comlex PE

[SIMRAN111]

Hey Guys,

I am taking COMLEX PE on march 13 approx 2.5 weeks. I have not started studying due to Sub- I rotation that I just got finished with. I will really appreciate any help that I can receive regarding what books to use..

or how to prepare myself. I am nervous about the OMM, since it has been long since i used OMM.

Thanks much.

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[JayneCobb]

Here's an older thread

I do not believe that any book is going to prepare you for this waste of time and money. Read the link I posted, that seems to sum most of it up better than I could

 

[dofool]

First Aid for the clinical exam is uber helpful. It's would be violating the condfidentiality policy to elaborate, but suffice it to say: FA and a rudimentary knowledge of OMT will pass you.

 

[SIMRAN111]

Thank you for the advice... I hope I do fine on the OMM.

Thank you much!

 

[IzzyB]

in my school, we're given one month of "free" rotation, which a lot of people take off for to study for step2. i would like to take the 3rd block of my 4th year (w/c is pretty much the month of september) off to take comlex CE. would anyone advise against putting off taking the PE part of comlex much later on in the year. some ppl say take it close to when you take the CE so it all "ties in" together. i know it's beneficial to take CE early so the residency programs can have your scores when u interview, but is the PE part as heavily weighted as the CE? or is it just a requirement for graduation & programs don't really pay much attention to it. please advise on the best time to take PE. if the PE score is not as important i'd rather take it much later, after the "showcasing months" are over, since i have to travel all the way to philly for it. any input would help. thanks guys!

 

[JayneCobb]

please advise on the best time to take PE. if the PE score is not as important i'd rather take it much later, after the "showcasing months" are over, since i have to travel all the way to philly for it. any input would help. thanks guys!

I think it depends more on your school. My school requires that we only take it before graduation, not pass it. And i was not asked once if I passed PE during interviews for residency.

 

[DrMom]

I think it depends more on your school. My school requires that we only take it before graduation, not pass it. And i was not asked once if I passed PE during interviews for residency.

But after your class, it is an across-the-board requirement that DO students pass Step 2 CE and PE for graduation.

 

[Idiopathic]

Get me drunk sometime and Ill tell you what I think of the PE...hell, and the NBOME in general.

 

[DrMom]

Get me drunk sometime and Ill tell you what I think of the PE...hell, and the NBOME in general.

somehow I don't think being drunk is a requirement to hear the tirade

 

[Mixmaster]

I took it not too long ago. I do recommend studying or practicing some cases (10-15) with a friend. I did and I know I improved a bit. This test is terrible I would take this seriously.
You can somewhat tell who is not taking it seriously. I know a couple people who went to the exam without practicing at all and struggling the first couple of patients.
Also some people would leave the room in less than 10 minutes. Now they might be able to take a full history, ROS, physical, and then discuss the A/P with the patient, all in 14 minutes (oh and at the same time wash hands and be compassionate show interest blah blah blah), but I know I cant. And I still forgot to ask a few things and do some things on the physical. Did anyone else feel as though they forgot to do some PE stuff that might have been important? Come on it's 14 minutes and we dont know anything about this patient, how can you not forget something?
Anyways pass rate is like 94-95% so my thought is if you practice and study some basic things (USMLE First Aid PE) you should hopefully fall in that 95%.
Good luck to you.

 

[JayneCobb]

But after your class, it is an across-the-board requirement that DO students pass Step 2 CE and PE for graduation.

I know, but I don't know about other schools. I would not have taken it as early as I did had I not been in Philly already on vacation.

Also some people would leave the room in less than 10 minutes. Now they might be able to take a full history, ROS, physical, and then discuss the A/P with the patient, all in 14 minutes

I could easily obtain a full history, and PE in less than 10, I didn't spend a whole lot of time on the ROS except the pertinent questions. It was the notes the annoyed me. There was no guidelines other than "let it stand on it's own" and I can not hand write a legible note that is all encompassing of what we discussed in 14 minutes. Several times I finished with a pt in ~7-8 minutes leaving me 16 minutes to write a note and I did not finish all of them

 

[JayneCobb]

somehow I don't think being drunk is a requirement to hear the tirade

You guys are talking about my future job, so careful what you say. In fact, I'm going to institute a phone skills & etiquette test which will cost $800 and you will have to fly to Cherry Hill, NJ to take this test were I just happened to own a bunch of hotels. [/sarcasm]

 

[DrMom]

I know, but I don't know about other schools. I would not have taken it as early as I did had I not been in Philly already on vacation.

