University of Oklahoma -- all peeps -- part 2

[JohnnyOU]

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Yeah, I know -- I was almost tempted not to report it. 😉 Here's hoping I can hold out until my big fat check in August.

On a depressing note, I actually ordered First Aid and Rapid Review Pathology. Should I look at it or should I not -- that is the question.

Yea you better look at it so you can teach it to me.🙂

Well, I went ahead and did it...I took the Village townhouse on campus and will be moving in either Thursday or Friday. They're nice...not super-roomy but it'll do for now. I just need to get outta this mcloud place. blah

 

[Doctor Bagel]

Yea you better look at it so you can teach it to me.🙂

Well, I went ahead and did it...I took the Village townhouse on campus and will be moving in either Thursday or Friday. They're nice...not super-roomy but it'll do for now. I just need to get outta this mcloud place. blah

Yeah, Mcloud sounds pretty dang depressing, so good for you! I'm not envious of the move, though. My stupid landlord upped our rent $15. 👎

So are you like going to go to class?

 

[JohnnyOU]

Yeah, Mcloud sounds pretty dang depressing, so good for you! I'm not envious of the move, though. My stupid landlord upped our rent $15. 👎

So are you like going to go to class?

Yea. I think I'll try it.
I don't really want to...but need to make sure I don't have any more close-calls on my grades like last semester.

I wanna be a forensic proctologist someday, so I need at least a few good grades. 👍 <---too bad it's not an index finger

 

[Doctor Bagel]

Yea. I think I'll try it.
I don't really want to...but need to make sure I don't have any more close-calls on my grades like last semester.

I wanna be a forensic proctologist someday, so I need at least a few good grades. 👍 <---too bad it's not an index finger

Yeah, I hear that's a competitive specialty. All A's from now on out, I guess? 😉

 

[JohnnyOU]

Yeah, I hear that's a competitive specialty. All A's from now on out, I guess? 😉

Not sure I can swing that...but SOME A's would be nice. 😛

Mmmm wine 😀 stopped at the lickher store on the way home tonight

 

[Doctor Bagel]

Mmmm wine 😀 stopped at the lickher store on the way home tonight

Wine sounds pretty good. Too bad the store's closed. 🙂 We're leaving town tomorrow to go to New Mexico for the week, and my husband is busy packing. I'm just sitting around wasting time on SDN. 😳 I might as well be drinking wine.

 

[JohnnyOU]

Wine sounds pretty good. Too bad the store's closed. 🙂 We're leaving town tomorrow to go to New Mexico for the week, and my husband is busy packing. I'm just sitting around wasting time on SDN. 😳 I might as well be drinking wine.

I wish I could go on vacation.

While you're vacationing next week...I'll be sweatin my butt off boxing all my crap, loading, unloading, unboxing...
wow...moving sucks sooooooo hard !!! Moving is like the deepthroat queen of manual labor.

 

[WhoisJohnGalt]

Yeah, I know -- I was almost tempted not to report it. 😉 Here's hoping I can hold out until my big fat check in August.

On a depressing note, I actually ordered First Aid and Rapid Review Pathology. Should I look at it or should I not -- that is the question.

Just to make sure, you guys do know about emergency loans, right? About a month before every disbursement, you can stop by the financial aid office and request a $500 loan on your disbursement. It's not all that much, but it's really helped me out a few times when I was really stretched thin by disbursement. (And don't let the name "emergency loan" fool you-- you don't have to break a leg for it. Needing to pay rent is considered a valid emergency 😉 ). They do charge a $5 fee for it (charged to your account), but it's been well worth it when I've needed it.

As far as opening FA or RR Path-- are you NUTS?? Don't touch it!! You have worked very hard this year and you deserve a summer BREAK... besides, you won't remember it anyway 😀 If you miss medicine THAT much already, read some medical fiction-- I recommend the House of God if you haven't read that yet. Robin Cook's Chromosome 6 is a good one too.

 

[JohnnyOU]

I am the KING of $500 emergency loans!
Never miss a semester w/o it ! 🙄

edit: Never miss a semester w/o it????
That doesn't even make sense. Friggin dork I am...Yessss Mmmmmm says Yoda.

