What to spend educational funds on?

[sweetdreams87]

Starting my CA-1 year this July. Program doesn't give us a free iPad or any free books. We get $600/year to spend on educational materials.

I'm thinking about getting an ipad within the next few weeks, but I'd have to pay for that myself since I'm buying it before the start of my anesthesia program. I'll use it for practice questions and also to read anesthesia e-books.

The questions is, I'd be left with $600 to spend. What should I buy with it? Should I just wait a few months to use it on the ipad? Or are there some books I should defintely have in paper format that'll easily use up those funds?

Thanks for your help.


btw, I've already taken step 3, so I don't need the $$ for that

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[Stellar Clouds]

Seems like you just ought to wait to buy your iPad with your educational funds, but do make sure that you are allowed to use your funds to purchase something like an iPad.

 

[GassmanMD]

At my program we can't purchase electronics. I plan on using the rest of my CA-1 funds to pay for the basic exam which you will be taking next June. You can also use it to purchase the very popular M5 board review Qbank, books, travel to conferences, or licensing fees.

 

[Depakote]

a year subscription to M5 is a good investment. Hall has an IPad/Iphone app which is also a good buy.

 

[aneftp]

Just buy the anesthesia books from amazon.com. Give them yourself amazon.com receipt. Than ship it back to amazon and get a refund and buy yourself an ipad.

There, that solves the problem with them not "paying" for an ipad as educational use.

 

[deleted171991]

Just buy the anesthesia books from amazon.com. Give them yourself amazon.com receipt. Than ship it back to amazon and get a refund and buy yourself an ipad.

There, that solves the problem with them not "paying" for an ipad as educational use.

That's called fraud. Chances are infinitesimal the IRS would ever audit you, but it's still a crime.

 

[boggy]

Get access anesthesiology or some other web based collection of multiple books

 

[sweetdreams87]

The program does reimburse electronics. The only reason I want to get an Ipad now is so that I can start doing Hall questions so that I do well on my AKT-0. It sounds like even if I do get one now, there will still be plenty of stuff I could blow the 600 bucks on...especially if the program doesn't pay for the basic exam ($800!)

 

[MERICA]

Don't waste your time doing Hall questions for the AKT-0. Read the first 200 pages from Baby Miller or similar chapters from M&M- both of which cover basic monitoring and pharmacology of anesthetics/perioperative medications. This test is a pure knowledge test of facts, not about clinical judgement. There are a lot of facts in the beginning of these books. A little investment in this condensed area will be money in the bank for this test- as well as the beginning of your anesthesia training. You need to know this basic information on day 1 anyways, so read it a couple of times until it is reflexive. When someone says Pancuronium, you should think long acting NDNMB, vagolytic, and renal clearance. You won't remember some random HALL question about which laser only screws up your cornea vs which laser penetrates and damages your retina. You need organized, high yield basic information, and you need to commit this to memory now.

 

[aneftp]

At my program we can't purchase electronics. I plan on using the rest of my CA-1 funds to pay for the basic exam which you will be taking next June. You can also use it to purchase the very popular M5 board review Qbank, books, travel to conferences, or licensing fees.

The CA-1/2 new basic exam that is given starting July 2014 should be paid by departments outside their regular book/travel fees. Just my opinion. They are essentially ge

That's called fraud. Chances are infinitesimal the IRS would ever audit you, but it's still a crime.

If money were spent on hookers etc. sure I would buy the fraud argument.

But an iPad especially for education with my work around suggestion isn't a crime.

I am just surprised anesthesia dept doesn't give their residents iPads for free outside of their normal book/travel allotment. The iPad (even though most of us use it as an entertainment/email/web browsing device) is still an extremely useful tool to help residents in any speciality while in training.

 

[kazuma]

Don't waste your time doing Hall questions for the AKT-0. Read the first 200 pages from Baby Miller or similar chapters from M&M- both of which cover basic monitoring and pharmacology of anesthetics/perioperative medications. This test is a pure knowledge test of facts, not about clinical judgement. There are a lot of facts in the beginning of these books. A little investment in this condensed area will be money in the bank for this test- as well as the beginning of your anesthesia training. You need to know this basic information on day 1 anyways, so read it a couple of times until it is reflexive. When someone says Pancuronium, you should think long acting NDNMB, vagolytic, and renal clearance. You won't remember some random HALL question about which laser only screws up your cornea vs which laser penetrates and damages your retina. You need organized, high yield basic information, and you need to commit this to memory now.

