USMLE Rx Express (videos) and Flash Facts (flashcards) for class?

[ERDOC555]

I'm debating buying a bundle with USMLE Rx Qbank, videos, and flashcards and would love to hear from anyone who has tried or used any of these three resources. I've read up a bit on the Qbank, but it's hard to find anything recent about the videos and flashcards.


-Are the videos just someone reading first aid?
-Do the videos explain concepts at all?
-Are the flashcards useful?
-Do you feel that either the flash cards or the video provide a better way to learn FA than simply reading it?

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[bashwell]

I'm debating buying a bundle with USMLE Rx Qbank, videos, and flashcards and would love to hear from anyone who has tried or used any of these three resources. I've read up a bit on the Qbank, but it's hard to find anything recent about the videos and flashcards.

For reference, this is not for dedicated Step 1 review time but for exams at a school that uses NBME exams.

-Are the videos just someone reading first aid?
-Do the videos explain concepts at all?
-Are the flashcards useful?
-Do you feel that either the flash cards or the video provide a better way to learn FA than simply reading it?

If you've used any of these please comment on this thread or message me, as I'd really like to know more.

Thanks 🙂

If this is the USMLE-Rx Express videos, a friend and I watched some of them recently, so I've seen some but not all of them. Please keep that in mind.

From what I saw, yes they seemed to be mostly reading FA, but there was some explanation too. However, the explanations weren't very long or detailed. Just enough to jog your memory plus some limited teaching. I don't think it's something you can really learn from as a stand alone resource if it's your first time learning a topic, at least not unless you are pausing and looking up stuff (via the internet or textbooks or other resources), then unpausing/playing the videos again.

Also, the videos are (mostly or maybe entirely) done by med students and residents. It's possible med students and residents could teach a topic well, but at the same time, if you have another equally good choice, wouldn't it be better to go with attendings teaching the topic? I know it's debatable, because it's possible to argue med students and residents are closer to the basic sciences. But on the other hand, attendings obviously have more years of experience and presumably better clinical judgment and perspective to know when to emphasize something, when not to, etc. For example, DIT seems very similar to Express (apart from the much higher price tag), but they're (mostly or maybe entirely) taught by attendings. Also Boards and Beyond from what I've seen seems excellent, and it's cheap, and it's taught by an attending cardiologist (but it's not comprehensive, it's missing MSK, reproductive, psychiatry, and maybe a couple of others). Just something to think about. Hope that helps!

 

[Taco Time]

Cant comment on the flashcards, but I imagine them being no different from anki or FA--just seeing the info multiple times over and over essentially, which helps. I think they also have some algorithm where they incorporate spaced time repetition, but I'm not completely sure what the exact format or layout is.

I have gone through +90% of the express videos and plan on finishing them up soon. I think that they're great, especially when considering the value (DIT is like $800 and the package with the Rx bank + cards + videos is less than half of that). I never watched the videos until I finished that subject material in class, and I learned some concepts in their videos that were really helpful and even better taught than a lot of my lectures. This was after I had done well above average in my courses at school to begin with. I wrote down notes only if they helped me understand something better in FA since FA is a text with a lot of bullet points and not much context. I now have my FA annotated where I know I understood every single page at one point, and whenever I refer back to pages, I have my notes there that help solidify everything. I can easily read 50+ pages a day on top of doing other things, and this is on my second run through the material. My first run through FA was slower than others, but I can get through the text much more quickly and come away with a better grip on understanding the material better than I could have if I had just skimmed FA once on my own. The big key I think is to use it to cover material you've learned before in class.

If you're an auditory learner, then I'd recommend it. At the end of the day, the readers stick to what's in FA besides expanding on the material when they try and clarify a topic, which I think is a plus because if you understand everything in FA, you should get a great score on step 1. Keep in mind that the videos cover like 80-90 hrs, so it takes time, but you can always 2x it. It's certainly not the only way to learn the material from FA, but I think it's a great resource to use to get through FA.

