December Extra Blog:

During this entire month of December, I found out that my second mentor, Mina Wassef, quit his job at Del's Pharmacy 1 during winter vacation. I wasn't mad, upset, or even sad, I felt happy for him that he was able to find a better job somewhere more vivid. I know that he will mold his career into a great success in the future as a great pharmacist. Of course, I felt like a rock in a hard place, but I try to bare with it. Even though my time was short with him, he taught me a lot and I am very glad I got to meet Mina.

Since I am mentor-less this month, the only thing I was able to do was head out and start on my Independent Component. I volunteered at a Glendora Grand Nursing Home as a member of the Activities Program. There, I help set up games, snacks, and assist the elderly within this events to enjoy themselves in the Nursing home. I would describe it as bringing in a bit of Brightness within these residents. I was only able to come in on every other day of the week, starting around 10am-3pm or 5pm.

So far, I have experience Bingo in the program and have created a new elderly man. His name is, Donny, I assist him during Bingo and chat with him about random stuff and he is a very humorous type of person. Sometimes he can be such a flatter when it comes to Bingo because he would often win. Lot of the seniors are very entertaining to watch and to observe their way of their behavior and interaction with other employee, some act as if they were still like children. At the end, I learn a something to keep my mind high about that I think it is a great meaning in my topic:
"Every patient is different." It is so obvious...but why..? My mind wonders about...

Unexpected News:

Recently I heard this week, my mentor, Andrew Kest, had earned a full time job at Kaiser. Congratulations to Andrew Kest! I wish for all joy and hope that he enjoys his new profound working environment :)

YET... I did faced a brief moment during this weekend, being MENTOR-LESS! BUT I am A-OK! Thank you to my wonderful MOM, Nhory Galdo, who is an RN, she has found another pharmacist I can look up as a mentor. His name is Mina Wassef. Mina is actually one of Andrew's co-workers at Del's Pharmacy 1. He agreed to take me in for mentorship for anytime of the week when ever I have an opportunity to come in. I really appreciated for his help and offer of letting me able to still come in and to continue my mentorship.

Mina Wassef
Del's Pharmacy: 1-909-477-6300

Andrew Kest is one of a kind and was one of my first mentor I have ever encountered with in the field of pharmacy. He taught me a lot about the field and given me ideas for my topic and senior project. I am grateful that I was able to work with him for a very short time during these couple of sessions and I really learned a lot than I expected. Hopefully I would see him soon in the future and tell him on how my project went. For now, thank you for all the help, Andrew Kest :)

Ana Eyes Amen (I'm Sleepy)

November Extra Blog:

This month, I have been struggling to find volunteer work for my Independent Component. The only source of volunteer work is at my mom's local facility at Vermont. But the problems: on what days I am able to go (weekend or weekdays), how many hours I am able to stay, the driving takes only an hour, and some of the faculty members are having a trust issue due to my age (thoughts of having no high school students working in THEIR facility). My mom is doing all she can to help me find any volunteer work for my project from every clinic and nursing home she has been working in (she works in about 3-4 clinics as a RN). She has been such a great help so far, from setting me up with my mentor and great medical advice from her experiences that relates to my topic. Recently my mom offered another volunteer idea at her (other) local facility at Eastland, which is close by to Ipoly and my home. She told me that if I get admitted to do volunteer work, I am able to go with my mom on weekends and stay in the facility until the night shift (when my mom finish). The only flaw is that I will be speaking with doctors on the phone, but I will be able to interact with patients physically such as helping them with minor issues or problems. As I wait for the facility to call me, I have bought a new book this pass week, its called "New Girl" by Amy Silverstein. It is a autobiography about a woman (Amy Silverstein) who goes through a heart transplant. She tells about her perspective view as a patient, the challenges on what she, the patient, faces. I found this book in one of my articles ʺThe Choices Patients Make.ʺ by  Pauline W. Chen. It intrigued me to find this book because in the article it tells about a PASS patient who have read the book herself. This patient understood the book both mind and soul, she states out that all patients can relate to this story. The story of what goes on in a patient's head.

