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We are half way through the school year, and this means that it is time to start planning for next year. Always the highlight of the year. Well, it used to be when the kids were little, now it is a little more of a burden and not as much fun. Oh,  Calculus. That sounds like fun! Ha, not really. But it is that time of year whether I want it to be or not to be.

My daughter will be a senior next year. Most of her friends are already at the community college taking classes. It surprises me how many kids are doing this option in Washington. Why don’t we just graduate them after their sophomore year? I suppose that is a matter for another post. Anyway, since my daughter is not fortunate enough to live in a state that pays for community classes I get to plan her last two years of high school. This year was fine. Next year will be OK. I saw how difficult it was to motivate my son. They are ready to roll out. Get this show on the road and all that. My son did not take a science class his senior year, and my daughter was hoping for the same. I vexed her greatly by telling her that she will be taking Human Anatomy and Pharmacy class next year.

Why am I making her take this class? I see health care changing. My mom who is still in Hospice sees a nurse once a week for 30 minutes. A very small relationship can be established with that kind of time. It isn’t the nurse’s fault. She probably has 6 other patients to see in a day. Not including her drive time. How much can she really understand my mom in such a short period of time? I only see the doctor when I have a problem. Her purpose is to solve the problem as quickly as possible and move on to the next person. The doctor-patient relationship is changing. If a person is not knowledgeable about their own body, the drugs on the market, and general heath, she is going to be at a disadvantage. Knowledge is going to be very important.

I took a pharmacy for non-majors class in college. It was a very helpful class. It taught me the difference between expectorants and suppressants, physical and mental dependency, NSAIDS and acetaminophen just to name a few. I plan on making up a class to along with her Human Anatomy class that explains all these things. Especially with all the media attention on alcohol and marijuana lately, it is important to be knowledgeable on what these two drugs really do to our body. Can we use them responsibly? What are the effects? Long term dangers? Is it a moral issue?

I find that doctors don’t explain things very well. They want you to take their diagnosis without question. There isn’t time to ask questions from the doctor. So what do we do? We check Dr. Google. What does Dr. Google always tell us? It tells us that we are dying and we need to see a doctor immediately. There is so much information out there on the internet. We need to be able to tell the difference between what is true and what is crazy. The number of articles on health on the internet is overwhelming. We need to be able to use discernment, and it isn’t possible to use discernment if you don’t know what your organs do or how your body behaves.

This is why I am making my daughter take a human anatomy course along with a small pharmacy class. I hope that I can make it interesting, and that it will be helpful to her. I am hopeful for just mild complaining and annoyance. I need to figure out which texts I will use. I will let you know when I do.  Wish me luck!