Pharmacology for Physician Assistant and Clinical Perfusion Students
The primary goal of this course is to provide physician assistant and clinical perfusion students with basic pharmacologic information and to impart an understanding of the actions of drugs in humans so that they can apply this knowledge to the judicious use of drugs in practice as a physician assistant or clinical perfusionist. It is not our purpose to discuss the specific details of therapeutics, but rather to present the pharmacokinetics and pharmacodynamic aspects of various classes of drugs, and thereby prepare students to better understand the rational clinical use of drugs and to become cognizant not only of their potential beneficial actions, but also of the inherent risks involved whenever drugs are used.
To achieve these goals, the following broad topics are covered:
- General principles of pharmacokinetics (effects of the body on the drug), pharmacodynamics (effects of the drug on the body), drug-drug interactions, definition of common terms used in pharmacology, and identification of sources of pharmacological information.
- Systems pharmacology: drug actions on the various biochemical pathways and physiological systems and functions of the body, including the central and autonomic nervous systems, the cardiovascular, renal, endocrine and gastrointestinal systems, and metabolic functions.
- Chemotherapy: major emphasis on drugs for antimicrobial use, with lesser coverage of certain antineoplastic, antiparasitic, and antiviral agents.
- Toxicology: definition, important principles, modern requirements for toxicology testing, mechanism of action of selective toxicants, and methods for treating or more information please contact:
Dr. L. Charles Murrin
University of Nebraska Medical Center
Department of Pharmacology and Experimental Neuroscience
985800 Nebraska Medical Center
Omaha, Nebraska 68198-5800
402-559-4552
cmurrin@unmc.edu
