Wreb 2009

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Hey all!

I took that baby last weekend and it was a great experience! The examiners were nice, helpful, respectful, and completely laid back. I'm Y4 at Tufts, where both the NERB and WREB are offered. I helped out for the NERB and I can say, these two exams are like night and day!

1) The fact that you have 2 and a half days is really nice. Take your time and be cautious to keep the big picture in mind (don't go crazy chasing caries without asking for a mod).
2) If a patient falls through, don't sweat it! I was on externship at a prison the entire month b4 the exam so I could really screen and on the morning of the exam my C3 fell through and my perio and C2 (same pt) decided to go away for the weekend and I was left without any backups. But, I used other peoples backups : ) and everyone went home with a permanent restoration in their mouth (no outright failures for me!).
3) *****Be fast with endo!**** A lot of people ran out of time and took deductions for going over the time limit. Just get there, be organized, blast a nice access w/ a 4 or 6 round, refine with 44C, see the canals, get in there, debride, obturate.
4) Endo: You don't have to take an x-ray every step of the way, I had my start, guide file and then the next one I took was my master cone.
5) Endo: with the molar, make sure you pick a canal that's going to be easy to get in and out of. For example, with #30, the easier canals to see are the Distal canals. If I could do it again I would have done the extra work to find a premolar for my posterior tooth.
6) The floor examiners approve the modifications so you can ask ANY of them. (There were two floors of people taking the exam at my school and you could ask anyone, it wasn't floor specific.)
7) Relax, it helps keep the patient relaxed : )

My perio patient didn't want anesthesia...that was a little stressful b/c I was like "you're going to appreciate it", he still didn't want it so I told him I would be more comfortable if he had it (which is true)

I think that's it, any other ?'s just ask!
 
kathy,

thank you so much for your input. i wish you the best of luck. please let us know how long it took to get your results back.

i am taking mine in Louisville, KY in 2 weeks. i think i have some good and reliable pts. i am planning on doing #8 and #30 (distal) for my endo. i also bought some self developing films from patterson which will save me a ton of time for the endo part. i think that 4 hr to do 2 endo cases should be enough. i cant wait to be done with this part of life.
 
I took the WREB at Oklahoma. I finished yesterday. The official last clinic day is today. Overall the experience was not too bad.

Preparing for the test (finding patients and teeth) was stressful, but the actual test wasn't too bad. The floor examiners were very nice and were as helpful as they were allowed to be. They repeatedly made it clear that they were on our side (our "ombudsmen" as one of them said).

The written parts seemed pretty easy. I know there is a lot of variability in PATP cases, but I got a pedo case that I thought was relatively straightforward. The prosthodontic and periodontic sections tested basic knowledge that most people will have learned during their clinical years.

The suggestions that I would make are:

1.) In endo, work quickly. Don't waste time trying to make it perfect. Know the criteria for a three, and if your initial effort at a step is a three or above, move on to the next step.

2.) Pick patients that will show up and will definitely qualify. There is no reason to lose points off the top because your patients don't qualify. The candidate guide very clearly states what is needed for the patient to qualify.

3.) Have confidence in yourself and your training. It is not a game. Just do what you think is right clinically (but make sure you ask permission to if it will extend your internal or external form beyond the criteria for a five). My lesions were both clearly at the DEJ in at least one film, but I had two mod requests on one lesion and four on the other. I took my time, asked for permission, and at least I didn't see any pink (neither pink slips nor pulp, yaa!).
 
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