Oral Boards Spring 2010 - Atlanta, GA

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DreamMachine

DreamMachine

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Can't go wrong with this one:

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DreamMachine said:
But that's what I wear every day!

:D:D:D

What are you guys doing the day/night before?

Gold_Spa_20090629050809_320_240.JPG
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:laugh:

I wouldn't go there unless you want to be on the local news that night! Might prevent you from getting a good night's sleep before the boards...
 
hey narcotized, I have already done that. Have any other suggestions?

Either way, I guess suit it is.

I will be pi$$ing my girlfriend off for once by wearing a suit and asking her "does this suit make me look like a consultant". :D
 
DreamMachine said:
10 days...:scared::scared::scared:
Any jetpearls for orals? Is jet the only one that gets to write jetpearls? :D
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JETPEARLS sounds like a SEX AID.:laugh::laugh:
I'll call this "Musings from the battlefield"
Don't try to BS your way out of an answer you don't know. Just think, give the best answer you can and if necessary just say I don't know! If you don't know something, you'll probably be fine, unless it is contraindications to regional or Sux, or some other critical topic. If you start down the BS path, it will be obvious. If you get dragged down and tripped up, it may throw off the rest of the exam. No one knows everything, most pass on the first time. Keep that in mind. Also, obviously, the case is going to go where it is going to go, so when it all goes "BAD" don't stress out or waste a single second rethinking what you could have done to avoid the BADNESS. It was going there no matter what.
When they change "themes" in the same case, it is worth taking 5 seconds to quickly reset by reviewing the stem again. You get so wrapped up in "BADNESS #12" that when they switch suddenly to emergence you don't want to forget something critical from the stem.
Bon chance!
 
LOL:laugh::laugh:



IlDestriero said:
JETPEARLS sounds like a SEX AID.:laugh::laugh:
I'll call this "Musings from the battlefield"
Don't try to BS your way out of an answer you don't know. Just think, give the best answer you can and if necessary just say I don't know! If you don't know something, you'll probably be fine, unless it is contraindications to regional or Sux, or some other critical topic. If you start down the BS path, it will be obvious. If you get dragged down and tripped up, it may throw off the rest of the exam. No one knows everything, most pass on the first time. Keep that in mind. Also, obviously, the case is going to go where it is going to go, so when it all goes "BAD" don't stress out or waste a single second rethinking what you could have done to avoid the BADNESS. It was going there no matter what.
When they change "themes" in the same case, it is worth taking 5 seconds to quickly reset by reviewing the stem again. You get so wrapped up in "BADNESS #12" that when they switch suddenly to emergence you don't want to forget something critical from the stem.
Bon chance!
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What's the dress code? Suit or shirt and tie?

I'm headed down sunday. My exam is tuesday. Who wants to meet up for a beer tuesday night??
 
Gern Blansten said:
All kidding aside, wear a suit. If you don't, you will be the outlier in the group.
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I wore a nice jacket and tie, almost everyone else wore cheap, ill fitting suits.:rolleyes: I hate suits, unless you're going to drop some real coin, they're not going to look too good. The only suit I will wear is a tuxedo.
Don't forget to PAUSE, THINK and RELAX.
They know that you know the basics (you passed the written boards already) so just explain what you are thinking and answer the questions asked, nothing more, no dazzling with BS, no "the March issue of A&A had a great case report on..." , answer the question simply than any followups, and move on. Than CHARGE down to the BAR and TOAST YOUR VICTORY!
 
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Two days to my personal D-Day. Tues. Can't wait to attack the shore. Throw some grenades. And get out.
Onward to victory!
Have fun--and for God's sake, wear a suit!
Tuck
 
ok , here goes...
1. get it over with and wear a suit, just not standing out of the crowd will calm your nerves.
2. they know you passed the written, so nobody will ask you about the pka of bupivacaine or other nitpicky stuff.
3. they are looking for for judgement and decision making skills , not formulaic, canned answers.
4.look at them when you talk.
5.think fast and answer slow
6. the case you 'll get WILL go to hell (as in you can't intubate , the spinal does not work etc etc. , so be prepared for that.
7. you're doing anesthesia everyday without people dying (or so i 'd hope) , so in doubt just put yourself mentally in your or and say what you normally would do , most likely it is the right thing , after all , anesthesia isn't rocket science and again, your deciscion making skills will be tested more than knowledge.
8. you will get one of the following guaranteed:
a)failed intubation , prepare for that
with the diff a/w algohrytm b)a vital sign changes suddenly prepare for hypoxia/bradycardia/tachycardia/hyperthermia/high/low bp
these questions are high yield and preparation of a fluent answer is well worth it.
9. betablockers (10 mg atenolol ) works extremely well, no more shaky hands etc.
so, thats all i can think about ..
godspeed, fasto
 
