Starting Third Year

[birthdaycake]

Hi guys, I have a few questions that I'd really appreciate some input on, or if you could direct me to relevant threads, etc.

I really didn't do great my first two years and don't want to make the mistake of being unprepared this year.

1. what are your favorite review books and question banks for each shelf?

2. when do students start studying for step 2 and what are the best resources?

thanks in advance for your time.

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[VisionaryTics]

What are you starting on?

Most people study for Step 2 4th year. Buy a year-long subscription to UWorld now. Useful for every shelf.

 

[birthdaycake]

What are you starting on?

Most people study for Step 2 4th year. Buy a year-long subscription to UWorld now. Useful for every shelf.

first three are family medicine, then neurology, then surgery

 

[projectlogic]

Anyone have advice for OB/Gyn?

 

[VisionaryTics]

first three are family medicine, then neurology, then surgery

Family med is tough to start on. Case Files is good, as are the AAFP questions you can get online. You might want to buy Step Up to Medicine for the ambulatory section since you'll be needing that book for medicine anyway.

No idea on neurology. Hear Blueprints is good.

Surgery has no good qbanks. Get Surgical Recall for pimping. People are very divided as to what is a good resource for this.

Anyone have advice for OB/Gyn?

UWise questions. I like First Aid for OB/Gyn better than Blueprints, but people love Blueprints.


Check out the shelf threads in the Clinical Medicine forum for exhaustive discussion about these matters.

 

[Banned]

I only used 3 things. Step up, uworld, and blueprints. Very happy with how my shelf scores turned out. Ymmv

 

[siliso]

Enjoy it as much as you can and be curious and care about your patients and what is going on with them and you will learn every day...about their disease processes, treatments that have worked and not worked, how things go wrong and right, what it looks like clinically/on imaging/in labs when things are going well and poorly with specific diseases, and how to talk to and work with people in various difficult situations. Pay attention to what your residents and attendings are considering and ruling in and out with various symptomatic presentations. Read about the diseases you see and hear about and conditions that can look like them, how they are diagnosed and treated, and you will be studying for shelves and CK continuously. Supplement with pretest/qbanks/mksap/uwise/etc for test prep and textbooks for subjects you need background on.

 

[evilbooyaa]

For the rotation: Pay attention to superiors. Try and learn from their examples. Read up on your patients and their conditions. Know them front to back (as you should have maybe 2-3 of them on inpatient).

For family medicine rotation (I'm assuming that is primarily outpatient) - FOCUSED history (no need for a FULL ROS, just make sure they don't have CP/SOB and move on). FOCUSED physical. THOROUGH oral presentation (with pertinent positives and negatives, plus all exam findings, including normal ones [regular rate and rhythm, clear to ausculation b/l, abd. soft and non tender, no edema, palpable pulses b/l]). For your FIRST rotation, they will want a good H&P, and whatever semblance of an assessment and plan you can come up with. Especially on outpatient (where you will see a lot of the same things) make sure you remember the A&P for a condition if you've already seen it before.

For the FM Shelf - Case Files + AAFP + Amb. SUTM. People have also said Swanson's family medicine is good, although it was a massive book. I can't give advice for FM without having any other shelves (as I just took it at the end of M3), but people said it was a very difficult shelf at the beginning of the year. Much easier (at least it seemed for me) at the end of M3.

Don't be afraid to ask questions (if you don't know the answer). If you think you could easily look it up, then do so. One of the most helpful things on my first rotation (which was IM) was my senior asked me that if I didn't know an acronym, to write it down and bring him a list, which he then went through with me.

Know the following:
RRR, no M/R/G
CTABL, no W/R/R
BS, NT, no C/C/E
Palp DP/PT 2+ B/L
TTP RUQ/RLQ/LUQ/LLQ
BRBPR
CP, SOB

There were many more that I eventually got around to learning

Get a UWorld prescription. Besides family medicine (which didn't have a lot of internal medicine questions) and maybe neuro (as I haven't had neuro yet) it's a great resource for nearly every other rotation.

