly by the admin girls Liza and Daphne and given step-by-step instructions on how to survive the next couple of days I settled into my routine, or so I thought Day after day the workload piled up and all I could think about was what did I get myself into, medical school is impossible and I should get out now But the overwhelming support and unity from the upperclassmen and my fellow classmates gave me a sense of family that helped counteract the constant pressure and stress put upon us It was impressive the amount of unsolicited friendly encouragement the veteran students of Xavier offered with the unspoken message of “I know what you’re going through.” A semester is almost over and looking back at it, I’m surprised I’ve come this far without drowning in the constant bombardment of medical information It has been a unique experience that only Xavier could have offered and thanks to the familial environment provided by the faculty and students, I have no regrets regarding my decision to pursue medicine in Aruba Ms Andrea Hernandez, MD student Dr Niranjan Nayak, M.B.B.S, M.D Professor of Microbiology and Immunology Dr Niranjan Nayak is the newest addition TO Xavier University The native from India is a professor of microbiology and immunology with a long history in the world of teaching Dr Nayak got his medical degree from India as well as his residency in “clinical microbiology” He practiced for years in his country of origin and has been teaching for more than 26 years Dr Nayak has visited the United States on multiple occasions for conferences As a researcher, Dr Nayak has published over 80 articles including one of his favorite tittles: “Staphylococcus epidermidis in devices and related infections” Dr Nayak decided to come to Xavier because he was aware of the transformation going on with the integrated curriculum He thinks the integrated curriculum is a great way of teaching, if not the best Also, he thinks that the integrated curriculum facilitates the learning process through repetition, allowing the student to go home with a clear idea of what’s happening in the classroom Dr Nayak recommends students to use the textbook more often; he thinks students nowadays focus on slides too much and put the textbook aside The textbook is the “home teacher”; the slides given in class are just the guidance When students use only slides, they are not learning the mechanism through which a body response takes place, they only learn the final result of that response, while when using the book, the whole explanation is given, facilitating the understanding In short, Dr Nayak is a great addition for the Xavier team by adding experience and knowledge to the program Mr Roberto Rivero, MD student Hospital Externship at HOH This semester several students from the MD and classes were able to participate in a hospital externship at Dr Horacio E Oduber Hospital The chance to apply the skills, bestowed upon us by our professors, in a clinical setting was an opportunity each student was eager to seize Students were assigned to either the surgical or oncology wards of the hospital Working alongside the doctors, nurses, and hospital staff taught students about the lifestyle, work ethic, and demands of a typical day at a hospital The students’ days started with a patient debriefing The nursing staff would go over the charts from earlier in the day to update the new shift This was followed by rounds with the attending doctor and nursing staff Students were able to read patient’s charts, see the various ailments, and further get to see the type of treatment available The natural curiosity of the students, who sought to seek out more and more information, truly impressed the hospital staff Many facets that are brought up in courses like ICMPD, pathology, and pharmacology were needed in working with patients Several students said it was “cathartic and invigorating to utilize lectures that are taught in OSCE lab” in a real life situation The success of this program cannot be overstated The excitement and curiosity of the upperclassmen students at XUSOM will guarantee that this externship will be continued and only get better Mr Lokesh Bhatt, MD student, Student editor MD5 - The “Limbo” Semester Aruba’s sixtieth carneval! The heat was beginning to get to us! It was after four in the afternoon and we had been sitting on the hard wooden benches right from ten in the morning I never realized sitting still could be so difficult and was beginning to empathize with students everywhere who endure long hours of sitting and relative immobility The costumes were colorful and the dancers young and picturesque We (I, Dr Bala, Isu (Bala’s wife), Dr Danish and Ayesha (Danish’s wife)) were in a covered pavilion near the Cricket Club watching Aruba’s sixtieth Carnival celebrations The massive procession reached our location around eleven thirty and then it was a feast to the eyes and the senses and often a direct frontal assault on the ear drums Alcohol was flowing faster and more freely than the ‘soft’ water from Aruba’s desalination plant (the world’s second largest) and everyone was having a good time The truck floats were magnificent and the dancers are riotous kaleidoscope of color as they twisted and twirled in the bright sunshine People were dancing on both sides of the road and were waving to revelers in the carnival parade We were feeling a bit lost as we knew very few revelers Dr Bala had been in ‘one