Future Doc...

How to Study for Pre-Clinical Medicine at Medical School

noreply@blogger.com (Future Doc) — Sat, 01 Aug 2015 12:00:00 +0000

Studying for pre-clinical medicine is not about finesse or being able to know intricate details, it's about keeping your head above the water while waves repeatedly crash at you. Your aim of studying is subsequently, to cover as much material as possible in a manner that maximises retention. This will vary in context depending on each medical school i.e. Barts has OSCEs in the first year.

Prep
You need to make a schedule that is realistic. I like to treat medical school as a nine to five job. You start work at 9am, have an hour lunch and finish at 5pm. This gives you a repetitive routine that can be altered for days out and impromptu social occasions.

It requires determination to stick to this because it is so easy to push things to the weekend, then the next week then months have flown by and the deadlines rear their ugly head.

Don't make To Do lists, schedule work. When are you going to do it? How much time does it need? This is much more effective then an ever growing list that you'll just ignore. Get a diary or use Google Calendar. Barts is kind enough to put all out timetables on Google Calendar so it helps to correlate your work.

The process I outline aims to have you review your lecture notes FIVE times in the space of the month, attempting to maximise retention without significant outlay of your time.

Preading (Pre reading)
You first two years of medical school will be lecture heavy. This means a lot of lecture notes and handouts. I use my iPad to directly write on PDFs of lecture notes however you may have a different method. The night before you should print/load/organise your handouts. This forces you to organise yourself for the day. It is also the beginning of the recall process. By investing 5-10 minutes of your time, skimming through the handouts for the next day, you are already familiarising yourself with the material. This means that the first time you see this lecture is not in the lecture. You have a general grasp of the context and ordering, which allows you to peg new knowledge to. It also highlights any areas that you don't understand at all.

Lecture
This is 50-60 minutes of your time. I know they are dull, soulless events but lectures are the cheapest way for medical schools to teach us. You need to focus. You can't multitask effectively when learning so don't bother. This means no Facebook, Whatsapp or Snapchat. Put your phone down and pick up your pen/stylus. Make notes, draw diagrams and think of questions. If this is the only time you are going to look at this material, do it now. You are making a solid basis for all future retention, so don't fuck yourself over.

Evening Review
You need to review your notes within 24 hours. I time this with my preading for the next day. This helps to consolidate the knowledge the best and is significantly more effective than reviewing a few days later [source needed].

Go through the information, make sure you understand it and if you don't, find it out. Try to keep your source material in one place. If the lecture notes are adequate, then use them and cross out unnecessary information. If they useless (a common event) then make a mind-map. If you think you have enough time to rote learn medicine, then prepare to give up something else. Your brain will always remember visuals over text and relationships over random statements [source needed].

Weekend Review
At this point, you have review the information THREE times. This is your chance to truly learn the subject AKA study. It can be Saturday morning, Sunday night or a random free day in the week but you need to review on a regular basis to keep up. You should be relatively familiar with the subject matter so you'll be rushing through your notes to get outside.

How I Study
Rote memorisation is the toolbox of the traditional medical student. And it is very useful when you need to learn something and nothing else will do. However, I find that this method prevents you applying knowledge. You learn a list or a block of text and have no idea what it means, just the ability to repeat it if asked for definition.

Subsequently, I use very little writing after my initial note taking step in lectures. I know most of my fellow medical students like to re-write lecture notes, but I don't have time. I want to watch netflix and go out with my housemates, not keeping rewriting text hoping it will go in.

I will imagine that a fellow student is in front of me and I will talk them through the lecture as if I am teaching. The aim is to teach from memory and also talk in a way that shows I clearly understand it. This significantly helps my comprehension and ability to apply knowledge at a future date.

Talking to yourself can be weird but if you can't explain it with the notes in front of you, what luck do you have in the exam.

Month Review
A month is my preferred time, but this flexible for you. A fortnight or six weeks might be enough. This schedule forces you to review you knowledge and drag it up from the dregs of your memory. This is the final step to help transition it from short-term to long-term memory. At this point you have now reviewed the content FIVE times. You will have a good assessment of your strengths and weakness. Lectures that are not easy to recall can become focus points in your revision while you can ignore content that you are comfortable with.

Further Advice

Be realistic - Trying to cover three modules in a week isn't going to happen. Your timetable needs to be practical e.g. if you have to watch Game of Thrones every Monday then watch it, don't pretend to work.
Pomodoro System - Wikipedia explains better, but basically, you work for 25 minutes, take a 5 minute break and repeat. I find it effective at forcing myself to study and a timer gives you a clock to beat. It can be addictive.
Block distractions - You've made the decision to study. Great! Now make sure it's efficient use of your time, otherwise you'll be there twice as long. Block social media, put your phone on airplane model and get going.
Food and Water - Make sure you have water and some snacks within easy access. It's tiring work studying and I've happily convinced myself that I need to bake for three hours instead of studying, because there isn't any brownies in the house.

