3rd-year medicine rotation after 6 years

[bosky]

Hey everyone,

Please give me some advice!

I am an MD/PhD student and haven't been in medical school since late spring 1998(!). I am starting 3rd-year medical school with a medicine rotation in August. Could you give me advice to help prepare me for the ordeal? At present, I am planning to study the medicine chapter in 1st aid for the wards and skim some stuff in Current Medical Diagnostics and Therapeutics...

But, I remember NOTHING!

Thanks!

---

Members don't see this ad.

 

[TommyGunn04]

I can't overstate how great of a book Blueprints is, ESPECIALLY the Medicine one. The chapters are all very concise, and if you get the newest edition there are 50 or so board-like questions in the back to help prepare for the shelf exam. If you could get through Blueprints before the rotation, and then read it again during the rotation, along with reading about your patients' specific issues, you'll be golden! It's the only book I used on medicine, and I did very well.

 

[hndrx1a]

Bosky, besides great advice from TommyG, why not do Kaplans steps for the reviews? It'll probably freshen you're memory, and you'll need info for USMLE anyways.

 

[the citizen]

Bosky, I was in the same boat in February. I started my IM rotation 4 days after I defended after 4.5 years off. I would suggest you make sure you remember how to take a full history and physical. The rest will come with time and by reading up on your patients.

 

[lowbudget]

Don't worry. NO ONE knows what the hell is going on on the wards. You'll be fine. I'd start reading at a leisurely pace, maybe skim the IM and Surgery portion of Boards & Wards before hitting Blueprints.

Just watching some of the MD/PhD's coming back and seeing what they struggle with, some key stuff from Step 1 you might want to review are conceptual stuff:
-Cardiopulm phys
-Endocrine feedback loops and steroid synthesis
The rest of the stuff is either re-memorizing (bugs and drugs, esp antibiotics and hypertension/MI drugs), or stuff that you have to study anyways just like everyone else who just spent the last couple of months on dumbing it up on Psych.