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Can anyone share advice on the books they found useful during thier 3rd and 4th year rotations?
Thanks!
Thanks!
Books during rotations
- Thread starter Mayqswet
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I would also like to get a recommendation for good review books for peds, surgery, FP, psych, OB/GYN, and eternal medicine. Are the Blueprint books good?
Any suggestions for question books or online services to review for shelf tests and Step 2?
Thanks!
Any suggestions for question books or online services to review for shelf tests and Step 2?
Thanks!
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We actually got an orientation packet that was put together by some upper classman and they had the following books listed as good for the different rotations. In general, we have shelf exams after most rotations, so take this with a grain of salt because your school might write their own exam and therefore different books might be better suited for your school. Some rotations also give students extensive handouts here at my school, making purchasing a book unnecessary. I've put a star by the ones that I am planning on buying/ have bought for each rotation, but I won't go so far as to say that this is the best book to buy for any one of the rotations because everybody has different studying styles and therefore everybody will prefer different books. The books that I have bought/ * are the books that my orientation packet seems to vaguely indicate are the most widely used books though. Also, just because I didn't list a book doesn't mean that it wasn't listed in my handout as "recommended". I have just written the books that there seems to be some sort of consensus on.
Consensus on what most students carry in their white coats in most rotations:
-Pocket Pharmacopeia
-Sanford Guide to Antimicrobial therapy
-Palm (I've heard a lot of good things about 5 minute CC, but it's 67 bucks so I'm holding back from buying that right now)
Pediatrics: Blueprints* or NMS, depending on studying style. Blueprints is easier to read, NMS has questions at the end of every chapter and might have more info packed into it but it's in a list format; Blueprints question books were not rated, but Pretest* is supposed to be alright. Quick reference (not necessary to buy unless you want to be a pediatrician): Harriet Land Pocket handbook; what the residents are carrying around in their white coats
Internal medicine: Blueprints*, Medicine by Fishman, NMS series* for exam questions, but Pretest and AL are alright too. You will probably want either a Harrison's or Cecils for general reference (expensive, but might be worth the money since internal medicine is important regardless of what speciality you go into). Rapid Interpretatioin of EKG's by Dubin * is an easy, easy read for learning how to read EKGs. For pocket references in this rotation Practical Guide to the care of the medical pt, The washington Manual, and scut monkey are useful for flipping through on rounds.
OB/GYN: Blueprints in OB/Gyn *, and A&L for questions. OB/GYN secrets is supposed to be a good pocket book because it has some info that you will often be pimped on.
Neuro: Neuro Recall and Neurology by Williams an Wilkins are supposed to be a good pocket books, and Textbook of Neurology is supposed to be a good test; you might want to borrow these books if you can unless you want to be a neurologist. Our school goes mainly by some handout.
Psychiatry: NMS Psychiatry *, like the rest of the NMS series, info in outline format with questions at the end. Pretest* is supposed to be good for questions. I actually purchased Blueprints in psychiatry and it looks sufficient too, I think that you can be flexible in what book you buy for this rotation unless you want to be a psychiatrist. Just go for the cheapest book available.
Surgery: NMS Surgery * and Surgery recall* are highly recommended, and of course you will want to brush off the dust from your netter or another anatomy book too. Instant anatomy by Witaker and borely is also supposed to be useful for learning anatomy. Look over Surgical intern survival guide for info on writing notes and orders, fits in your breast pocket of your white coat.
For every rotation, "First aid for the wards" was useful to some for a quick read to find out what to expect.
For step 2, I've heard that "Prescription for the boards step 2" is supposed to the best comprehensive book, but most upperclassman that I've talked to say don't worry about step 2 until 4th yr comes around (ie don't bother buying this yet, there will probably be a new edition soon anyways). I actually bought First aid for step 2 too, but I've heard that it's not necessary to purchase it; it's not nearly as useful as it was for step 1.
Consensus on what most students carry in their white coats in most rotations:
-Pocket Pharmacopeia
-Sanford Guide to Antimicrobial therapy
-Palm (I've heard a lot of good things about 5 minute CC, but it's 67 bucks so I'm holding back from buying that right now)
Pediatrics: Blueprints* or NMS, depending on studying style. Blueprints is easier to read, NMS has questions at the end of every chapter and might have more info packed into it but it's in a list format; Blueprints question books were not rated, but Pretest* is supposed to be alright. Quick reference (not necessary to buy unless you want to be a pediatrician): Harriet Land Pocket handbook; what the residents are carrying around in their white coats
Internal medicine: Blueprints*, Medicine by Fishman, NMS series* for exam questions, but Pretest and AL are alright too. You will probably want either a Harrison's or Cecils for general reference (expensive, but might be worth the money since internal medicine is important regardless of what speciality you go into). Rapid Interpretatioin of EKG's by Dubin * is an easy, easy read for learning how to read EKGs. For pocket references in this rotation Practical Guide to the care of the medical pt, The washington Manual, and scut monkey are useful for flipping through on rounds.
OB/GYN: Blueprints in OB/Gyn *, and A&L for questions. OB/GYN secrets is supposed to be a good pocket book because it has some info that you will often be pimped on.