 

[Doctor Bagel]

Just to make sure, you guys do know about emergency loans, right? About a month before every disbursement, you can stop by the financial aid office and request a $500 loan on your disbursement. It's not all that much, but it's really helped me out a few times when I was really stretched thin by disbursement. (And don't let the name "emergency loan" fool you-- you don't have to break a leg for it. Needing to pay rent is considered a valid emergency 😉 ). They do charge a $5 fee for it (charged to your account), but it's been well worth it when I've needed it.

As far as opening FA or RR Path-- are you NUTS?? Don't touch it!! You have worked very hard this year and you deserve a summer BREAK... besides, you won't remember it anyway 😀 If you miss medicine THAT much already, read some medical fiction-- I recommend the House of God if you haven't read that yet. Robin Cook's Chromosome 6 is a good one too.

OK, I'll believe you and not touch it. That's what I wanted to hear anyway. 🙂

Yeah, I did the emergency loan thing last fall and will probably be doing it again this year. Actually that's probably an especially good thing to let the incoming MS1s know about considering how many checks you have to right during orientation.

I'll be thinking about you, Johnny. I'm not wanting to trade my vacation with your moving either. 🙂

 

[JohnnyOU]

I'll be thinking about you, Johnny. I'm not wanting to trade my vacation with your moving either. 🙂

Oh I'll be thinking about you too, (edited to protect the innocent) *wink wink* 😉

 

[JohnnyOU]

Oh I'll be thinking about you too, *wink wink* 😉

ignore that..
it was a computer glitch from a chicken on my cable line outside.

**SKOOT SCAT GET outta here ya dam birdie!!!**

 

[Amxcvbcv]

ignore that..
it was a computer glitch from a chicken on my cable line outside.

**SKOOT SCAT GET outta here ya dam birdie!!!**

You're wasted while I'm just finishing off another 50 physiology questions on QBank. I'll be sure to remember this next year when I'm about to start Geriatrics and you're stressing on Step 1. 😉

 

[JohnnyOU]

You're wasted while I'm just finishing off another 50 physiology questions on QBank. I'll be sure to remember this next year when I'm about to start Geriatrics and you're stressing on Step 1. 😉

I'm not wasted...bagel babe just makes me feel funny, like when we climbed the rope in gym class. 😉

 

[WhoisJohnGalt]

I just took one of the NBME practice tests, and 3 days into studying (with 3 weeks to go) I'm 9 points away from my goal 😀 Admittedly, it's not a very lofty goal (220), but I think it really says alot about how useful the comprehensive path and pharm finals are. You will hate them when you're studying for them, but it really makes a huge difference in getting a big chunk of your step 1 studying done early.

To celebrate, I intend to kill a few brain cells bar-hopping tonight

 

[Amxcvbcv]

I just took one of the NBME practice tests, and 3 days into studying (with 3 weeks to go) I'm 9 points away from my goal 😀 Admittedly, it's not a very lofty goal (220), but I think it really says alot about how useful the comprehensive path and pharm finals are. You will hate them when you're studying for them, but it really makes a huge difference in getting a big chunk of your step 1 studying done early.

To celebrate, I intend to kill a few brain cells bar-hopping tonight

Which one did you do? 1, 2, 3, or 4?


Just curious. I did one right after finals and I plan to do one more about a week or less before I actually take the exam.

 

[WhoisJohnGalt]

Which one did you do? 1, 2, 3, or 4?


Just curious. I did one right after finals and I plan to do one more about a week or less before I actually take the exam.

I took 2. The buzz around SDN seems to be that 2 and 3 are the most representative of the real thing, so I just went with one of those.

 

[Amxcvbcv]

I took 2. The buzz around SDN seems to be that 2 and 3 are the most representative of the real thing, so I just went with one of those.

I wish I'd read that before I purchased them. 😛 I just randomly selected 1 and 4. Oh well...


12 days left... Mine is on the 13th. I'm really starting to go crazy here. So far I've been through biochem, embryology, HB, gross, and I'm almost done with phys. After that it's neuro and then second year stuff again.

*twitch twitch*

My wife is going out of town tomorrow for her brother's graduation and to visit friends and family, so it'll just be me, the dog, the cat, a stack of review books, and a half finished QBank subscription for a whole week. If I don't post on SDN once every 36 hours or so you might check and make sure I'm still meeting basic needs.

 

[Antigunner]

I'm tired of studying.

That's pretty much it.

I think I may be suffering from anhedonia. blah.