another thing i forgot, ildestriero is absolutely correct, it is CRUCIAL not to bull****!!!
these guys can smell BS from across the room (similar to the way sharks can smell the blood of wounded prey) , getting yourself on thin ice will be a mistake...
in doubt just say the following :" I DO NOT KNOW "
it will not sink you, guesswork will.
lastly , answer the question they asked , then stop!
just quit talking after you answered the damn question!
additional talk is not helpful, so just stop!
when i was a resident we had a guy who was a professor in india before he came here, an excellent clinician , extremely well read, guess what , he flunked the orals TWICE and was under considerable stress for the third time...
his problem was that he had such a wealth of knowledge that he just could not shut up after he answered the question ....
fasto
so the key is to know when to hold them and when to fold them...
 
Good Luck everyone.

My turn in October, so post your experience- after you've had a couple of course.

Stepping through the shadows, coming out the other side ! (TOOL)
 
sevoflurane said:
Good Luck everyone.

My turn in October, so post your experience- after you've had a couple of course.
Click to expand...

I hope you realize the Fall Orals basically repeat the same cases as the Spring Orals. So learn from those who are taking it now.

When I took it in the Fall of 2005 (San Francisco), I didn't even realize I had the same exact cases as my residency classmate who took it in the Spring 2005. I mean same exact 2 major cases and even the same quick questions at the end.

Of course, you are so nervous during the Orals, you didn't even realize it's a case you've hear before.

The best advice: Practice, practice, practice.
Michael Ho has this great 20 cases he offers. You don't need to take the course. Just go over with someone who has his books before and quiz yourself.

To everyone taking it this week: Relax after you are done. I flew off to Rio de Janeiro Brazil after my Orals. Best 10 days of my life. Girls, the Beach, cheap alcohol, cheap great food (well the exchange rate was much better in 2005 than 2010). Got to hanglide off the moutain and land on the beach. Best 10 days of my life (if you are single, don't take any girlfriends/wives with you) to relieve the stress of taking the orals and rewarding yourself. And don't stay in a hotel. My buddy and I rented a penthouse 3 bedroom condo 2 blocks from Ipanema Beach. That's the way to reward yourself.
 
Great freaking idea, Brazil! If I can just convince my wife to let me go....
 
tucker27705 said:
Great freaking idea, Brazil! If I can just convince my wife to let me go....
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Yeah, it may be a hard thing to convince the wife to let you go to Brazil.

My girlfriend at the time (now my wife) was clueless about Brazil. She told me to have a good time.

Well I made a mistake of taking pictures at the clubs with the girls. When I got back home, I hid the pictures under my dirty laundry. Well my girlfriend was being nice and decided to do my laundry after I got home and found the pictures. All hell broke lose (seriously I am not making this stuff up).

We broke up for 2 weeks but she didn't buy my story of saying the pictures were my buddies and not mine. And she still married me so all's good.

But if you are single (or even engaged), once you take your oral board (or even finish residency or med school). Depending on your money situation, reward yourself with a trip down to Brazil. You will never regret it.

It's that good. You need a visa (it lasts 5 years) for Brazi so plan ahead. Even better than Ibiza, Spain (another hotspot). I thought there was too many illegal drugs in the open being used there.
 
Chilling in the lobby of the Marriott, anxiously awaiting tomorrow's exam. Thinking about the 2:50 showing of hot-tub time machine, if anyone's interested...
 
On the ramp in KSEA with MTgas. Good luck to everyone. Should I watch Hurt Locker or should I read through Board Stiff again on the flight?

-pod
 
aneftp said:
Yeah, it may be a hard thing to convince the wife to let you go to Brazil.

My girlfriend at the time (now my wife) was clueless about Brazil. She told me to have a good time.

Well I made a mistake of taking pictures at the clubs with the girls. When I got back home, I hid the pictures under my dirty laundry. Well my girlfriend was being nice and decided to do my laundry after I got home and found the pictures. All hell broke lose (seriously I am not making this stuff up).

We broke up for 2 weeks but she didn't buy my story of saying the pictures were my buddies and not mine. And she still married me so all's good.
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Dude, that's why you go digital. They had that stuff in 2005. You should have never printed the pictures.
 
... should've pre-lubes with some 2% lido. 1st session felt great start to finish. Had a pretty aggressive examiner in the 2nd ... sighed a lot and said "let's just move on" during a grab bag.

Time to start drinking.
 
IlDestriero said:
Sounds like PROBABLE PASS at least!
:thumbup::thumbup:
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That's what I'm hoping. Examiner got off into the weeds on one question and I found myself starting to confabulate aloud so I just STFU and he gave me he move on comment before I could dig deeper.

The knock came as we were getting into a grab bag I was gonna nail. Relief and disappointment all at once.
 
pgg said:
That's what I'm hoping. Examiner got off into the weeds on one question and I found myself starting to confabulate aloud so I just STFU and he gave me he move on comment before I could dig deeper.