Blog 10: EQ

Blog 10: EQ

Title: EQ
Label: Research
Due Date: Thursday, 11/13 by 8AM

Content

1.   Review this.  Confirm by stating "I reviewed the rule of three for writing an EQ."

I, Adrienne Alba, reviewed the rule of three for writing an EQ.

Essential Question 
Once a topic is chosen, the student will develop a working essential question.  The purpose of the working essential question is to help the student build a strong foundation of research which will allow him or her to create an essential question that encourages depth and rigor in the chosen topic.  An essential question must:

• Provide a framework for studies (It calls for breadth and depth of research, Is not a yes/no question)
• Take a stance (It allows you to argue some point, Cannot be a recitation of facts or a list)
•  Format (It is specific, The wording makes sense)

2.  Review the following EQs and

• Tell us if each meets the rule of three.
• Tell why they do or don't.

 a.  What is the most important factor in healthy weight loss?

This does not follow by the rule of three.

It states out "healthy weight loss" in general, it must be specific in what field or career that this situation occurs in.

 b.  What is most important to securing a conviction in a criminal investigation?\

This follows by the rule of three.
It has a following statement of what the situation it is focusing in and what field it is taken place able to indicate the genre of the problem.

c.  What is most important in creating a hairstyle that best satisfies a customer?
This follows by the rule of three.
It has a statement that follows through a curiosity of the problem within the career or field and directs towards the effect it will occur to and that would be "hairstyle that best satisfies a customer."

 d.  How can an anesthesiologist best treat chronic pain?
This does not follow by the rule of three.
It does not follow by a 'one' solution question, but a varies types of solutions that others will offer their opinion toward to the question. This had lack their stance to support their main idea solution, which is no indicated within this EQ.

3.  Based on your review of the rule of 3 and your experience with assessing four EQs, please write another draft EQ for your senior project.  The senior team will be meeting with students shortly for EQ revision and approval; you are expected to bring your research notebook to that meeting with your EQ draft written inside in pencil.

EQ: What is the key way to enforce patient compliance to prevent noncompliance related health problems to occur in the pharmacy?

Blog 9: Lesson 1 Reflection

Title: Lesson 1 Reflection

Label: Presentation

Due Date: Wednesday, November 5th, 2014

Content:

1. Positive Statement
What are you most proud of in your Lesson 1 Presentation and why?

The one act I truly felt proud about during my presentation is how I spoke to the audience about all the necessary information of patient compliance by giving a loud and confident voice when I explained my lesson. I would say that the main key in having a good presentation is to have a compelling tone of voice to speak about your topic in a more certainty attitude to prove your point. My style of speech is to be loud, strong, and well-informed about my main subject and to show my own personal side. When it comes to presentations, I want to grab the audience's attention by my voice to get them to listen and to understand why I have chosen this topic.

2. Questions to Consider:

      a.     What assessment would you give yourself on your Lesson 1 Presentation (self-assessment)?

 AE       P          AP       CR       NC =======> P-




  b.     Explain why you deserve that grade using evidence from the Lesson 1 component contract.

I gave myself a P- because I, myself felt really confident as I did my presentation, even though deep inside I was extremely nervous. After class, I had asked a few people about what was their view about my presentation. Some people said I was really good on how aggressive I was about my main topic and how I had a strong personality within the basic information I have given. But they also state out that I speak way a little too fast and I need to slow down. I admit that I do get nervous when I am up on stage which I tend to speak fast without notice, this usually occurs when I am being time for a presentation. Since it was a ten minute presentation, I knew that I had a lot of information to say about my topic, but due to the fact that ten minutes can go by fast. Another negative factor I have thought was that I have forgotten to cite the other sources for the  my research information for my topic because I mostly focused on the main information I wanted to give and mentioning about the sources had slipped out from my mind. I did cited one article on where I found one of my solution of Patient Portal it was from “Using Patient Portal to Achieve HIPAA Compliance and Drive Patients Satisfaction”. On the other hand I did had other sources on where I got a more in depth understanding of the definition about patient compliance issue which is from the mentorship, Del’s Pharmacy 1, and my mentor, Andrew Kest. Overall, the only main issue I have is about taking my time when presenting. I need to learn to slow down when speaking and to remember the main information that needs to be added within my lecture time able to keep a balance between ‘what I need to say’ and ‘time limit’. At the end, I felt well-prepared in the beginning of my presentation and I gave the class all the necessary information that I planned to say. More importantly, I gained this feeling that I have grabbed many of the audience's attention during my hook activity which had given me the confidence to continue throughout my presentation, knowing there is nothing in my way to stop me.

