This course is an intensive course and is equivalent to any physical assessment and diagnosis course in a medical school or advanced practice nursing curriculum. It provides foundational study in health, wellness, and in pathology states. It takes us from the “normal” to the abnormal and uses a “body systems” framework for content presentation.

You will learn how to take a comprehensive health history. You will also learn how to conduct a comprehensive physical assessment/examination. Each body system that is examined will be done so in the context of the “normal” progressing to the most common manifestations and findings in disease states. At the completion of this course, you will have a solid foundation of skills and knowledge and will be able to conduct a proficient health history on clients, as well as appropriate physical assessments. You will also have a foundational knowledge of many disease states and their manifestations and subjective symptoms.

Textbook:Bates's Guide to Physical Examination and History Taking. Ninth Edition. By Lynn S. Bickley & Peter Szilagyi, Philadelphia, PA; Lippincott: 2007. ISBN #0781767180.