 

[Jwax]

Well, I am off to St. Croix (Virgin Islands) for a week. Have fun studying for your boards while I'm splashing on the beach 😛. 2 years from now I'll be in your shoes... 🙄 Take care, kids.

 

[Amxcvbcv]

My wife and I are flying to the West coast to go camping and driving around for a week after I'm finished with Step 1. Beaches don't go very well with wheelchairs, unfortunately. 🙁


On a separate but related note, when it comes time to schedule your exam, unless you're just gung-ho dedicated, remember that anything you do will tend to expand to fill the time allotted to it. I'd like to say that I'm studying 8 hours a day, but I think if you count naps, diversions, and everything else I do it really probably only comes down to 4 real hours of studying.

 

[WhoisJohnGalt]

I wish I'd read that before I purchased them. 😛 I just randomly selected 1 and 4. Oh well...

How seriously can you take anything thrown around on SDN? 😀 I'm sure they're all fine. Besides, all that has been said about 4 is that it's harder than the real thing, so if you're happy with your score on form 4, you should be able to expect to score higher on the real thing 🙂 (Assuming, of course, that the SDN Step 1 Forum rumor mills are true... which is a pretty big assumption 😉 )

 

[Amxcvbcv]

How seriously can you take anything thrown around on SDN? 😀 I'm sure they're all fine. Besides, all that has been said about 4 is that it's harder than the real thing, so if you're happy with your score on form 4, you should be able to expect to score higher on the real thing 🙂 (Assuming, of course, that the SDN Step 1 Forum rumor mills are true... which is a pretty big assumption 😉 )

I'll let you know. I plan to take form four this coming weekend. That will give me about 2-3 more days to go over First Aid and any other high yield stuff a couple more times before I sit for the real thing.


I just finished reading BRS Neuroanatomy, and it feels like I never really learned some of that stuff until now. 😛 I wonder how I'd do on that neuro final now.

Tomorrow I start on micro/immunology again, first with the Ridiculously Simple book, so that should be a nice change of pace.


Yawn... time for bed now, though!

Edit: The only thread on SDN that I read about the NBME practice exams was from someone bitching about how they were scoring in the 250 range on the converted score and were freaking out that their score was going down slightly as he/she went through the different forms. It was still in the 250+ range, though! Freak... Go away!

 

[WhoisJohnGalt]

I'll let you know. I plan to take form four this coming weekend. That will give me about 2-3 more days to go over First Aid and any other high yield stuff a couple more times before I sit for the real thing.


I just finished reading BRS Neuroanatomy, and it feels like I never really learned some of that stuff until now. 😛 I wonder how I'd do on that neuro final now.

Tomorrow I start on micro/immunology again, first with the Ridiculously Simple book, so that should be a nice change of pace.


Yawn... time for bed now, though!

Edit: The only thread on SDN that I read about the NBME practice exams was from someone bitching about how they were scoring in the 250 range on the converted score and were freaking out that their score was going down slightly as he/she went through the different forms. It was still in the 250+ range, though! Freak... Go away!

Hmmm... I'm glad BRS Neuroanatomy is on my list then!! Neuro is definitely one of my weak points... along with biochem, which I'm working on now I'd definitely much rather be reading CMMRS, but I know I should put that off until closer to test day.

Along those lines, here's a pearl for the 2010ers: Step 1 studying is like trying to wax your legs (I'm sure the ladies will feel me here)-- if it doesn't REALLY hurt, you're not doing it right. Which is to say that if you find yourself not dreading studying, it's probably because you're studying the material you're more comfortable with (bad move) rather than the stuff you suck at (better move). Along the same lines, if you're doing really well on your QBank, chances are that your QBank is too easy or you're doing blocks of the material you've just studied or are good at rather than random blocks.

Thanks for your post about studying 4 hrs a day, amx... that's about where I am as well in terms of ACTUAL hardcore studying, and I feel alot better about it now that you've confessed as well 😉 I find it so hard to believe when I read about people claiming to be studying like 12-14 hours a day. Of course I do that for test blocks, but there's a huge difference between doing that for 4 or 5 days versus 4 or 5 WEEKS... it's just not a realistic goal for me, since I don't think you can take the exam from the psych ward! 😛

Good luck on the micro, amx! I heart CMMRS 😀

 

[DMBFan61]

Ah another beautiful day wasted studying for step 1....oh well, at least the "scenery" around Bizzell is, to quote Borat, Very nice....boy how I love sundresses. 😀

 

[soonereng]

Totally off the subject of Step studying...and perhaps a good distraction for those who are...