3. What worked for you in your Lesson 1?

I would say that my introduction was an exciting way to intrigue the audience to make them curious about my topic by giving all of them a part of the small skit. When it comes to presenting, you have to make it interesting for both the audience and yourself, to make the audience part of your act. In my case, I wanted everyone to play a part in the scene able to imagine themselves being part of a patient compliance issue which was I, the pharmacist, telling this person, the patient, that he is taking the medication incorrectly. My hook activity helped my audience to visualize an idea on what is patient compliance. Another idea that helped during my lecture was having small, written phrases to memorize my speech. The night before the presentation, I spend hours on end trying to memorize the necessary information I plan to say. Whenever I time myself, I end up being over ten minutes. Then I planned to delete some certain information I found unimportant to say and left the ones that are I considered major towards to my topic. Yet I had trouble on remembering the basic orders of what I planned to say still, so I written myself note cards that have small phrases to know the specific order of my lecture. The notes actually did helped every time I glanced at them able to know what to say throughout my presentation. This act can be in some use of what and how I should write phrases in the Powerpoint and possible for any small poster boards or notecards I am able to bring along when I have another presentation.

4.  (What didn't work) If you had a time machine, what would you have done differently to improve your Lesson 1?

There are many ways I wish I could improve my lesson one if I had a time machine. First, I would help myself to take some breathing exercises to keep my nervousness low or just try to keep myself calm in general. This act can help with my stress relief and I wouldn't stutter often throughout my speech. Another improvement is to practice the speed of my speech to learn to slow down and take my time slowly. It is best I learn the steps on how I can talk calm and slowly able to say all my information when presenting as I try to beat the time limit. Next time I will have someone show me the time of how many minutes I have left during my presentation able to have an ‘up-to-date’ notice of what I am able to do with the remainder of that certain time. Lastly, I would want to write up my cited sources on the poster or my notecards, possible for future Power Point, so I wouldn't be able to forget to mention about them throughout my lecture. But if possible, I would just travel in a week before the presentation to give myself a head start on my practices. It would have been a major use to improve myself through ways of speech, memorization, and knowing what to prevent from my basic knowledge from my previous presentation.  

October Extra Blog:

Since I am only able to attend at Del's Pharmacy on saturdays, it made it difficult to schedule my mentorship time with daily up coming events. Recently for this month, I have been making calls to other pharmacies to ask if these facilities are hiring any young high schoolers as clerk. The clerk job in a pharmacy is my idea of my independent component. My topic, patient compliance, is mainly about interactions with patients. Since I am still a minor, the closest way I can communicate to patients is by phone calls to answer simple questions that these people are in need to ask. So far, none has reply to my calls or just aren't interested in hiring anymore clerks. At all else fail, I told my mom that no pharmacies were up for hiring. My mother, who is an RN, suggested if I wanted to work in her clinic as a clerk. She told me at her work there are only a few clerk management who are close to my age and receive daily phone calls from patients everyday. I was interested in her idea and have taken her offer. By the beginning of the first week of November, I will be attending at my mother's pharmacy. But for the first day, I will not be working yet. It will only be a observation check throughout the clinic able to get familiar with the place and know my places when I work as a clerk in the clinic.

Blog 8: Research and Working EQ
Label:  Research
Due Date: Thursday October 16 by 8AM

1.  What is your working EQ?

How can pharmacist enforce patient compliance?