happy island’ the longest and his ‘young’, dapper and handsome landlord ‘Chichi’ (Hector Peres) was keeping us company Then we saw Jairo, our office assistant driving one of the trucks and shouted to draw his attention Jairo (may be) as surprised to see us as we were to see him, waved wildly The music trucks shook the ground and other structures as they slowly moved towards Palm Beach I was thinking about what I had read about Aruba’s carnival in ‘Island temptations’ Today Aruba’s carnival is one of the best known in the Caribbean and a major attraction for tourists and residents In the 1920s small clubs and organizations started having carnival parties The idea was to finish off the rich food and drink before the period of abstinence during Lent In the 1940s the Lago refinery was started in San Nicholas, the Sun City Many of the workers were from Trinidad, British Guyana and Jamaica, countries with a rich carnival tradition Aruba’s carnival is said to borrow heavily from Trinidad In 1955 the first official Carnival in the modern sense of the term was held by the Tivoli club in both Oranjestad and San Nicolas Old photographs show simple floats decorated with palm fronds The carnival underscores the traditional rivalry between San Nicolas and Oranjestad Oranjestad is credited with initiating the first floats while San Nicolas started the first foot parades The story of the Carnival Queens was also fascinating Certain families seem to have a monopoly on queens with mothers, daughters and nieces all being crowned through the years Around two weeks earlier we had watched the fascinating display of lights during Aruba’s Tivoli lighting parade The lighting parade was absolutely wonderful I was captivated by the shimmering glasses from which the participants were partaking refreshments There were a few street vendors walking up and down with their carts selling various trinkets Chichi told me they were from Haiti, the poorest nation in the Caribbean Danish and Ayesha had purchased a shimmering light saber and in the darkness Danish seemed like Luke Skywalker (of Star wars fame) battling with the dark side of the force The parade was a kaleidoscope of colors ranging from cool whites, and greens to warmer yellows and orange The monster trucks with their bands belting out powerful rhythms had searchlights which sliced through the darkness The night was cool and we were sitting on the top rows enjoying the refreshing trade winds Right at the end the carnival became a community affair when anyone who wanted could dance his/her way all the way towards Palm Beach or till whatever distances their steady (or unsteady) legs could carry them! The truck from Dienst Openbare Werken (DOW) brought up the rear and the DOW guys were removing the barriers from both sides of the road and carrying them away on their trucks The carnival was well organized Refreshment trucks were present and regular intervals and also rest room trucks and trucks allowing revelers to sit down and stretch their legs when the dancing and the drinking became too much to bear! Chichi was telling us how it is getting increasingly expensive to participate in the parade There is an entrance fee and participants have to pay for their costumes which can often cost four to five thousand florins or more The semester wherein, you are technically neither student nor intern I’ve had more questions regarding the workings and purpose of this semester than any other part of the marathon that is medical school So, what is MD5? Well, as I said, it’s limbo; it is the semester that Xavier gives student to be part of the school body, but also apart from the school body, as we study for what may be the exam that determines our lives It is a semester that I think many go in taking for granted But friend of mine, in other medical schools, both in the Carribbean and back home in the States, not have the luxury of this semester, or the Kaplan course that goes along with it They completely on their own, having to juggle classes and study time, and in having to find a program or routine that they can only hope works Xavier has given us the gift of Kaplan, and its years of experience As a side note, I think its worth saying that, with only a month left in my Kaplan course, I have yet to encounter any new, and therefore panic-inducing, information So yay, for the last four semesters worth of knowledge! MD5 gives student a chance to spread their wings, and learn more about themselves as students, on their own Instead of a rigid 8am onwards schedule, full of classes in an order the school deems best, MD5 gives us the beauty of waking up (much) later, and planning our days to our own needs I will say this: making a schedule, and sticking to it, no matter what pops up, is absolutely the most important skill you can have going in, and keeping all the way through MD5 Many, most especially my family and friends back home, have asked why, if the whole academic aspect of the semester is online, can I not have done it at home My answer to this is usually two-fold One: its really really reallllly cold in New York City this time of year, and well, Aruba is not Two: being away at school is a form of focus for me personally Now, I’m sure that there are people who would be able to focus completely and totally on their studies at home; I, unfortunately, am not one of those people Being away from the responsibilities and distractions of home and family, have