The knock came as we were getting into a grab bag I was gonna nail. Relief and disappointment all at once.
Click to expand...
That's a good point for anyone still waiting to take it. Just answer the question, and quickly, and STFU. If they want a follow up, they will ask. They have to keep the exam on track, so if you keep talking, you can only make it harder to get through everything. They can only sidetrack and try to trip you up so much before they have to move it along. I wouldn't worry too much about not getting to a grab bag. If you were on point for the earlier stuff, they have to give you the benefit of the doubt. Of course if you were floundering, it could go the other way. (but I'm sure that's not you!)
I actually finished one pretty much on time and one was clearly a few minutes early. We were all looking at each other and our watches before the previous examiner asked a few random F/U questions to the last grab bag. I kept it vague.
 
pgg said:
... should've pre-lubes with some 2% lido. 1st session felt great start to finish. Had a pretty aggressive examiner in the 2nd ... sighed a lot and said "let's just move on" during a grab bag.

Time to start drinking.
Click to expand...

Mine was just the opposite; I felt I did better on the 2nd one...

Incidentally, I'm on a 757 back home and the turbulence is orders of magnitude worse than I've ever experienced. Can Jet come on here and tell me turbulence doesn't take airplanes down?
 
MTGas2B said:
Well, glad to have over. It would be nice not to do it again.
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I would wish the same. Here was my experience on Monday.

1st case was slow to start and a couple of "i don't knows" in post op section followed by awesome responses to grab bags (ended it well atleast).

2nd case ok during preop and intraop with a small mistake (not about induction). Excellent in the grab bags at the end (didn't finish them all).

Can the grab bags pass you if you were wishy washy during the cases.

I sure as h@ll don't wanna do this thing again. Felt like I went in for a labotomy...geez. :eek:

Definitely thought I flunked it when I came out.
 
I posted this elsewhere, but it's useful here as well.

The only way to know for sure that you failed is if you are certain that you made a "killing error". A killing error = definite fail.
Examples would be giving patients things that are absolutely contraindicated. Like Sux to MH, muscular dystrophy or burn patients, failure to recognize the need for and use of the difficult airway algorithm, inability to give an adequate differential diagnosis for a common problem, neuraxial blocks in septic anticoagulated patients, etc. People get really worked up about the orals, but they are not really that bad. The case was going to go to hell no matter what you said or did, so don't sweat it!
If you limped along, expressing your thoughts fairly coherently and avoided any major "killing"/failing errors, you probably earned a "probable pass". See you again in 10 years for the recert.:thumbup:
Either way, go out and party like it's 1999?:D
 
cchoukal said:
Mine was just the opposite; I felt I did better on the 2nd one...

Incidentally, I'm on a 757 back home and the turbulence is orders of magnitude worse than I've ever experienced. Can Jet come on here and tell me turbulence doesn't take airplanes down?
Click to expand...

Dude, had the same thing earlier this week. 2 routes on a 757-200 and both times the flight attendants had to sit down. Got pretty nasty up there.

Ash cloud? :laugh:
 
what a relief to have that over!
i think i did well in room 1, not so well in room 2
we'll see what happens

anyone else notice the scantron sheet the examiners will filling out - in my first room the examiner was filled out the most leftward bubble down the column throughout the exam - and this is the room i felt i did well in

the second room i noticed the examiner filling in bubbles in other places drifting to the middle and to the right - especially during periods when i answered poorly or had superficial knowledge (or recall) - the bubbles he was filling out seemed to drift a little more...

hopefully it adds up to a pass - really don't want to go through that again
the whole experience seemed sureal....almost comical
 
siednarb said:
anyone else notice the scantron sheet the examiners will filling out - in my first room the examiner was filled out the most leftward bubble down the column throughout the exam - and this is the room i felt i did well in
Click to expand...

Yes, I could see one sheet in my first room (which I felt and still feel great about). All down the left with a couple in the next-to-left column. My guess is that meant a lot of "definite pass" marks with a few "probable pass" marks.

I hope that means that nothing short of an unrecognized kill error or a string of "definite fail" marks in the 2nd room can sink me. But I'll still be sweating it until May 21st.

Surreal doesn't even begin to describe it. I need to quit reliving my bad answers and I don't knows ...
 
Congrats to all of you who have finished. I know it feels like torture, but you will find out soon enough and most of you will have passed. As has been mentioned, they don't really expect canned answers and there are very few outright wrong answers. It is all about thought processes and justifying what you do in the OR everyday. Keep your collective chins up...you probably did fine....and CONGRATS again!

