Oral Boards

[Turkeysamich]

Hey Everyone. I just took oral boards a couple of days ago and feel like I completely failed it. I dont know if it was the strange format or if I was just nervous, but I think I made several mistakes. I cant help but try to go through each case and second guess every decision I made. Has anyone else felt like they completely bombed it, but ended up passing? I went through the okuda book multiple times, had a set format to use, and used my premade template, but something just felt off during the entire thing. I know in the grand scheme of things I can retake it if I did fail, but I cant help but obsess over it right now.

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[Porfirio]

You will likely pass. Most of us think we failed our test too. Go enjoy life and do not worry about this.

 

[EthylMethylMan]

I don’t think anyone leaves that test feeling great. I actually royally effed one of my cases. Missed a critical diagnosis, did a painful procedure without consent. Still passed. As long as the strong majority of your cases didn’t have any missed critical actions and you tried to show empathy, you’re probably fine. Try not to think about it too much.

 

[HoosierdaddyO]

Not to hijack the thread…. But what is the gold standard these days for preparing for the oral board? Certain books, online prep, courses… timeline?

Is there a pretty standard way of approaching the oral part as there was with the written part (ie rosh or peer etc)??

 

[EthylMethylMan]

Most of my classmates used Okuda, as did I. I also used First Aid and it was actually really good too, maybe better. But I think using both is worth it just for the variety and volume. Work with a partner if possible. That said, I did the cases by myself, just covering up the spoilers with a piece of paper. That worked pretty well.

I and at least a few of my classmates did a prep course, which is also highly advisable so you get a really good simulation of test day. I did the ICEP prep course and thought it was very accurate to the real deal. They give pretty good feedback too.

 

[Mr. Vandemar]

Pretty much all of us feel this way. I did not get a diagnosis on one case, also made a lot of simple mistakes like forgetting consent before a procedure, forgetting a UPT. I passed. It has been a couple years and every once in a while I still have flashbacks though…

 

[tenfootsilence]

I will never forget how sure I was that I failed. I completely bombed a trauma case. Forgot to perform a critical imaging test. Lost tons of sleep but ultimately passed. I will say…. I did get a lower score than im used to, so had reason to worry, but totally fine. Im sure you will be too.

 

[HoosierdaddyO]

What’s the average timeframe people are setting aside to study for oral boards these days 🙂? 2 weeks of solid study time? 1 month? 3 months lol?

 

[miamidoc101]

assuming you did any practice in residency, I spent 2 weeks casually looking over a few Okuda cases daily

 

[JacobMcCandles]

It’s just a game. The medicine is largely irrelevant. You just need to understand the important points you need to hit for various cases. Don’t study the medicine, study the game.