I See Dead People
One thing that I can say I've done in the course of my program that most OT students do not get the opportunity to do is cadaver anatomy. For some reason, this isn't required for many OT programs. I don't quite understand the logic behind that. As OTs, we deal with just as much physical and anatomical detail as the other professions who do require cadaver anatomy and dissection. Perhaps we aren't discussing a specific muscle or bone as often as another professional, but that doesn't diminish our need to understand the physical structure of the body.
Those who have not participated in cadaver anatomy probably find the idea somewhat repulsive. Dissecting a cat or a fetal pig is one thing, but a person? And I have to admit that when you first walk into that lab, it can really freak you out.
I can't really explain the transition that takes place. I don't know when, where or how you go from being unable to look at the person's face to dissecting that same face. I can tell you that it involves a lot of humor, and to be honest, the fumes might have something to do with it.
I never thought I'd say this, but cadaver anatomy was a great experience. There are times, a year later, when I actually miss it. Not the smell, or the body juice, or the scraping of adipose tissue off the structures you want to see, but the joy of discovery, of connecting a structure to an action, and of really knowing what lies beneath. It gives you a tremendous understanding of how your body works that just isn't possible from a book.
The other great thing about it is that you can see the impact of disease and other conditions on the body. Want to know what a knee or hip replacement looks like? One of the cadavers in your lab will probably have one. Want to see what cancer does to your insides? Find a body with a chemo port. How about cirrhosis of the liver? Rheumatoid arthritis? Heart disease? Osteoporosis? Blunt force trauma or TBI? I was able to see all of those and their direct impact on physical body structures, which I think is an invaluable experience.
Of course, the other good part was being able to work on this with fun classmates and a knowledgeable, good-humored professor. Without those two ingredients, it could have been a (more) unpleasant experience.
So what do you guys think? Have you had cadaver anatomy? Love it or hate it? Do you wish you had been able to dissect a cadaver? Should OT students have to do this? Weigh in if you're so inclined.