Books for Prep | |
 - One of the best to prepare for the national PT examI am a former science teacher and found this book was the best out of 3 that I bought to prepare for the exam. I took the exam this month and feel confident that I passed. The book breaks up the material into concise chapters with chapter tests. The best are the chapters on drugs that really helped me remember the drug names, mechanisms of action and precautions. Rating:  - Genius!I was so angry with this book that I actually wrote down the errors as I read it so that I could share it with you. I wont hammer you with all of them, just the ones I'm currently reading, from pg 111-123, a mere 12 pages, a fraction of the book's length. pg 111 - 125mg/ml stated in question, changed to 125mg/2ml in the solution on pg 112. pg 115 question #2 - 200mg/ml, changed to 250mg/ml in solution on pg 519. pg 115 question #9 - 250mg/5ml, changed to 125mg/ml in solution on pg 520. pg 118 "PCTB", should be "PTCB" (come on editor, it was in caps and it's the subject of your book) pg 119 "adult dose of a drug is 2m/kg", should be 2mg/kg pg 123 question #9 - the solution is suppose to use clark's rule: (wgt of child/150pd * adult dose), not young's rule: (age of child/(age + 12) * adult dose), instead they use a combo of both: 25lb/(25lb +150lb) * dose. Wrong! At first I was very angry with the errors in this book, but I went through a 12 step program: anger, denial, blame, resentment, ... and finally acceptance. And in the end, I love this book! It's sheer genius! The author and editor piss you off so much you double check all their work, writing down all their errors, rewriting it online to share with you, and commiting it all to long term memory! It's all I can do to refrain from giving this book 5 stars. I only gave it 3 for that rare reader who doesn't have the time to edit the book like I did. Rating: - I passed the exam, but...The book does a good job of covering the basics, but it is full of mathematical errors, circuitous mathematical logic (they make the math much harder than it needs to be), and misinformation on physics (e.g. it says that a meniscus is an optical allusion, when in fact it is a real physical phenomenon caused by the surface tension of the liquid). On the plus side, it does a good job covering pharmacy law, pharmacy operations, calculating dosages, and drugs. While you could study the drug information (e.g. drug classes, physical effects, interactions, etc.) for weeks, the exam does not delve into it very much (at least mine did not). Rating:  - I would not suggest this book to anyone...Please don't waste your money on this text. I had the misfortune of having to use this text to teach certification reviews for the July 06 exam. Luckily all of the students passed but I would attribute it more to their prior pharmacy knowledge and the additional information I gave them from the APhA texts than this book. The typos were unacceptable!!! I realize mistakes will get missed on occasion but how can a text claim 3/32 = 1/8 on the front page of a chapter? I was primarily teaching the math section and thought this book did a terrible job of explaining things. If math is the area you need to focus on do yourself a favor and by the Complete Math Review by APhA instead. This book was written strictly like a textbook which doesn't promote the practice most students need. The APhA text was written more like a work book which I really enjoyed as did my students (I also used it when I just wanted to briefly look over things before taking the exam in 2003). The work book format of APhA makes it a lot easier for students to skip over sections they have already mastered by providing frequent practice problems you can check yourself on. The pharmacology section in the Delmar text was pathetic as well. The information was out of date and incorrect (Nexium is a capsule not a tablet!!!) The top 200 medications list in this book was organized poorly also. I used numerous sections of APhA to supplement the Delmar text and the students loved the way the APhA material was presented in comparison. Basically my conclusion would be that if you want a text with tons of typos and way more information in textbook format than you need on the exam...use Delmar. If you just want a quick refresher (or even a crash course if Math if it isn't your strong point) that just presents you with what you need to know please use the APhA texts (Complete Math Review and Complete Review). Rating: - Decent overall prep for PTCEI purchased this book a couple of months ago to prepare for the certification exam--which I took today. A couple of thoughts now that I've been through the experience: 1. The organization and general information provided in the book was FAIR-to-GOOD. There were some questions that came out of left field not covered in this text, but for the most part it was sufficient in the procedures, practice, and regulatory material. A couple of practice tests, but they seemed to use the end-of-chapter questions a bit much. 2. The math preparation is VERY GOOD. Lots of math chapters and questions. I didn't see a single Q not covered in the text. Of course, practice helps. 3. Pharmacology coverage and organziation is POOR. There texts assumes complete knowledge of physiology in the discussion of the various drugs and mechanisms of action. The chapters in drugs are incomplete, confusion, and occaisionally tough to follow. Overall, a very good prep guide. But you better get flash cards and/or a primer on the pharmacology with this one! In association with Amazon.com | |