At the end of the day aim to understand FA and do 4k+ questions to optimize your step score. If you like express then stick with it, but if it's not clicking just drop it.

 

[Taddy Mason]

I used Flash Facts and thought it was good for getting FA down. If I were to redo 2nd year/Step 1 studying I would either still use Flash Facts and start earlier or actually give Bros Anki deck a chance (I didn't click with Anki in 1st year and by the time I started to maybe consider checking out Bros deck I was too far into studying for Step). That said, I can't comment on how helpful Flash Facts would be for NBMEs.

Regarding videos I used the Kaplan videos from ~2010 and overall liked them. I didn't watch the micro, pharm, or behavioral science ones because Sketchy and Pathoma are better for the first two, and the only thing I think anyone would need for behavioral sciences outside of FA is the UWorld biostats review if it's a weaker area. I felt that they genuinely helped with learning the material, and really wish I had started using them earlier along with lecture. All of the lecturers in the videos are MDs, PhDs, or PharmDs, and some are definitely better than others. I'm not sure what the more recent Kaplan videos are like, but I believe Raymon no longer does the pharm and biochem videos which is disappointing as his videos/lectures were hands down the best aspect of the Kaplan videos. That said you can still find bootlegs of the old videos for free.

Edit - here's a link to an old post of mine where I go into more detail regarding the pros and cons of Flash Facts: https://forums.studentdoctor.net/th...recracker-vs-bro-vs-gt.1212367/#post-17957699

 

[ERDOC555]

Thanks everyone who replied so far, great responses!

I'd still like to hear from anyone else who has experience with these.

 

[Pepe18]

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[GoljansRightBicep]

Bumping this thread. There seems to still be very little information on USMLE-RX Flash Facts, and I'd like to hear about other's experiences using these cards. I'm also considering getting the "triple play" deal, but I'm not sure if I'll actually use Flash Facts or not.

Thanks in advance!

 

[ERDOC555]

Bumping this thread. There seems to still be very little information on USMLE-RX Flash Facts, and I'd like to hear about other's experiences using these cards. I'm also considering getting the "triply play" deal, but I'm not sure if I'll actually use Flash Facts or not.

Thanks in advance!

I ended up buying it.

-Q Bank was fantastic!
-I've never used the flash facts. I tried it for 5 minutes once and didn't really like it. Didn't give it an honest try though.
-The videos were highly variable. Some were actually really good, others were horrendous. Unfortunately I rarely use the videos now as I just don't have time and their are better video series out there.

In hindsight I wish I just bought the QBank

 

[raiderette]

I use the qbank since I am in a systems based curriculum. It works well for me, since I use this instead of Anki or flashcards.

 

[wisdom is key]

I used the pharm videos in their video series, and their explanations actually helped me nail the formulas (it was about understanding/canceling units)

The flash facts are simply not as good as an Anki deck, and I found them sparse/error-filled.

 

[i_o]

Most of my board prep was based on flash facts. I think they are way superior to bros; many of them are like mini question stems and really test your knowledge of FA, whereas bros is more of a knee jerk fill in the blank. I would say flash facts was essential to my success and I did pretty well on step.

Express was hit or miss. Some instructors were truly excellent (cardiology guy, GI guy), some were barely above reading off FA. I did like that I could watch them 2x when I was on the treadmill.

In terms of studying for your classes, I would only do these as a supplement. I did board prep only studying for my last two classes and I did terrible not only in class but those also turned out to be the worst-scoring subjects on step 1.

 

[GoljansRightBicep]

I ended up buying it.
-The videos were highly variable. Some were actually really good, others were horrendous. Unfortunately I rarely use the videos now as I just don't have time and their are better video series out there.

Which other video series do you recommend? Doctors in Training?

 

[ERDOC555]

Which other video series do you recommend? Doctors in Training?

DIT
Physeo
Pathoma
Boards and Beyond
Random youtube videos (you'd be surprised when you find random good ones)
Never used Najeeb, so can't comment on that

Basically your typical boards review resource videos. All are decent to great, none are perfect.