For those with munchkins, does anyone have any childcare recommendations (individuals...huge facilities...whatever), particularly on the north side of OKC? The little ones' due date is Nov 6 but they will probably show up in October, so I want to check things out and get on a waiting list before school starts up.

 

[JohnnyOU]

Totally off the subject of Step studying...and perhaps a good distraction for those who are...

For those with munchkins, does anyone have any childcare recommendations (individuals...huge facilities...whatever), particularly on the north side of OKC? The little ones' due date is Nov 6 but they will probably show up in October, so I want to check things out and get on a waiting list before school starts up.

Sorry....I don't know about any of those. I've never used any in this area.

 

[soonerfan77]

Sooner born and Sooner bred,
In 2011, I will be a Sooner Med

Just checked the mail, and there was a BIG RED ENVELOPE just for me.
Be back later to post.


THE University of Oklahoma College of Medicine Class of 2011!!!!!!!
😎

 

[Antigunner]

congrats

 

[Amxcvbcv]

Sooner born and Sooner bred,
In 2011, I will be a Sooner Med

Just checked the mail, and there was a BIG RED ENVELOPE just for me.
Be back later to post.


THE University of Oklahoma Class of 2011!!!!!!!
😎

Welcome to the suck.

 

[Tiagao]

Sooner born and Sooner bred,
In 2011, I will be a Sooner Med

Just checked the mail, and there was a BIG RED ENVELOPE just for me.
Be back later to post.


THE University of Oklahoma Class of 2011!!!!!!!
😎

Rock on Soonerfan. We've been pulling for you. 3rd times the charm!!!

 

[soonerfan77]

Rock on Soonerfan. We've been pulling for you. 3rd times the charm!!!

Yea, baby, yea!!!!!!!!



😎

 

[soonereng]

Sooner born and Sooner bred,
In 2011, I will be a Sooner Med

Indeed, congrats!

 

[WhoisJohnGalt]

Sooner born and Sooner bred,
In 2011, I will be a Sooner Med

Just checked the mail, and there was a BIG RED ENVELOPE just for me.
Be back later to post.


THE University of Oklahoma College of Medicine Class of 2011!!!!!!!
😎

Awesome!!! Congrats!!!!! 😀

 

[Doctor Bagel]

Congrats, soonerfan! 👍

 

[JohnnyOU]

Congrats, soonerfan! 👍

Hey look who's back! 🙂

Oh...and congrats soonerfan 👍

 

[Doctor Bagel]

Hey look who's back! 🙂

Oh...and congrats soonerfan 👍

Got back last night. I want to move to Santa Fe. 🙂

How'd your move go?

 

[JohnnyOU]

Got back last night. I want to move to Santa Fe. 🙂

How'd your move go?

It went as expected...quite the nightmare 🙂

I got a storage unit and put most of my junk in it so the apt wouldn't be crowded.

Oh well....I'm here.

 

[stereochemistry]

Sooner born and Sooner bred,
In 2011, I will be a Sooner Med

Just checked the mail, and there was a BIG RED ENVELOPE just for me.
Be back later to post.


THE University of Oklahoma College of Medicine Class of 2011!!!!!!!
😎

Your avatar truly does fit the occasion! Congratulations, indeed.

 

[Doctor Bagel]

It went as expected...quite the nightmare 🙂

I got a storage unit and put most of my junk in it so the apt wouldn't be crowded.

Oh well....I'm here.

My new rule for moving is to expect everything to go wrong. That way you're pleasantly surprised if anything works out.

 

[soonerfan77]

How do I sleep when my mind keeps racing........

I'm going to be a doctor!!!!!!!!!

I've got to get some sleep, or I will just have to run on adrenaline tomorrow. That 9AM teetime is going to hit me upside the head. What do I care?

I'm going to be a doctor!!!!!!!!!


THE University of Oklahoma College of Medicine Class of 2011
😎

 

[Tiagao]

Do most of the students go with the school's insurance policy, spouce's policy or a third-party provider?

 

[Antigunner]

Do most of the students go with the school's insurance policy, spouce's policy or a third-party provider?