Surgery - Pestana audio/notes + UWorld +/- NMS Casebook +/- Case Files +/- Pretest. I used Pestana + UWorld + 1/5 of NMS and high-passed comfortably.

 

[futuredoctor10]

1. what are your favorite review books and question banks for each shelf?
Folks have mentioned the best resources for Family Medicine & Surgery above.

You mentioned you have Neurology early on too: I think Blueprints + USMLE World are the best resources, you could consider adding Pre-Test.

Keep in mind that there are tons of resources for each shelf, so you just have to pick what book either the majority recommends (or) the book that fits your learning style.

As far as QBank, I hear UWorld recommended more than anything else for questions prep for the shelf exams. I did not use it for every shelf, but indeed it is very useful/high yield.

2. when do students start studying for step 2 and what are the best resources?
When you study for each shelf, you are in essence studying for Step 2 already. So I would focus on that and doing the best you can on each shelf exam. Then closer to your Step 2 date, look at the Step 2 review books. I would not use them now, because they are actually not in depth enough for shelf exams.

 

[birthdaycake]

Family med is tough to start on. Case Files is good, as are the AAFP questions you can get online. You might want to buy Step Up to Medicine for the ambulatory section since you'll be needing that book for medicine anyway.

No idea on neurology. Hear Blueprints is good.

Surgery has no good qbanks. Get Surgical Recall for pimping. People are very divided as to what is a good resource for this.



UWise questions. I like First Aid for OB/Gyn better than Blueprints, but people love Blueprints.


Check out the shelf threads in the Clinical Medicine forum for exhaustive discussion about these matters.

I only used 3 things. Step up, uworld, and blueprints. Very happy with how my shelf scores turned out. Ymmv

Enjoy it as much as you can and be curious and care about your patients and what is going on with them and you will learn every day...about their disease processes, treatments that have worked and not worked, how things go wrong and right, what it looks like clinically/on imaging/in labs when things are going well and poorly with specific diseases, and how to talk to and work with people in various difficult situations. Pay attention to what your residents and attendings are considering and ruling in and out with various symptomatic presentations. Read about the diseases you see and hear about and conditions that can look like them, how they are diagnosed and treated, and you will be studying for shelves and CK continuously. Supplement with pretest/qbanks/mksap/uwise/etc for test prep and textbooks for subjects you need background on.

For the rotation: Pay attention to superiors. Try and learn from their examples. Read up on your patients and their conditions. Know them front to back (as you should have maybe 2-3 of them on inpatient).

For family medicine rotation (I'm assuming that is primarily outpatient) - FOCUSED history (no need for a FULL ROS, just make sure they don't have CP/SOB and move on). FOCUSED physical. THOROUGH oral presentation (with pertinent positives and negatives, plus all exam findings, including normal ones [regular rate and rhythm, clear to ausculation b/l, abd. soft and non tender, no edema, palpable pulses b/l]). For your FIRST rotation, they will want a good H&P, and whatever semblance of an assessment and plan you can come up with. Especially on outpatient (where you will see a lot of the same things) make sure you remember the A&P for a condition if you've already seen it before.

For the FM Shelf - Case Files + AAFP + Amb. SUTM. People have also said Swanson's family medicine is good, although it was a massive book. I can't give advice for FM without having any other shelves (as I just took it at the end of M3), but people said it was a very difficult shelf at the beginning of the year. Much easier (at least it seemed for me) at the end of M3.

Don't be afraid to ask questions (if you don't know the answer). If you think you could easily look it up, then do so. One of the most helpful things on my first rotation (which was IM) was my senior asked me that if I didn't know an acronym, to write it down and bring him a list, which he then went through with me.