Medical school is hard, not because of the subject, but because it requires time management skills that we are never taught.

The End of Pre-Clinical Medicine

noreply@blogger.com (Future Doc) — Fri, 31 Jul 2015 12:00:00 +0000

It's almost August and I still can't believe that I've finished five years of university. I came back from Glastonbury festival to discover that I had passed second year of medical school and I could not be more excited.

The past two years have been difficult because I've had a lot of personal struggles (that I won't bore you with) but I wouldn't change it for the world. I use to question throughout Biomed if this was all worth it. When I look back at what I've studied in the past two years, I feel like I've discovered more and more of who I am. Medicine, the degree, is everything I hoped and more.

I was pleasantly pleased with my results. I stuck to my timetabling pretty well and had a week before the exam for OSCE practise and emergency revision, which I've never managed before. I heavily focused on the MCQs section of the exam but ultimately, this was my worst performance. I think I understand why because I was just doing a question bank without really supplementing the learning, the question bank was also more aimed at 3rd years than 2nd years so it was slightly over shooting.

What I've taken away from this year is again the need to plan REALISTICALLY i.e. a module cannot be done in two days however must I use too hope. I'm also most productive in the morning and I need scheduling to get myself into the routine. I found that by scheduling my time I was significantly less stressed and had a more realistic view of my goals. My main goal was to pass comfortably and be in the 5th quartile or higher. At the moment I am comfortable being an academically "average" medical student.

On the flip side, I've struggled to balance extra-curricular activities. I once again took on too much and it meant that I gave a poor performance. I have subsequently dropped everything except a course rep. I want to focus on my health and exercise next year. It's really important that I find out how to develop an important work-life balance, engaging in exercise that is either individual (gym) or group (sports or running). Even yoga or meditation. Just something to provide a break outside of university. I also have a great group of friends from my previous degree, so I usually count them as my support network/getting drunk.

My next year (3rd year of MBBS) sees me start hospital placements full-time. I have three rotations:

Cardiorespiratory at Barts and Royal London Hospital
Metabolism 3A (Surgery and Vascular) at Whipps Cross
Metabolism 3B (Diabetes, Endocrine and Renal) at Homerton

I'm very excited to get out on the wards and start Clinical Medicine. But with it comes a lot of pitfalls. Being pimped by consultants or forever getting in the way. Plus learning where everything is. I will definitely start blogging more because there is only so much time I can moan about lectures.

Podcasts

noreply@blogger.com (Future Doc) — Sat, 18 Apr 2015 14:20:00 +0000

I have two essays due next week and a presentation, yet I'm addicted to a podcast series called Serial. I'm way behind the game. It was released back in 2014, but it hasn't been spoiled for me, so I've been able to enjoy it on my commute to medical school all this week.

The premise of Serial is an episodic investigative journalism program that covers the case of a teenage American girl who was murdered. It's addictive because you have a journalist as the narrator that works through the case in each episode. I swing from side to side multiple times within an episode and even as I draw to the end, I am still undecided on who done it.

Podcasts never really grabbed me before. Serial is a high quality production so I've been spoiled with my first one. My main use of podcasts previously, was for educational purposes, which makes them so dull. The engaging nature has had me addicted and been so tempted to binge watch like Netflix.

Anyway, I think you should check it out. If you have already gotten the podcast bug, drop me some recommendations in the comments.

Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year

noreply@blogger.com (Future Doc) — Mon, 29 Dec 2014 22:01:00 +0000

Medicine is scary. It's not hard. But it can be intense and make you reassess why you are doing it. You spend ages day dreaming about what kind of doctor you will be, where you'd live, would you go to West Africa? It's a career that is limitless and yet at the same time; you can go back home, become your local GP and have a very happy lot with life (not to slander the amazing work of GPs). I am so happy to be studying this degree. It is the best decision I ever made. I love the opportunities I have had so far and I cannot wait for millions more.

I have recently found out I will be sitting on the interview panels for Barts in January and February. I remember being there. I remember the nerves and excitement. I wish everyone the best of luck, I hope you use your time to demonstrate the best possible you.

My First Year At Medical School (Part 1)

noreply@blogger.com (Future Doc) — Thu, 28 Aug 2014 15:29:00 +0000

Freshers

This will have been my fourth freshers I have attended and only my second as a legitimate fresher. Although after three years in East London, I feel that even that claim to the title is thin. This freshers was unlike any other I had experienced. My time at Queen Mary meant I was exposed to hundreds if not thousands of law and english students, before I even met some biomeds. This time, however, I spent two weeks of socialising and attending introductory lectures with the same people. You quickly find your group and identify who’s company you prefer. I also felt less pressure to make friends when compared with first year of biomed because I already have a core group of friends that I live with. It meant that if I didn’t feel like going out, I could just get a takeaway with my housemates. Yes, it meant I didn’t have ‘the fear’ to attend every event and become best friends with students in halls. It also make me appreciate how much effort my friends in first year of biomed who didn’t live on campus, made with me.