PMMD
 
DreamMachine said:
As time goes on, I feel worse and worse about this thing. I need a drink...
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all_bottles-1.jpg


Cheers! I'll have one for you. If you didn't assassinate anyone, you almost certainly passed. No one cares if you can't remember alpha vs pH stat or how to dose amiodarone for your new arrhythmia. It's all about how you think, react under pressure and back up your decisions.
 
So how much minutiae did you encounter?

I assume difficult AW, ACLS and ACC/AHA guidelines for cardiac work up are consistantly high yield. But how about minutiae...?

Say... signinfance of abnormal A60 on a TEG?
 
siednarb said:
what a relief to have that over!
i think i did well in room 1, not so well in room 2
we'll see what happens

anyone else notice the scantron sheet the examiners will filling out - in my first room the examiner was filled out the most leftward bubble down the column throughout the exam - and this is the room i felt i did well in

the second room i noticed the examiner filling in bubbles in other places drifting to the middle and to the right - especially during periods when i answered poorly or had superficial knowledge (or recall) - the bubbles he was filling out seemed to drift a little more...

hopefully it adds up to a pass - really don't want to go through that again
the whole experience seemed sureal....almost comical
Click to expand...

there's a column on the left side with Y, M, N, I and they are answering if you are displaying the attributes of an ABA diplomate (if you should be boarded or not) for each topic yes, maybe, no, or insufficient coverage.
the column on the right is for how often you said the right things for each module: 1 consistently 2 often 3 occasionally 4 rarely.

if the examiner gives mostly Y's and M's and 1's and 2's you probably passed. if the examiner is giving N's (the 3rd bubble from the left) and 3's and 4's on that right column (the bubbles run vertically so it would be the 2 lower ones) then you probably didn't pass. if the examiner gives those 3's and 4's then they have to fill in something in the bottom right about why you sucked.

:rolleyes: i'm telling you this, "almost" as if i'm staring at this very same bubble sheet:rolleyes: and reading it verbatim to you;)
 
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Sapdaddy said:
there's a column on the left side with Y, M, N, I and they are answering if you are displaying the attributes of an ABA diplomate (if you should be boarded or not) for each topic yes, maybe, no, or insufficient coverage.
the column on the right is for how often you said the right things for each module: 1 consistently 2 often 3 occasionally 4 rarely.

if the examiner gives mostly Y's and M's and 1's and 2's you probably passed. if the examiner is giving N's (the 3rd bubble from the left) and 3's and 4's on that right column (the bubbles run vertically so it would be the 2 lower ones) then you probably didn't pass. if the examiner gives those 3's and 4's then they have to fill in something in the bottom right about why you sucked.

:rolleyes: i'm telling you this, "almost" as if i'm staring at this very same bubble sheet:rolleyes: and reading it verbatim to you;)
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And all along we thought that you were a humble anatomy professor.;)
:thumbup:
 
IlDestriero said:
And all along we thought that you were a humble anatomy professor.;)
:thumbup:
Click to expand...

that part about the bubbles didn't make it into the book. you want to think about your answers rather than trying to sneak a peek at some bubbles, so it's really not that important. plus, the examiner rates the question as easy, medium, or hard, and the examiner is also rated as easy, medium, or hard, so basically you walk into that room passing, and then you just try to get out of there without them thinking that you're a complete idiot.:) the rest should take care of itself and at least 70% of you should pass.:)
 
well let me answer your question. I am pretty smart reasonable guy. I walked out of the first room feeling like a baffoon. I don't mind being interrogated but I have known plenty of reasonable smart guys flunk this exam. I have known some shady people pass on their first try.

Its just another hurdle, whats the word....oh yes...education creep that doesn't really help you do your job better.

Now we know why you were so adamant at backing up these board examiners.
 
IlDestriero said:
And all along we thought that you were a humble anatomy professor.;)
:thumbup:
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Just finished taking the orals, question is... I feel like I rocked one of cases but on the other one , I missed a couple of HUGE things that should have been on my differential diagnoses (big brain fart, they were obvious ones). Is this an automatic redo next year? Or should my first case and the remainder of the second case (which went ok, not super) be enough to pass? If you miss something obvious, does this negate everything else? I am in serious panic/shock mode right now. Thanks dudes, any info would seriously be of great use right now....
 
sevoflurane said:
So how much minutiae did you encounter?

I assume difficult AW, ACLS and ACC/AHA guidelines for cardiac work up are consistantly high yield. But how about minutiae...?

Say... signinfance of abnormal A60 on a TEG?
Click to expand...

Sevo: do you want the assurance of passing this exam? PM me. I will fill you in. I will MAKE you pass it. Just one thing, though, send me one cool pic of that Down's kid that you sent last time, ROFL--that kid had me rolling, man:laugh::laugh::laugh:
 
i am still looking for one person who felt good after this test.
 
I am feeling pretty good. I always look forward to another trip. So where will we have the pleasure of traveling to in 2011 for the do-over?

- pod
 
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