It is an AOA or AACOM policy, so it applies to all schools.

 

[JayneCobb]

It is an AOA or AACOM policy, so it applies to all schools.

I thought that the AOA policy on this officially didn't go into affect until the Class of 2009?

 

[IzzyB]

thanks for all the responses... in my school, we have to pass PE to graduate. of course i intend to take the PE very seriously and hopefully pass it on 1st attempt, but my concern is the time frame of taking it. i'd rather focus on CE first then, maybe later on tackle PE. i just don't think i can handle dealing with both CE & PE in the same month, so close together. i know they complement each other in terms of studying, but i'd rather deal with one thing at a time. would it make me less competitive if i have the CE scores early and not the PE. is PE a big factor when programs are considering who to grant interviews to? did anybody else got asked about their PE scores during interview or do programs predominantly focus on the CE scores? thanks!

 

[DrMom]

I thought that the AOA policy on this officially didn't go into affect until the Class of 2009?

Hmm. I'd heard 2008. I dunno. Either way, folks aren't going to have a take-it-late option for long.

thanks for all the responses... in my school, we have to pass PE to graduate. of course i intend to take the PE very seriously and hopefully pass it on 1st attempt, but my concern is the time frame of taking it. i'd rather focus on CE first then, maybe later on tackle PE. i just don't think i can handle dealing with both CE & PE in the same month, so close together. i know they complement each other in terms of studying, but i'd rather deal with one thing at a time. would it make me less competitive if i have the CE scores early and not the PE. is PE a big factor when programs are considering who to grant interviews to? did anybody else got asked about their PE scores during interview or do programs predominantly focus on the CE scores? thanks!

There really isn't anything to study for the PE. It's just you pretending to do an exam and note on someone pretending to be a patient. If you look through this forum, you'll find tips from some of us who have taken it...but no studying.

Also, the PE is simply pass/fail. Some programs that have had incoming interns have to retake the exam are concerned about it, but I haven't heard any chatter about it being a big deal in the match rankings overall.

 

[sophiejane]

Dr. Mom is right...do not study for this exam. There is very little on it that you don't already know, and if you don't, there's no way you can learn it before then, because it's random.

But really, the cases are very, very basic, nothing you haven't seen on rotations.

Make sure you have a few manip tricks up your sleeve--simple stuff--be nice, smile, etc...you've heard it all before.

Best of luck!

 

[Mixmaster]

Just wondering if I have this all straight. There are two parts and you have to pass each individually.

1. Humanistic - basically how nice you are and if the pt liked you.

2. Biomedical - everything else H&P, Physical, OMM, and the entire SOAP note.

So if I absolutely suck at OMM but do a better than average H&P I will pass right. I remember doing pretty thorough physicals but on each pt I forgot to do at least one thing (and sometimes it was important), but I still had the correct diagnosis. Anyone out there think they absolutely screwed one part of a case up, and did good on the rest and just pass? I JUST WANT TO PASS!

 

[DrMom]

they can nail you on the OMM.

Do simple, quick things (soft tissue, inhibitory pressure, articulation, muscle energy) as appropriate for the patient presentation. Really do it...don't just go through the motions doing ineffective tx. Document what you did on your note.

 

[confused_amused]

Question about starting a patient on meds in your plan.

I hear that they don't want you to write "Start on a PPI", but rather a specific drug name. Should we write something like "Start Pt on a trial of Protonix", or should we write the whole thing out "Protonix 20 mg PO Q day? Or does it not really matter? Thanks.

 

[toogood1]

they can nail you on the OMM.

Do simple, quick things (soft tissue, inhibitory pressure, articulation, muscle energy) as appropriate for the patient presentation. Really do it...don't just go through the motions doing ineffective tx. Document what you did on your note.

Getting really concerned now since my scores will come out in the next batch. On my test, I ONLY did soft tissue on 4-5 pts. I also documented whether or not someone was rotated or sidebent. The more I think about it, the more I am paranoid that this was not enough--maybe I should have done more techniques. I really hate this. Oh well.