Hi Team-
It is my opinion that you need to "try out" a lot of the stuff that you might consider buying. Of course, others will say that as M-1's, you really don't know what to look for, so *anything* will do. I guess it's just up to you.
Here's the list of stuff we needed for our clinical class (prices are the student deal prices):
Blood Pressure Cuff: Most of us got a Welch-Allyn "Tycos Classic Hand Aneroid" BP kit ($105). They also have one called the "TR-1" which has a trigger release instead of the screw-knob ($79). Here's an example of how you might want to try them out for yourselves. I didn't like the trigger release, so I got the classic.
Stethoscope: Littman is the gold standard, but I didn't like the feel and sound, so I got a Welch-Allyn Harvey DLX ($115)
Diagnostic Kit (Opthalmascope/Otascope): Another "try it, you'll like it" item. I got a WA "Classic Smart Set" ($439) which has a rechargable battery built into the handle. They have a cheaper version ($356) with a NiCd battery (replaceable with 2x "C" batteries), but I liked the feel of the "Smart" version. The "PanOptics" run $500+
Other stuff on our list of for our clinical class:
(That I can remember):
Reflex Hammer (aka "Knee-knocker-hammer"
2 tuning forks
Penlight
Tape measure
Pocket eye chart
Scrubs would be a harmless item to get early. People wear any color except prints. Ciel Blue (powder blue) seems to be a popular color, as well as Navy Blue and Teal. Just so you know, "Geranium" is an odd pink color. The surgery club will send you an order form to get some silkscreened with the NSU-COM logo. A lot of people buy those.
Exam gloves (mostly for anatomy lab) would be useful.
Dissection kit...discussed in previous post.
The normal collection of school supplies.
If you don't have a lot of "dressy" clothes, you might consider re-stocking your wardrobe. During orientation week, most guys wear shirt and tie, women wear the appropriate equivalent. Then, you'll be "dressed up" every other Friday for your IGC mentoring session. All the other times, you wear scrubs.
I'll see about emailing you a syllabus/schedule after finals are over.
Keep the questions firing...I'm happy to help.
Cheers,
-sb