Know the following:
RRR, no M/R/G
CTABL, no W/R/R
BS, NT, no C/C/E
Palp DP/PT 2+ B/L
TTP RUQ/RLQ/LUQ/LLQ
BRBPR
CP, SOB

There were many more that I eventually got around to learning

Get a UWorld prescription. Besides family medicine (which didn't have a lot of internal medicine questions) and maybe neuro (as I haven't had neuro yet) it's a great resource for nearly every other rotation.

Surgery - Pestana audio/notes + UWorld +/- NMS Casebook +/- Case Files +/- Pretest. I used Pestana + UWorld + 1/5 of NMS and high-passed comfortably.

1. what are your favorite review books and question banks for each shelf?
Folks have mentioned the best resources for Family Medicine & Surgery above.

You mentioned you have Neurology early on too: I think Blueprints + USMLE World are the best resources, you could consider adding Pre-Test.

Keep in mind that there are tons of resources for each shelf, so you just have to pick what book either the majority recommends (or) the book that fits your learning style.

As far as QBank, I hear UWorld recommended more than anything else for questions prep for the shelf exams. I did not use it for every shelf, but indeed it is very useful/high yield.

2. when do students start studying for step 2 and what are the best resources?
When you study for each shelf, you are in essence studying for Step 2 already. So I would focus on that and doing the best you can on each shelf exam. Then closer to your Step 2 date, look at the Step 2 review books. I would not use them now, because they are actually not in depth enough for shelf exams.

thank you all so much. you guys are wonderful! i wish i had found sdn earlier on.. well better late than never!!!

 

[change77]

Surgery - Pestana audio/notes + UWorld +/- NMS Casebook +/- Case Files +/- Pretest. I used Pestana + UWorld + 1/5 of NMS and high-passed comfortably.

So I start off third year with Surgery, will these resources be enough to "high-pass?" The reason I ask is because I hear that the Surgery shelf is one of the hardest ones and there is a lot of Internal on it. I will have had no other rotation under my belt and this will be my first shelf exam. Should I maybe look at some Internal resources as well? Or do you think this was enough if you had no background knowledge? (I mean besides the first two years of medical school)

 

[evilbooyaa]

So I start off third year with Surgery, will these resources be enough to "high-pass?" The reason I ask is because I hear that the Surgery shelf is one of the hardest ones and there is a lot of Internal on it. I will have had no other rotation under my belt and this will be my first shelf exam. Should I maybe look at some Internal resources as well? Or do you think this was enough if you had no background knowledge? (I mean besides the first two years of medical school)

Forgot to add GI/Fluids/Electrolytes chapters of SUTM.

That being said, I had IM as my first rotation before surgery, and definitely got some questions right based on my IM knowledge.

So, the answer is: I'm not sure if doing just those resources without any background knowledge will be enough.

 

[Sileni]

Hate to hijack this person's thread, but does anyone have recommendations for Pediatrics? I bought BRS Peds and First Aid for the Wards and our school gives us Case Files for the rotation. Should I buy anything else?

 

[MrBeauregard]

Hate to hijack this person's thread, but does anyone have recommendations for Pediatrics? I bought BRS Peds and First Aid for the Wards and our school gives us Case Files for the rotation. Should I buy anything else?

I thought both Case Files and PreTest were fantastic resources for pediatrics. I also liked the 2008-2009 Kaplan Step 2CK Lecture Notes (you can find them online). No one has ever mentioned those here but man I thought they were awesome. They cover tons of stuff not in other resources such that they seem low-yield sometimes, but they hit each condition in the most high-yield way, if that makes sense.

They helped me absolutely kill the shelf (granted these are COMAT shelfs and not the NBME shelfs).

Also, UWorld pediatrics questions are really great.

 

[evilbooyaa]

Hate to hijack this person's thread, but does anyone have recommendations for Pediatrics? I bought BRS Peds and First Aid for the Wards and our school gives us Case Files for the rotation. Should I buy anything else?

I've heard that BRS Peds is in-depth, but very good. Case Files was probably OK, but not a resource to use by itself. I hate Pre-Test on basic principle for the shelf exams, so I didn't even bother with it.