Here at Varndean Sixth Form College, we offer all our students who are pursuing a career in Medicine the opportunity to attend a 12-week intensive Clinical Case History Workshop course.
These sessions are designed to support students on the principles of medical science and clinical practice. More importantly, to help them understand and appreciate the diagnostic process, the significance of taking an accurate and detailed case history for a patient in addition to making holistic judgements whenever considering the treatment rationale based on sound, clinical knowledge and understanding. We offer sessions on pathology (the science of disease) and pathogenesis (how disease is initiated) and pathophysiology examining specific disease profiles aligned to case studies of patients. Discussions around the functional changes that are associated with those specific examples and some prevalent diseases of our modern times are regularly covered. These include cancer, heart disease, diabetes and a number of neurodegenerative disorders such as Alzheimer’s Disease, Parkinson’s Disease, Multiple Sclerosis (MS) and Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS) to name but a few.
Our students also experience some fundamental practical skills too such as the taking of blood pressure using analogue devices, cranial nerve examination, musculo-skeletal dissections, ophthalmology, otoscopy and basic vital signs including the checking of pupillary responses.
It is hoped that following this course, students will be able to confirm and consolidate their ambition to pursue Medicine. Learning more about the training processes and methods that doctors undergo also enables our students to be better prepared, not only for the MMIs (the standard interview and selection process) but also for the rigours and challenges of medical training.
For more information about our offering, please contact Ms. Yaso Shan (yas@varndean.ac.uk)
During my time in Varndean Sixth Form College as an aspiring medical student, I think one of the most useful (but also fun) experiences was the 12-week intensive Clinical Case Study Workshop run by Yaso Shan. We got to take part in diagnosing different cases, allowing us to understand the experience of being a doctor in a truly unique way.
The workshop gave me a competitive edge in my personal statement which helped me get medical interviews at City St George’s. The programme also brought in professionals, who walked us through chicken leg dissections and taught us to perform a cranial nerve exam, helping me cement my love for medicine, as well as giving great discussion points for my medical interview. Yaso, the programme lead is an amazing teacher, ensuring no one was left behind, despite covering difficult and medically complex subject material. Her knowledge of biology was clear to the whole class, while also creating a fun environment where everyone felt comfortable to take part and ask questions.
Alexis Antoniades (IB Diploma student) 2024-26