Unless they change the provider, I would definitely not go with the school insurance. My personal choice was to go with the low premium/ridiculously high deductible route, based on the fact that I haven't had to go to the doctor once in the last 8-10 years (fingers crossed...). If you can get good coverage through your spouse for not too much, I would guess that may be the best way to go, otherwise I would look into third-party.

 

[Amxcvbcv]

Do most of the students go with the school's insurance policy, spouce's policy or a third-party provider?

The school's insurance policy is like an expensive, cheaply-made bandaid. It'll work if you're well, don't have any pre-existing conditions or risk-taking behavior, and don't tend to get hospitalized for anything. If those are criteria you can't meet, consider going for a third-party like BC/BS or anyone else you like. Personally, I went the third route and got signed on with my spouse's insurance. It's the most expensive of the three on the front end, but it is also great coverage. I've got pre-existing condition issues that make it the least expensive on the back end.

Weigh your personal situation against what's available and go from there. (Isn't that true for everything?) Sorry if my advice is trite. 😉

 

[Doctor Bagel]

Do most of the students go with the school's insurance policy, spouce's policy or a third-party provider?

I went with the school provider, but the coverage stinks and it costs a lot. I think some students go with AMSA, but unfortunately they charge those of us 30 and older a lot more money while the school policy makes no distinctions based on age. I'm with antigunner -- the best bet is generally a spouse's policy (or a parent's policy for the younger folks). 3rd party policies are iffy for women because they usually exclude maternity and make you pay a lot more if you want to add it. They also exclude mental health coverage, which might turn out to be more of an issue than you think even though the school provides free counseling.

The high deductible thing is overall not a horrible deal because all students get free treatment at the family medicine clinic -- you have to pay for the labs, but the visits are free. The clinic's not the nicest place to go, but the fact that they're a residency training center means they're probably pretty up to date on stuff.

Oh yeah, the real expense of the school policy is when you add in dependents. I don't know how your financial situation is going to work out, but you might want to look into options like medicaid (SoonerCares) for your kids. I know med students in other states have been able to do that, so it might be a possibility in Oklahoma, too. From the top of my head, I'm thinking that insuring your whole family under the school plan would cost $6k or more.

Speaking of medical stuff, can we get cheap drugs somewhere at school? I've never figured that one out and just assumed no. UT had a student pharmacy with bargain rates on drugs. Walgreens gives you a discounted rate on drugs if you don't have prescription drug coverage -- just an fyi.

 

[soonereng]

They also exclude mental health coverage, which might turn out to be more of an issue than you think even though the school provides free counseling.

Are you saying med school will drive you crazy???

From the top of my head, I'm thinking that insuring your whole family under the school plan would cost $6k or more.

One can definitely get better coverage for a similar amount with lots of other insurance companies. From what I've seen, the school's plan is made for young, single students without dependents

Speaking of medical stuff, can we get cheap drugs somewhere at school?

Walmart has that cheap drug plan...like $4 for some of the most common drugs. http://www.walmart.com/catalog/catalog.gsp?cat=546834

 

[Doctor Bagel]

Are you saying med school will drive you crazy???

It's a possibility. 🙂 Also, I hate to be negative, but for the traditional students -- you're hitting the point where mental illness might just show up even though you've been OK up until now. It happens enough to not be discounted. There's a reason why the school is always giving away the number for their counseling services, which btw is great to advertise.

 

[Tiagao]

Thanks everyone for the replies. I am wondering what to do mostly because I think at some point during medical school, I'll need knee surgery. My family has a history with bad knees and mine has been sore for a while. At this point it doesn't impeed me from doing much, but it does get pretty sore.

 

[Mr. Freeze]

I haven't gone back to get all updated on the goings-on here, but I'm sure something happened that was my fault somehow. I've been trying to keep up with my goal to not do anything even remotely school/medical related.

I will say that they only ask to see insurance once, FWIW...

Does anyone know either a) when MSII starts, or b) when the first required activity is 😀. My lazy ass brother put his passport app off until the last minute, so I may barely squeeze another trip in before the guillotine drops...

 

[Doctor Bagel]

I don't think anybody's told us anything official yet. It looks like they started Aug. 14 last year, so I'm guessing we're on about the same schedule, but no guarantees.

So did your brother get screwed by the whole passport backlog?

Editing to add that apparently the MS1s have classes starting August 13, so I we'll be the same. Here's the page with the link to their schedule.

http://www.medicine.ouhsc.edu/admissions/