2.  What is a possible answer to your working EQ? Please write the answer in thesis format.

How can pharmacist enforce patient compliance?

•Physicians need to develop a relationship towards their patient to have an understanding of their way of behavior when it comes to medication.
•Patient Portal is an electronically source patients use to transfer their medical information towards their physicians by text, emails, and electronically able to save time from them going to the pharmacy on foot.

3.  What is the most important source you have used that has helped you come up with an answer to your working EQ?

My recent sources are from my research checks I have found through articles that explains about what are the useful tactic to help decease noncompliance in patients. I even get a more in depth understanding by asking my mentor of what he thinks about these answers.

4.  Who is your mentor, or where are you doing mentorship, and how does what you are doing relate to your working EQ?

My mentor is Thai Dang, he owns a local pharmacy in Avocado Heights, "Dang's Clinic." I am going to work as a clerk who answers phone calls and helps with any customers in the front desk while the pharmacist is busy in one place and the other.

This relates to my working EQ by understanding the way of communications towards patients able to have an idea of ways to help patients received the help that is needed. I can learn to observe their way of behavior and why he or she occurs to be acting the way they are, which relates to patient compliance.

September: Extra Blog:

For this month, I haven't gone to my mentorship due to a variety of unexpected events. There were moments I have accidently forgotten to go to my mentorship, then there were times with family parties that must be celebrated, and most of time the when I am about to go there my mentor, Andrew, is gone. It is one of those moments that irritated me the most during this month. I have gone or was about to head at the pharmacy three times with an unexpected notice that Andrew has left and yes, I did called the pharmacy the last two times I was about to head there. I did went to my mentorship at least two times this month, the first time was for the first interview and the second time was just recently last weekend for doing the second interview and just for more discussion time with Andrew. For my first meeting with my mentorship for the interview, I had caught a cold on that day which strained my voice, so I had a difficult time asking Andrew questions and going thru the discussion. But luckily we made it thru the entire interview and I fulfilled all my required answers I needed. After the interview, Andrew had given me cough drops for my sore throat. It was so exciting because I joked about that these were my first prescribed medication for an actually pharmacist. Andrew and I laugh about that silly joke that became a fun, expressive discussion about his line of work an beyond.

Blog 7: Independent Component 1 Approval

Label: Independent Component

Due Date:  Thursday, 10/2 by 8AM

What is it?  Independent Component 1 is an opportunity for you to add a dimension of creativity and/or an additional outlet for research.  The goal of the component is for you to explore your topic in more depth with this component.  On February 6, 2015, you will be turning in the following to your blog to prove completion of this component:

• Log of time taken to complete assignment Senior Project Hours spreadsheet.

• Evidence of the 30 hours of work (e.g. transcript, essays, tests, art work, photographs) as digital artifacts.
• LIA explanation of what you did.

    To get your idea approved now, please answer the following questions:

1.  Describe in detail what you plan to do for your 30 hours.

For my independent component, I plan to be a volunteer worker at any open-pharmacy or medical facility. My plan is to work in an environment that requires me to communicate with patients during my working hours. I plan to work at is a small facility that is near by my hometown. Yet I hope that these facility can accepts young minors like me to work in their industry.

2.  Discuss how or what you will do to meet the expectation of showing 30 hours of evidence.

My valid proof of my 30 hours independent component work is that I plan to attend at the facility for at least 1-2 times a week with the possible results of  14 hours hours per week. I hope to schedule my work hours every other day such as Monday, Wednesday, or Friday. By this, I am able to take the advantage of half days off to focus on other necessary iPoly work able to keep a balance of time as a volunteer and a student. All evidences of my independent component will be all photos of the facility.

3.  And explain how what you will be doing will help you explore your topic in more depth.

My topic is patient compliance, it involves an act of socializing and behavioral situations with patients. I want to experience patent's life on what they have to deal with everyday for medical attention. If I am accepted as a volunteer then I am able to start my practice of communicating with patients. By this ideal process, I can experience the act of communicating able to give them the correct information or assistance. I can relate this to a pharmacists because need talk to every patients everyday, especially those who are noncompliance and need their attention when they explain about the instructions for their medication. This is my practice to focus and speak confidential towards the patients in person and to be sure that they received as much help for their satisfaction.

