How to improve retention/recall in medical school?

[taconacho]

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Hey guys, I am currently a MS1. I have just completed my anatomy block and am moving into the biochemistry block. I have noticed that I'm starting to forget some aspects of anatomy. Not sure, if this is normal, or if my mind is trying to repress some memories. LOL

What techniques/resources do you guys use for memory recall/retention/learning?

How many passes do you guys run through your notes/lecturer's ppt, etc.?

Is it possible to improve your memory? And out of curiosity, is your memory recall better before or after medical school/2nd/3rd/4th years?

Thank You guys 😀

 

[wanderingorion]

Anki, bro. It works.

 

[libertyyne]

Anki or 3-5 passes. Choose your poison.

 

[Jojos]

anki, or any other method with active recall and spaced repetition. i also try to throw in the feynman method.

for stuff that can't recalled by understanding of the physio or pathophysio mnemonics or mind palace.

 

[libertyyne]

anki, or any other method with active recall and spaced repetition. i also try to throw in the feynman method.

for stuff that can't recalled by understanding of the physio or pathophysio mnemonics or mind palace.

How do you use feynmen with such large amounts of info, or tiny factoids/ details?

 

[Beargryllz]

Smoke weed every day

 

[freecitizen]

There is one unfortunate truth. If you don't continuously review material you will forget. If I had a nickle for everytime I told myself "I'm never going to forget this" I'd have a dollar.

Use resources that schedule your repetition (e.g., Anki or firecracker) or help you memorize information in meaningful ways (e.g., Sketchy). These are by far the best when used consistently over the long term.

If I had to do it all over again, I probably wouldn't write any notes except for something I deemed extremely high yield. I would instead add information to my anki deck. Towards the end I just ended up reading the text from FA and skipping over my notes.

Does your memory improve? The reality is the more you know the easier it will be for you to memorize. This would not extend into other "types" of information. There is a famous example of chess players where grandmasters were shown the layouts from famous games and they were able to memorize it to a high degree of accuracy. When they were shown boards that were not physically possible (i.e., random), their ability to memorize was no better than your average Joe. Google "chess memory experiment" or chunking theory for more information.

 

[Jojos]

How do you use feynmen with such large amounts of info, or tiny factoids/ details?

I am not sure i understand your question. I put the question and sometimes I don't even put in the answer in anki. I try to explain the important key points in my head and check it against the ntoes and textbooks i have. in this case anki is almost more of a reminder system to review something.

 

[CherryRedDracul]

Practice spaced repetition, understand concepts, and take care of your general health (diet, exercise, enough sleep, etc.).