Neuro: Neuro Recall and Neurology by Williams an Wilkins are supposed to be a good pocket books, and Textbook of Neurology is supposed to be a good test; you might want to borrow these books if you can unless you want to be a neurologist. Our school goes mainly by some handout.
Psychiatry: NMS Psychiatry *, like the rest of the NMS series, info in outline format with questions at the end. Pretest* is supposed to be good for questions. I actually purchased Blueprints in psychiatry and it looks sufficient too, I think that you can be flexible in what book you buy for this rotation unless you want to be a psychiatrist. Just go for the cheapest book available.
Surgery: NMS Surgery * and Surgery recall* are highly recommended, and of course you will want to brush off the dust from your netter or another anatomy book too. Instant anatomy by Witaker and borely is also supposed to be useful for learning anatomy. Look over Surgical intern survival guide for info on writing notes and orders, fits in your breast pocket of your white coat.
For every rotation, "First aid for the wards" was useful to some for a quick read to find out what to expect.
For step 2, I've heard that "Prescription for the boards step 2" is supposed to the best comprehensive book, but most upperclassman that I've talked to say don't worry about step 2 until 4th yr comes around (ie don't bother buying this yet, there will probably be a new edition soon anyways). I actually bought First aid for step 2 too, but I've heard that it's not necessary to purchase it; it's not nearly as useful as it was for step 1.
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Thanks a bunch Darth!
I've printed out your recommendations. One of my friends has recommended most of the books that you recommended.
I've printed out your recommendations. One of my friends has recommended most of the books that you recommended.
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here's what we M3' here have heard from the M4's...take with grain of salt...everyone's style of learning is unique (that probably goes w/o saying):
Medicine: Very split among the folks. NMS and blueprints are good for review. Cecil's Essentials, Current, Fishman, Stobo may be better texts. Harrison may be overkill but good reference. I like 20 common problems in primary care for outpatient since it's organized by chief complaints. Recommended pocketbooks include Washington Manual or Ferri's.
Family: Sloane is the definitive textbook. NO one here reads it, though. MOst people try to read 20 common problems. SO far, it's a very nice read and you can read it in any order based on what you see in clinic. Swanson's review is a must, I've heard. Not all med schools require a family practice rotation.
OB/Gyn: People are equally divided between Beckmann and Hacker/Moore for texts. The latter has yet to be updated, though. Some say high yield is a good review. Blueprints works well.
Peds: Nelson's Essentials for highly motivated people. BLueprints for everyone else.
Psych: BRS, Blueprints, and Kaplan handbook or synopsis for reading. Some people say you can still do fine without reading anything.
Surgery: Here Surgical Recall and Lawrence's Essentials are must-have's. Some get by with NMS, but usually those who aren't remotely considering going into surgery or subspecialty. Some also recommend surgical pocketbooks like Mt. Reid or WashU.
Question books: PreTest and Appleton and Lange series are recommended, including the Physical Diagnosis PreTest for medicine and family shelf exams.
Pocket stuff: Sanford for antimicrobials, ePocrates for Palm or Tarascon's Pocket Pharmacopeia for drug dosage, and Maxwell's to help you with your ROS or what should go into SOAP, orders, and post-op notes. Some recommend the small therapeutic pocketbooks like the one's by Chan (? author) that are tailored to each rotation--they're pretty cheap and are small enough to fit just about anywhere.
Hope this helps!
-s.
Medicine: Very split among the folks. NMS and blueprints are good for review. Cecil's Essentials, Current, Fishman, Stobo may be better texts. Harrison may be overkill but good reference. I like 20 common problems in primary care for outpatient since it's organized by chief complaints. Recommended pocketbooks include Washington Manual or Ferri's.
Family: Sloane is the definitive textbook. NO one here reads it, though. MOst people try to read 20 common problems. SO far, it's a very nice read and you can read it in any order based on what you see in clinic. Swanson's review is a must, I've heard. Not all med schools require a family practice rotation.
OB/Gyn: People are equally divided between Beckmann and Hacker/Moore for texts. The latter has yet to be updated, though. Some say high yield is a good review. Blueprints works well.
Peds: Nelson's Essentials for highly motivated people. BLueprints for everyone else.
Psych: BRS, Blueprints, and Kaplan handbook or synopsis for reading. Some people say you can still do fine without reading anything.
Surgery: Here Surgical Recall and Lawrence's Essentials are must-have's. Some get by with NMS, but usually those who aren't remotely considering going into surgery or subspecialty. Some also recommend surgical pocketbooks like Mt. Reid or WashU.
Question books: PreTest and Appleton and Lange series are recommended, including the Physical Diagnosis PreTest for medicine and family shelf exams.
Pocket stuff: Sanford for antimicrobials, ePocrates for Palm or Tarascon's Pocket Pharmacopeia for drug dosage, and Maxwell's to help you with your ROS or what should go into SOAP, orders, and post-op notes. Some recommend the small therapeutic pocketbooks like the one's by Chan (? author) that are tailored to each rotation--they're pretty cheap and are small enough to fit just about anywhere.
Hope this helps!
-s.