I agree, I bought Hall (the book as a med student and the Ipad app as a resident) but it contains too much random and outdated info IMO. The first parts of baby miller and M&M are money for the AKT/ITE. The M5 board review bank compliments these chapters very nicely and is a great supplement to reinforce what you have read. The M5 explanations are conversational and kind of witty which makes them enjoyable to read and helps me remember the high yield concepts. I'd use your money for a 1 year M5 subscription and do the questions on your phone or buy a cheap android tablet, that would be the biggest bang for your buck.

My program bought us all Ipads, but I don't care for mine. It's too big an clunky so I leave it home. Some of my colleagues have ipad mini's or comparable sized tablets which fit in a standard scrub sized pant pocket. That seems much more portable and useful and is what I would get if I had the choice.

 

[deleted171991]

Buy a good (Welch Allyn Elite 22", not Litmann) stethoscope. You will be able to hear through layers of gowns and fat, and especially through the OR noise.

Some anesthesiologists, especially some with a surgical background, despise those of us who still own (and wear) a personal stethoscope. My stethoscope and my Nonin pocket pulse oximeter are my sixth sense; they got/kept me out of trouble many times.

 

[Stellar Clouds]

Some anesthesiologists, especially some with a surgical background, despise those of us who still own (and wear) a personal stethoscope.

Why do you say that?

 

[pgg]

Buy a good (Welch Allyn Elite 22", not Litmann) stethoscope. You will be able to hear through layers of gowns and fat, and especially through the OR noise.

Some anesthesiologists, especially some with a surgical background, despise those of us who still own (and wear) a personal stethoscope. My stethoscope and my Nonin pocket pulse oximeter are my sixth sense; they got/kept me out of trouble many times.

I would not buy a nice, expensive stethoscope. In the last couple years, several hospitals I work at have prohibited carrying personal stethoscopes between patients. The infection control guys have mandated that each patient gets a hospital stethoscope for their stay. This seems to be a trend. I still see the cardiologists carry their own ... but the OR, ER, and ICU are strict about it. I don't take my own stethoscope into those buildings any more.

 

[deleted171991]

Why do you say that?

Because that was my personal experience in residency. I was chastised even by a nationally renowned professor.

 

[kazuma]

I would not buy a nice, expensive stethoscope. In the last couple years, several hospitals I work at have prohibited carrying personal stethoscopes between patients. The infection control guys have mandated that each patient gets a hospital stethoscope for their stay. This seems to be a trend. I still see the cardiologists carry their own ... but the OR, ER, and ICU are strict about it. I don't take my own stethoscope into those buildings any more.

Do they provide decent stethoscopes or are those disposable MRSA/isolation pretend stethoscopes that hurt your ears? That's very kind of the ID folks to give you the opportunity to inoculate your ears with someone else's MRSA/VRE/CDiff.

 

[urge]

Do they provide decent stethoscopes or are those disposable MRSA/isolation pretend stethoscopes that hurt your ears? That's very kind of the ID folks to give you the opportunity to inoculate your ears with someone else's MRSA/VRE/CDiff.

They look like "Toys R Us stuff".

 

[urge]

Because that was my personal experience in residency. I was chastised even by a nationally renowned professor.

I haven't used a stethoscope since I finished training. The only reason I carried one was for all those silly needy attendings who always needed one but never carried their own.

I have no beef whether you use it or not, but at least carry your own.

 

[pgg]

Do they provide decent stethoscopes or are those disposable MRSA/isolation pretend stethoscopes that hurt your ears? That's very kind of the ID folks to give you the opportunity to inoculate your ears with someone else's MRSA/VRE/CDiff.

Some are Littmans, very nice ones. Most on the wards and in the ER are crap. The ones hanging on the anesthesia machines are OK, kind of a mid grade plastic thing, good enough.

 

[Laryngophed]

Some are Littmans, very nice ones. Most on the wards and in the ER are crap. The ones hanging on the anesthesia machines are OK, kind of a mid grade plastic thing, good enough.

Is this at your moonlighting gig or the big shop?


Semirelated to OP: How much does your program allot for educational (book) funds?

 

[el mero mero]

Bump.

How are people spending their educational funds these days? Thanks!

 

[caligas]

Does it carry over? By your last year you've got yourself a trip to a ski conference.