Study strategy in residency

[coagulase]

I was wondering if any current/recent residents could comment on their study schedules and/or provide any pearls for making the transition to derm as a pgy2. What resources were most helpful? Any insights would be greatly appreciated! Thanks.

---

Members don't see this ad.

 

[username456789]

Honestly, read the **** out of Bolognia and take notes as you go. Bust your ass first year so that second/third year are a breeze. In December or January you can start reviewing the Jain book or Galderma (Merz?) binder.

I scored in the 98th percentile first year and 96th second year in the MOC boards, and some weenies on here got mad because they claimed you could not possibly do that without a bunch of "airplane notes" (whatever those are) or by cheating.

Work hard like you did in M1/M2, at least during PGY2. Not only will it garner you respect among your attendings, but it will set you up for success in the future.

 

[coagulase]

Honestly, read the **** out of Bolognia and take notes as you go. Bust your ass first year so that second/third year are a breeze. In December or January you can start reviewing the Jain book or Galderma (Merz?) binder.

I scored in the 98th percentile first year and 96th second year in the MOC boards, and some weenies on here got mad because they claimed you could not possibly do that without a bunch of "airplane notes" (whatever those are) or by cheating.

Work hard like you did in M1/M2, at least during PGY2. Not only will it garner you respect among your attendings, but it will set you up for success in the future.

Thank you for the info and congrats on doing so well! Did you have a particular schedule for Bolognia that you stuck to? I'm trying to get a feel for what my weekdays and weekends will look like in terms of studying, etc. Thanks again for the insight!

 

[username456789]

Thank you for the info and congrats on doing so well! Did you have a particular schedule for Bolognia that you stuck to? I'm trying to get a feel for what my weekdays and weekends will look like in terms of studying, etc. Thanks again for the insight!

I didn't really have a specific schedule outlined. Our program used to have a reading schedule for Bolognia, but abandoned it when people became too stressed out by the rigid nature of it. We were all just encouraged to read up on our patients as we went, which I did, and then just kept going through Bologia starting with the first couple basic chapters, then cherry picking the more high-yield/general chapters like atopic dermatitis, psoriasis, blistering diseases, etc.

I like to take handwritten notes. It's a slow process often, but it has helped me tremendously since medical school. I did spend a lot of time on this, and maybe I had less free time on the weekends than some of my colleagues during the first year. But to me, it was worth it, and set me up so that the subsequent years were less difficult as I seemed to have a strong foundation early on.

I did occasionally make flashcards on index cards for the genodermatoses or basic facts like contact allergens, laser wavelength, and other straight up minutia. Some of my colleagues used Anki extensively, but I never really got into it. I'm sure it's quite good, though.

Bolognia seems daunting at first, and at times it is. But honestly, it's a wonderfully written book in many aspects, and I prefer greatly over Andrews. Just chip away at it little by little, and try to identify the chapters that are most relevant to someone starting out in dermatology, and then add the little stuff later. Of course, you will want to read any relevant chapters for specific lectures you may have by your attendance each week. Don't think that you have to read the entire two-volume set by the end of your first year. That might be a reasonable goal if you don't stop to take any notes and are a quick reader, but for me I probably got through two thirds of the entire set through my first year. The parts I didn't get to were often lower-yield chapters or chapters I thought were covered well in another fashion during my curriculum.

All that said, make sure you're learning clinically relevant info as you go! It's easy to get caught up on what's relevant for boards and all that jazz, but now more than ever you should be also focusing on how to take great care of your patients and manage complex dermatologic diseases. This is the final step before the training wheels are officially off.

 

[coagulase]

I didn't really have a specific schedule outlined. Our program used to have a reading schedule for Bolognia, but abandoned it when people became too stressed out by the rigid nature of it. We were all just encouraged to read up on our patients as we went, which I did, and then just kept going through Bologia starting with the first couple basic chapters, then cherry picking the more high-yield/general chapters like atopic dermatitis, psoriasis, blistering diseases, etc.

I like to take handwritten notes. It's a slow process often, but it has helped me tremendously since medical school. I did spend a lot of time on this, and maybe I had less free time on the weekends than some of my colleagues during the first year. But to me, it was worth it, and set me up so that the subsequent years were less difficult as I seemed to have a strong foundation early on.

I did occasionally make flashcards on index cards for the genodermatoses or basic facts like contact allergens, laser wavelength, and other straight up minutia. Some of my colleagues used Anki extensively, but I never really got into it. I'm sure it's quite good, though.

Bolognia seems daunting at first, and at times it is. But honestly, it's a wonderfully written book in many aspects, and I prefer greatly over Andrews. Just chip away at it little by little, and try to identify the chapters that are most relevant to someone starting out in dermatology, and then add the little stuff later. Of course, you will want to read any relevant chapters for specific lectures you may have by your attendance each week. Don't think that you have to read the entire two-volume set by the end of your first year. That might be a reasonable goal if you don't stop to take any notes and are a quick reader, but for me I probably got through two thirds of the entire set through my first year. The parts I didn't get to were often lower-yield chapters or chapters I thought were covered well in another fashion during my curriculum.

All that said, make sure you're learning clinically relevant info as you go! It's easy to get caught up on what's relevant for boards and all that jazz, but now more than ever you should be also focusing on how to take great care of your patients and manage complex dermatologic diseases. This is the final step before the training wheels are officially off.

Again, I really appreciate all your help! Sorry to keep bothering you with questions, but I was wondering how you balanced academic reading vs reading up on clinic patients throughout the week. Did you spend most of your time during the week reading up on clinic patients and then catch up on academic stuff on the weekend? Thanks again for everything!

 

[smartparts]

somewhat related: anyone know when the 4th edition of bolognia comes out?

 

[Dermanic]

I think it comes out in 2017, though unsure of the exact month.

 

[HopefulCanadian]

I have a question do you find that it is harder or easier to study in your residency vs med school?

 

[asmallchild]

I have a question do you find that it is harder or easier to study in your residency vs med school?

It'll vary from person to person. I found it harder as a resident. Doing well from 9-5 is the bare minimum. Finding the motivation to consistently read every night after work isn't the easiest thing in the world.

You'll find the requirement in terms of what you extract from the reading is also much more stringent. In medical school, we would have professors who would almost "give away" what they would be asking on the test in their syllabus handouts. In derm, you are better off served memorizing everything you see until you are certain they won't ask it for the in-training exam / actual board certification / general pimping in clinic sessions.

 

[HopefulCanadian]

It'll vary from person to person. I found it harder as a resident. Doing well from 9-5 is the bare minimum. Finding the motivation to consistently read every night after work isn't the easiest thing in the world.

You'll find the requirement in terms of what you extract from the reading is also much more stringent. In medical school, we would have professors who would almost "give away" what they would be asking on the test in their syllabus handouts. In derm, you are better off served memorizing everything you see until you are certain they won't ask it for the in-training exam / actual board certification / general pimping in clinic sessions.

Do they still have lectures and what not during residency? I know its a silly question. I have a family member who is a physician but they are much much older than I, and so I assume that their path is slightly different then what is the norm now.

 

[asmallchild]

Do they still have lectures and what not during residency? I know its a silly question. I have a family member who is a physician but they are much much older than I, and so I assume that their path is slightly different then what is the norm now.

Yes, every residency is set up differently. We had lectures where residents present and discuss clinical cases, lectures reviewing journal articles, lectures reviewing the textbook currently being covered, lectures for dermpath, lectures for surgery, etc

It is not sufficient to merely attend the lectures. A large part of the dermatology curriculum for almost all programs is going home and reading.