Cook-venture: Banana Bread

Today, one of my roommates came with her dad to bring a carload. She brought some rugs and a TV stand, and the place looks so much homey now! I can't wait for it to be a full house.

For their visit, I made some banana bread!

The ingredients:

Dry: 1 cups all-purpose flour, 1 1/4 cups walnuts (I used chopped almonds instead), 3/4 cup sugar, 3/4 teaspoon baking soda, 1/2 teaspoon salt

Wet: 3 very ripe bananas, 1/4 cup plain yogurt (I didn't have this on hand), 2 large eggs, 6 tablespoons butter - melted and cooled, 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

The ingredients

Looks like baby food...

Used Pampered Chef Food Chopper and 1-cup prep bowl. Also pictured, the Pampered Chef Cutting Board 

Chops things in seconds! Last time I used a knife, and it was hard to keep the almonds from flying around the cutting board. 

Whisk together the dry ingredients, fold in the wet ingredients, and voila! The batter will be very thick and lumpy, but that's how it should be! Bake for 55 minutes at 350 degrees, or until a toothpick comes out clean from the center of the loaf. 

The loaf was immediately cut and eaten. Managed to snag a [very fuzzy, sorry] picture before it was completely gone!

This recipe is extremely easy, and very delicious! I recommend to anyone trying to use up those old bananas before the fruit flies start growing from it. Leave a comment if you try it out; let me know how it went! 

End-of-semester Wrap-Up/H-IPPE Orientation

I can't believe I never posted since March, but this semester was one of the toughest I have experienced. Last week was finals week, and there were 5 finals, 5 days in a row. Four of them were cumulative. It was the most intense week of my life, but I survived.

Final Report Card: 
Pharmaceutics 2 - A
Pharmacodynamics - A
Pharmaceutical Care Lab - A
Introduction to Therapy 1 - B
Biochemistry - B

Overall, I am very pleased! I finally figured out my study groove, and any B's I had were a painful 88%. I worked harder than I ever have before and it paid off! I am excited for next year when we are exposed to more medicinal chemistry and therapy.

My school positions for next year: 
APhA-ASP President/Liaison-Elect
Recruitment Ambassadors Program Secretary-Elect
Pre-Pharmacy Club Secretary

Another project I'll be working on this summer is writing a proposal to start a dual degree program with Masters in Public Health!

Today was also a big day! My Hospital Introductory Pharmacy Practice Experience (H-IPPE) orientation was today. We took a tour of the vast UNC Hospitals and became familiar with the expectations of the month. I feel so lucky to be rotating at UNC Hospitals. I hope that my classmates have the same great experience wherever they are in North Carolina. The class is spread out into various regions of the state, from Wilmington to Asheville. I will definitely update every day to account for my experience! Here is a list of things I will be exposed to:

-Investigational Drugs
-Transitions of Care (inpatient --> outpatient)
-Oncology Pharmacy
-Pediatric Pharmacy
-OR Satellite pharmacy
-Round with Resident (very excited about this!)
-Emergency Department (twice!)
-Drug Information and Medication Safety
-Special Formulations
-Decentral Pharmacist (twice!)
-Inpatient Pharmacist (twice!)
-Controlled Substances
-Sterile Products
-Administration
-Outpatient Pharmacy
-Pharmacy Support Services

We also have 2 projects. One New Drug presentation, and a special formulations assignment where we analyze a drug that is specially made in the pharmacies and if it's more feasible to buy it commercially.

Tomorrow is Investigational Drugs! Cheers to the month :)

First Day of Spring Semester!

This semester started off with a freeze. 

Woke up at 7AM and it was a chilly 19 degrees. Normally, I would skip class until the sun came out if it was this cold, but I'm a professional now! Plus, our first class of the day this semester has mandatory attendance. But that's good for me because it gives me the motivation to go. 

I can't express enough how much of a learning experience last semester was for me. I finally figured out my study method, I paid the price for being lazy and procrastinating, and now I fully understand the phrase "keeping your head above water". 

So this semester I have read each syllabus multiple times so I understand every project, assignment, exam, and quiz. I used to hate knowing my grades and just wanted to do my best for every test. But it's definitely a study-motivator to know the grade you need, and a booster to know if a good grade is still possible. I made an Excel spreadsheet with all of my courses and each assignment with point values. All I have to do is input the grades and my final grade is calculated automatically! I got the idea from my Student Mentor, Whitney. It'll help when I need to figure out what I need to get that A! Haha. 

Screen shot of my spreadsheet. I'm so proud of it! 

Here's a short summary of each of my classes this semester: 

1) Pharmaceutical Care Lab: 2nd in the 5-semester series. In this class we learn top 200 drugs, medical terms, calculations, compounding, counseling, and much more! Lots of work, but we learn very valuable skills and knowledge. 

2) Pharmaceutics 2: Last semester we learned a lot about diffusion and physical properties (hydrophilic vs. lipophilic) properties that affect drug absorption, along with an introduction to different drug delivery systems. This course will emphasize the different dosage forms (tablet, capsule, vaginal suppository, rectal suppository, nasal sprays, ophthalmic and otic drops, transdermal patches, etc.) and how drugs get into the system with each different form. 

3) Biochemistry 2: Last semester, we learned about proteins, energy utilization in the cell, and lipid synthesis (among other things). This semester will emphasize gene therapy and drugs related to that. Drugs have shifted from low molecular weight molecules to monoclonal antibodies. We will learn about challenges to this. 

4) Pharmacodynamics: Our first taste of pharmacokinetics. We will learn about how drugs process and eliminate drugs through liver, kidney, cytochrome P450, etc. Sounds interesting and different. 

5) Intro to Pharmaceutical Care: Our first exposure to the Pharmacotherapy that we'll get in full force next year! We will learn how to do SOAP notes and how to interview patients in preparation for OSCE's. 

This semester promises to be MUCH harder than last semester, so the gloves are off! 

I pledge to:

1) Not be lazy

2) Go to class

3) Prepare for class beforehand 

4) Don't procrastinate 

5) Eat healthy 

6) Get enough sleep

What do you pledge to do this semester?