Participants will incorporate preparation and writing strategies to flourish on the Gerontology Comprehensive Exam

GerontologyExaminationWorkshop

Four Part System for Exam Success

• Mark all physical documents

• Collaborate with classmates

• Mimic the testing environment

Exam Preparation

Resources

Classmates

Professors

Practice Questions

Tab all Books, Notes and Lectures

• Invent a system (blue=theories, yellow=physiological, etc.)

Zotero Endnote

Preparation

• All necessary websites ready

• Citation software installed

• Books, lectures & notes tabbed

Writing Structure Practice

• Write a series of points you want to include

• Create three sections addressing each letter

• Divide the points amongst the three sections

• Decide what introduction format you’re going to follow

StylesBullet Points

AGE CHANGES ON DISPOSITION OF DRUGS IN THE BODY

Pharmacokinetics

Pharmacokinetics refers to drug disposition in the body. The process of drug disposition includes absorption from the site of administration, distribution via the circulatory system to central and peripheral systems, metabolism, and finally excretion (Arking, 1998; Dubovsky & Buzan, 2000). There is evidence that age-related changes impact the effects of certain drugs at all steps of disposition. These changes require careful selection of drugs and dosage for older patients (Turnheim, 2003).

Absorption

Most medications are administered orally and absorption occurs in the gastro-intestinal track (Arking, 1998; Dubovsky & Buzan, 2000). Even though there are general declines in the surface of intestinal epithelium and of intestinal motor function, the permeation of most medications seems to remain unaffected (Turnheim, 2003). A few exceptions include small decreases in the production of hydrochloric acid (HCI) and pepsin in the stomach and declines in the ability of the small intestines to absorb vitamins A, D, K, and zinc. Lower levels of HCI are associated with reductions in the absorption of iron, calcium and B-12 through active transport mechanisms (Blechman & Gelb, 1999; DiGiovanna, 2000)

Introductory

ACCESSIBILITY AND AFFORDABILITY OF MEDICATIONS

As mentioned earlier, disease morbidity increases with age and pharmacological intervention has become a salient element of modern health care. A national survey of patients age 50+ found that although the older population accounted for about 13% of the population, they consumed about 35% of all prescription medications ( Rathore, Mehta, Boyko, & Schulman., 1998). Prior to the enactment of the Medicare Modernization Act in 2003, major concerns were raised regarding prescription drug accessibility and affordability for U.S. citizens. Based on these issues, the federal government took policy action. The rationale of government intervention can be explicated based on two principles of economics: equitable access and violations of perfect competition that lead to market failure.

Equitable access

First, in the broadest sense, it can be argued that society has a moral obligation that all of its citizens have access to adequate health care without excessive burden (Munson, 2000). This is one way of conceptualizing equitable access, an idea that is valuable in understanding the role of the state in intervention under the Economy Theory (The World Bank Group, 2001). In discussing access to care, Munson (2000) argues that when there is substantial public concern about the inability of the market to provide adequate care to everyone, “then the responsibility to ensure equitable access to health care resides with the local, state, and federal government (page 835).” There is a problem with equitable access to medications for many older adults and therefore this is rationale for government intervention.

Violations of Perfect Competition and Market Failure

According to the market failure perspective, a number of assumptions must be true to ensure that there is perfect competition in a market (Munger, 2000). Assumptions of perfect competition include perfect and free information, price taking, private decisions, and that all firms have a relatively small share of the market (Investopedia, 2000).

Introduction

Part A

Part B

Part C

Work with your classmates to compose an outline• Set a 1.5 day time limit and answer a

question in the time frame and compare your answers the next day

• Practice answering timed comps

• Devote equal time to each part of the question (a,b,c)

Age’s Effect on Drug Absorption

Pharmacokinetics

Absorption

DistributionMetabolism

Excretion

Access & Affordability

Equitable Access

Violations of Perfect Competition

Market Failure

Communicating Medicare

Use of multiple forms of media

Vision issues

Hearing issues

Introduction

Older Age and Chronic Disease

Treating diseases with pharmaceuticals

Consideration for Prescriptions

Objective of essay

Don’t go it alone • Form study groups and hold one another accountable

• Team up with professors (organize in advance)

Tionne• biology• epidemiology

Lisa • psychology

Rozonda • policy

Assemble & Analyze

Analyze TextDiscuss Approaches

Critique AnswersNotice Patterns

Divide & Conquer

Average Scores of Students Who Prepared for the Exam

*This graph reflects no actual data.

Prepared Unprepared0

0.5

1

1.5

2

2.5

3

3.5

4

4.5

201120122013

Participants will incorporate preparation and writing strategies to flourish on the Gerontology Comprehensive Exam.

GerontologyExaminationWorkshop