4.  Update your Senior Project Hours log.

Recent Update of Mentorship Hours

Your answers to the questions should be supported with details and examples for the senior team to understand what you plan to do.   

Next steps: Once we review your blog post, your house teacher will discuss with you the approval of your plan either face-to-face or as a comment on this post. If your idea is approved, please start working on it.  If it is not approved, your house teacher will explain why.  It is your job to address the concerns so you can get your component approved. 

Blog 6 - Second Interview Preparation

Label: Interviews

Due Date: Friday, 9/19 by 8AM

 The purpose of the second interview is to justify your mentor as an expert in the field.  Thus, you will be asking them at least 5 questions about their background and/or the background of the organization or company where they work.

1.  Who is your mentor and where do they work?

 My mentor is Andrew Kest, who has been a pharmacist for about four years in America. He is originally from Egypt, which he had more experience of pharmacy in that country longer than in the US. Andrew works in Del's Pharmacy 1 (closed pharmacy) for his four years in the US and had recently started to work at Kaiser Hospital (open pharmacy) since last year.  

 2.  What five questions will you ask them about their background?

1. Could you describe one of your typical workdays for me?
2. What skills are required in your position on a day-to-day basis? 
3. What are the positive and negative parts in your career?
4. Has this industry change dramatically in the past couple of years than before? What have you seen from inside your company? Where do you think the changes will happen in the next years to come? 
5. Are too many or too few people entering this profession? If many, then how frequently do layoffs occur? How does it affect the morale of employees?

The interview is due 10/25 by 8AM in Q&A format to turnitin.com.

Blog 5 - Mentorship and Research Reflection

Label: Research

Due Date:  Thursday September 11 by 8AM

Based on what you have done for your senior project so far, answer the following questions (be specific and use examples).

1. Mentorship question: Describe your experience in how you found your mentorship?  If you haven't found one yet, describe your experience so far in the search of a mentor.

During summer, I did not stress to find my mentor. I have simply asked my mom if she knows any pharmacists, then she called up Andrew. Andrew is one of the few pharmacists my mom knows due to the fact she goes to that pharmacy to drop off the medication from her work place. I do recall going to that clinic, Del's Pharmacy 1, a couple times, but didn't step foot inside the place. After my mother called Andrew, I was allowed to come by the pharmacy to start my mentorship. But I could only go on weekends because they are less busier than the weekdays. Since it is a closed-pharmacy that means no interaction with customers, so the atmosphere there is very relaxed and quiet. Andrew is very kind, he said that I am allowed to come as much as I wish t observe more of his work and to ask as many questions I have for him. I have only been at the pharmacy a few times and the description on my view of that clinic is an expansion of the back f a regular pharmacy clinic except twice as big in every station.

2. Research question: What has been your most important article you have read so far and why?

The one article I have been fond of was "When the Patient is 'Noncompliant'" by Danielle Ofri, M.D. This article explains the opposite of patient compliance, noncompliance, is when a patient is not following all direct orders from doctor, pharmacist, or medical officer on how to take their medication. Once a patient has been known as 'noncompliant' then all medical officers will have to make sure that specific patient knows how to their medication exactly.

I admire this article by how it explains a positive side of the patient compliance issue, the noncompliance. Those who were known as a noncompliant patient have been helped by their medical officer. Some had been improve to know their daily routine for taking their medication and there were some who were still in the process of practicing. These patients had more support from their medical officer to change their lifestyle and daily habits. But for patient compliance, they seem to fall in depth of taking in their own self care; thinking they know what they are doing if they change their tactics when taking their medications. By patient compliance issue it causes great consequences. At the end of this article, the author tells a personal story of her experience with someone who had a patient noncompliance. She refers to her story towards the audience as the sad truth.