We had a discussion today of whether we as veterinarians should take free pens, lunches, and other stuff from pharmaceutical reps. The moderators obviously thought that these freebies would influence our decisions. I guess the thought is that we would be distracted with the gifts and not look at the research. Are we that dumb? I understand how it can help doctors recognize these drugs/companies names, but I don't think I would blindly start prescribing the drugs because of a pen. I think the big things like vacations may instill a feeling of obligation to support that company, but I grab pens whenever I see them.
One good point that was brought up was that we need to be aware of what we advertise. By this I mean, what are our clients and the general public seeing written on our pens, notepads, shirts, or whatever? I have a Hill's backpack and I actually do support Hill's, but if it said Purina on it, I would probably still use it because it's a good backpack. However, I don't think a veterinarian should advertise companies that they wouldn't recommend. I think a lot of people accidentally advertise companies by using free stuff.
As a side note, the comment was made about making MSU a no free lunch (and other gifts) zone. However, companies like Hill's provide a lot of free gifts to the students, discounted food, money for orientation activities, and even money for student tutors. Taking away this stuff would make vet school a lot less enjoyable.
Thursday, October 16, 2008
Tuesday, October 7, 2008
Avoiding Studying
I have an anatomy exam tomorrow, but I do not feel like studying anymore. I just had my animal handling practical, which was a complete waste of time. I had to halter a sheep, tie a knot, pretend to draw blood, get a heart rate, find lymph nodes, and give a body condition score to the sheep. All of which took about 7 minutes with me taking my time. It took me longer to get to the farm!
Today we had another prime example of a student asking a question that was so far below the professor's intelligence that he couldn't answer it. It's kinda sad when the professor spends 5-10 minutes trying to answer the question and he starts talking about stuff that is unrelated to the student's question. This does provide some entertainment during the class, but it also gets frustrating very quickly because it seems that the right sentence would answer the question and the fact that the student should understand the material because it was covered on our first test. This is just a reminder to really smart people to actually listen to the question and don't be tricked if the question seems dumb. To everyone else: don't ask your questions before you've looked in your notes.
It looks like week 7 of vet school is when you become sick of studying. I know I should study for anatomy, but I probably know enough to pass the tests tomorrow. OK, back to studying.
Today we had another prime example of a student asking a question that was so far below the professor's intelligence that he couldn't answer it. It's kinda sad when the professor spends 5-10 minutes trying to answer the question and he starts talking about stuff that is unrelated to the student's question. This does provide some entertainment during the class, but it also gets frustrating very quickly because it seems that the right sentence would answer the question and the fact that the student should understand the material because it was covered on our first test. This is just a reminder to really smart people to actually listen to the question and don't be tricked if the question seems dumb. To everyone else: don't ask your questions before you've looked in your notes.
It looks like week 7 of vet school is when you become sick of studying. I know I should study for anatomy, but I probably know enough to pass the tests tomorrow. OK, back to studying.
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