For six months, I studied for my Pharmacy Technician certification. The nerd in me loved the opportunity to swim in the academic lane again. The Virgo in me seized on the opportunity for my job to pay for it.
Throughout all the coursework, nothing challenged me more than having to rote-memorize the details of 600 hundred drugs, which felt more like a thousand drugs. I resented the process. Initially, I only used the digital flashcards to learn the brand/generic name pairing of each drug, mostly ignoring the drug class(es) that appeared on the cards. Yet, the course obligated me to know it all: drug name, both brand and generic, drug classes, indication(s), contraindication(s), and drug form(s).
OK, so fuck all THAT. The only bright spot was creating mnemonics for the drugs. My very first breakthrough mnemonic was: OMG, Al gave Dara herpes. [Generic: Imiquimod; Brand: Aldara; Class: Antiviral; Indication: genital herpes]
So proud of myself, I shared it with several people, regardless of whether they were also studying for their pharm tech certification or not. And, no, I didn’t care that the mnemonic omitted the drug’s contraindication(s) and form(s). After all, I didn’t have to get a 100% to pass.
The challenge then became not memorizing 600 different drugs, but creating 600 fabulous mnemonics such that when I saw either the brand or generic name in a question, I’d recall the corresponding mnemonic to access more information about the drug. To accomplish this daunting task, I used several strategies.
One of the most useful strategies was using the names, even part of the name, capitalized, in a sentence. The name could be used as any part of speech. For example: Pyran Tells the pinworm that she’ll Pin-X that parasite. [Generic: Pyrantel; Brand: Pin-X; Class: Antiparasitic; Indication: pinworm infection]
Other times, I’d use the prefix’s definition to make a memorable sentence: Watery Rox Eskata cerumen. [Generic: Hydrogen peroxide; Brand: Eskata; Class: Cerumenolytic; Indication: Earwax (cerumen) removal]
The most “controversial” mnemonics involved the word “skinheads,” which, in my parlance, stood for “dermatitis, psoriasis and eczema,” three different skin conditions. So much easier to remember that one word represented three conditions than the three conditions themselves. Plus, anytime I mentioned “sin,” I knew it stood for “cin,” “cyn” or “syn.” As in: Fluo’s Sinful steroids Lidexes 3 skinheads. [Generic: Fluocinonide ; Brand: Lidex; Class: Corticosteroid; Indication: Dermatitis; Eczema; Psoriasis]
Some of those skin medications were only used for one or two of those conditions. Instead of remembering “psoriasis,” I used “sorority.” In the place of “eczema,” I used “eggs.” Pim inhibits calcium sorority eggs by putting a Lid on them. [Generic: Pimecrolimus ; Brand: Elidel; Class: Calcineurin inhibitor; Indication: Eczema; Psoriasis]
Although the thought of typing up 600 drugs in a chart seemed tedious, especially since I didn’t execute my brilliant idea as I studied the latest batch of drugs. The creative challenge motivated me. Cold Chics Cry about gout. [Generic: Colchicine ; Brand: Colcrys; Class: Anti-gout; Indication: Gout]
I made several connections that I may not have made otherwise. One class of erectile dysfunction (ED) medications was the previously unmemorable PDE5. Unmemorable until I broke it down to being a “Penis-Deflating-Emergency.” I remembered the number “5” by logically reasoning that men used all five fingers of their hand to masturbate. Genius, right?
One ED med was used also for pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH). Viagra inhibits Sil’s penis-deflating-emergency, oPAH! [Generic: Sildenafil; Brand: Viagra; Class: PDE5 inhibitor; Indication: ED; PAH]
The cool part was that with consistency, I used the same phrasing with the same drug class and made connections that way. For example, every time I used the phrase “muscles against,” I knew I was talking about an “antimuscarinic.” Oxy Butt muscles against overactive bladders, using Ditro. [Generic: Oxybutynin; Brand: Ditropan; Class: Antimuscarinic; Indication: overactive bladder]
Of course, some of these sentences sound silly. But silly is memorable, which is the entire point. Besides, silly never stopped Dr. Seuss, who creatively invented words to suit his needs. “Two possums set a Cat Aflame, causing inflammation/ pain,” NSAID Diclo. [Generic: Diclofenac potassium; Brand: Cataflam; Class: NSAID; Indication: Inflammation; Pain]
As much work as I put into making these mnemonics, I’m so tempted to use all that creativity into something other than a study exercise and blog post. Not necessarily another book unless it’s a fiction about a pharmacy technician. I’m in no mood to pitch it to an education publisher.
That’s on the back burner for now. The important thing is passing my national exam for my certification where 40% of the questions will test my knowledge on these some of these 600 drugs. After that, I’ll be free.
One more for the road: The Elders Seek a little Leg to help with their MAOI depression. [Generic: Selegiline; Brand: Eldepryl; Class: MAOI; Indication: Depression]