Site Evaluator: Emily Davidson, PA-C, DC

For this rotation, both of my evaluations were conducted via Zoom with Professor Davidson. I enjoyed having Professor Davidson as my evaluator this time around because while we did have her for our Interviewing and Counseling course almost two years ago, we were completely remote at that time so this was the first time that my class is really getting to work with her regarding patient care. During our evaluations, she made sure to address all of my concerns regarding the site and rotation as a whole. Before presenting patients, we reviewed my pharm cards in which she really wanted to see that we were grasping the information regarding why we would give a medication as opposed to saying we use a particular class for a particular ailment. Once of the things I appreciated was her tips for studying drugs in the future, especially for our boards, specifically, not wasting our time writing down extra information that we may already know. She also challenged me to pick drugs that may be a little more challenging to broaden my understanding of some of the tougher concepts.

For the first evaluation, I presented a patient who was admitted for restorative therapy falling a fall at home. During my presentation, Dr. Davidson brought-up a lot of helpful points into making my HPI and physical exam stronger for the future. While the overall structure was there, she tasked me with keeping my chronological sequence fluid to understand the patient’s previous status and what has changed in terms of ADL assistance need. She also made sure to specify that once the HPI addresses everything up to the point of admission, my assessment and plan should address every problem brought up in my HPI.

For the second evaluation, I presented a patient who was admitted for therapy following an above the knee amputation along with a journal article that showed the significance of an evidence-based amputee rehabilitation program. This case was much smoother than the first as I took all of Dr. Davidson’s recommendations and found ways to improve the overall flow of my writing and oral presentation.

Because of the input given, these evaluations were undoubtedly some of the most beneficial of all my rotations. I’ll be able to apply the evaluations’ recommendations to the balance of my rotations and my professional practice.