kept me in the “school” bubble, where the only thing that I really have to worry about are what chapter should I get through tonight, and how many questions have I gone through today In honesty, I’ve loved this semester Kaplan goes through every subject thoroughly, and there are assessment tests at the end of each, which obviously helps keep you on track, but also has a thorough review and explanations so you can realy learn from your mistakes The qbank has like 2000 questions, which I’ve developed a love/hate relationship; I love that it’s really USLME style questions, hate that that means the can get really bloody complicated But it’s a learning experience As I said earlier, scheduling is key, hours of selfstudy, however is best for you—reading or questions or videos—then four hours of class, try to at least the chapter in review thingy at the end, and then usually full night’s sleep, which is possibly the most amazing experience ever Ms Natasha Dyal, MD student Nauman’s Restaurant Review In this month’s issue of the Xavier Times I will be covering Five Burgers, a place to grab some burgers or even breakfast in the morning Next on the list is Madame Janette, which is a great dinnertime choice and for those who enjoy pizza you could check out Pizza Bob’s = = = = Not Recommended Average Would Return Island Favorite $ = $8 per person $$ = $12 per person $$$ = $18 per person $$$$ = $25 per person If you haven’t already tried Five Burgers yet you might want to check it out It’s the closest thing you can get that tastes like it was made back home in the US They have burgers, chicken sandwiches, and fries They even have a bean burger for vegetarians I recommend the Western Burger and sweet potato fries Current PM4 Raza Syed describes the Western Burger as “straight cash homie” so I would consider trying it if you haven’t already Five burgers also offers a student discount, just show up with your Xavier I.D and your set Verdict: Cost: $ $ Hours: 6:00 PM to 11:00 PM Address: J E Irausquin Blvd 53000 Phone Number: 586-3904 Madame Janette is an excellent restaurant, which offers fine dining in a casual atmosphere There are many tasteful, creative dishes on their vast menu They have a lot of selections and whatever your bound to order is going to be delicious I recommend the bang bang shrimp and the burger loin Their combined worldwide experience gives their dishes an original flavor with a touch of Caribbean in it I highly recommend this place; it’d be worth going to Verdict: Cost: $ $ $ Address: Cunucu Abou 37, Aruba Phone Number: 587-0184 Aruba’s carnival is a burst of fun, spontaneity, color and good will under warm, blue tropical skies I have now enjoyed two Aruban carnivals and look forward expectantly to the sixty-first version in 2015! If you’re tired of getting Dominos and Pizza Hut all the time and want to try something new, you should check out Pizza Bob’s They have some pretty good chicken BBQ pizza and vegetarian pizza They take more than 20 minutes though Check out it out if you’re ever with some friends Dr P Ravi Shankar, Faculty Editor Pharmacology Practical MD and students partake in a pharmacology practical course In this class students learn the process in which to prescribe medication to a patient Although this seems like a simple way to define the course, the skills learned in the class go above and beyond what is typically done in a normal lecture Students are given caes with varying scenarios in which they must come up with a preferred drug of choice, how to write a prescription, and to demonstrate how to use that medication (with the help of a standardized patient) Verdict: Cost: $ $ Hours: 6:00 PM to 11:00 PM Address: J.E Irausquin Boulevard 59 Phone Number: 588-9040 ext 790 Mr Nauman Ali, MD Student There are nine steps to counseling a patient: The student must describe the disease in simple terms The student must let the patient know what non-pharmacological measures they should take to improve their condition For example, if a patient has diabetes, let them know that must reduce their weight, avoid simple sugars, increase their fiber intake, and exercise Find out if the patient is on any medication or has allergies to anything This is in case there are any contraindications to the prescribed medication Students must choose the correct medication and the proper dosage Students must demonstrate how to properly use the medication For example, if the patient is an asthmatic, then the student should show the proper techniques for using an inhaler Xavier Times team Faculty editor: Dr P Ravi Shankar Student Editor: Mr Lokesh Bhatt Faculty advisors: As a physician, one must follow up with the patient Appointments should be made at appropriate times Dr A Nandy Dr R Balasubramanium Ms Gera Roberts Allow the patient some time to ask any questions or express any concerns Student members: Have the patient repeat all of the instructions This is to ensure that they have properly learned how and when to use their medication The patient should be informed of any adverse side effects Students will be able to use these skills and knowledge learned in the pharmacology practical course in a clinical setting These steps are the keys for a successful appointment with a patient Mr Lokesh Bhatt, MD student Ms Natasha Dyal Mr Umar Siddiqui Ms Pinky Ali Mr Roopak Sekhon Mr Roberto Rivero Mr Nauman Ali Ms Manpreet Kaur
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