Ain't no party like a Toga party - Source

Stand out events for me included:

Freshers boat ball (just for medics & dentists) - meeting someone who had spent their student loan already and had supplied their own champagne.
Toga night - a brilliant Barts tradition that doesn’t feel like an American Frat House too much.
Mummies and Daddies - the chance to have some older years, take you under their wing, force feed you alcohol and encourage poor life choices.

Did I get a bit bored of the union towards the end of the two weeks? Yes. Did I have the confidence of a graduate to attend any event, regardless of not knowing anyone else going? Yes. It was a nice balance and I felt that I could identify who I was as a person, something I didn’t know at age eighteen.

Whitechapel Library gets pretty busy around exam time - Source

How is the year organised?

The year is split up by exams:

Fundamentals of Medicine (FunMed) -->
Exam -->
CardioRespiratory (CR) /Metabolism (MET)/Locomotor (LOCO) -->
Exam -->
Brain & Behaviour (BB)/Human Development (HD) -->
Exam -->
End of year Exams

See timetable below for details.

Academic Timetable for Barts and the London - Source

FunMed

With the introductory lectures coming to an end, we began the biggest module called FunMed. It stands for Fundamentals of Medicine and is designed to familiarise you with everything, so you can hit the ground running. It’s the hardest module (at the time) because you are constantly jumping from topic to topic and lecturers will always say “we’ll go into more depth later”. This module is your first experience of how you are taught AND assessed at medical school. It’s an unknown entity and you are trying to pick up the ropes. Even the graduates who have three+ years experience of gaming the system, need to learn where to find the past papers.

That all said. When you’ve finished your first In-Course Assessment (ICA), you’ll look back at FunMed with fond memories. The lack of depth, the broad coverage and the general kindness of the system. The subject matter is basic medical sciences, with very little clinical relevance. School leavers criticised it as a repeat of A-Levels in some areas. Ultimately, you do learn that ICAs mean f*** all compared to the end-of-year exams and that you really can cram and pass (not recommended: do as I say not as I do).

There's always one student who develop a full blown caffeine dependency - Source

Exams

ICAs at Barts have three components:

Multiple Choice Questions (MCQs): Single Best Answer (SBA) and Extended Matching Questions (EMQs)
Short Answer Questions (SAQs)
Spotter: Computer based exam

End of Year Exams at Barts have components:

SBA MCQs only
SAQs
Spotter
OSCEs

PBLs

FunMed eases you into Bart’s PBL learning style. You get one scenario a week and they are pretty easy at identify the main objectives. It gets stepped up after FunMed with two PBLs a week, that you always seem to leave to Sunday evening.

I was easily sold the PBL method because it was something different from lectures. It’s also a chance to work in a group and have a laugh. Barts is good at making sure the PBLs match up with lectures, so there is little research needed, just learning.

CR/MET/LOCO

You start this group of modules with some excitement. You’re sick of FunMed. You’ve just done you’re first exam and you want to move onto some real medicine, not the basic sciences of FunMed. As a biomed graduate, I enjoyed Locomotor the most because it’s pure anatomy and really complements dissection. Plus it’s taught by one of the best lecturers in the school.

OSCEs are the strangest but funnest exam you'll take - Source

Clinical Skills

Probably the worst thing done at Barts so far. Individually each clinical session at Barts hospital is great, but as you approach your OSCEs, you realise you have no idea what they are expecting. It’s a bit daunting and probably my main criticism of the course. Things range from basic life support to a full cardiovascular exam. There is little pressure on clinical knowledge, you just need to learn how to go through the movements.

B&B/HD

This was probably the hardest part of the year for me. I wasn’t very well during Brain and Behaviour so I missed a lot of lectures and struggled with the content. That said, B&B played so a small part of the end of years that it didn’t impinge on my results at all. I throughly enjoyed Human Development as a module and there is a lecturer who is one of my personal favourites, purely for her dark sense of humour. If you’re female though, you’ll be put off have babies for about a fortnight after the module finishes.

"Do I smell? - Source

SSCs

This is the chance for you to introduce some flexibility into the curriculum. You can choose either from a list of pre-approved modules, or you can plan your own. This is the chance for dissection, something I’ve been waiting for since I started at Queen Mary. I highly recommend dissection because it makes your anatomy knowledge so much stronger. It also brings home the fact that you are a medical student, this is a privilege very few get. The exam at the end is also harder than any other spotter I’ve sat in first year to test that knowledge. My other module choice was about medical education and how to develop yourself while at medical school. The options are varied with the chance to do community work, clinical shadowing or study the history of medicine. One course even lets you nap to help you learn relaxation techniques.

Wasn't even my child but I got very excited - Source

Medicine in Society (MedSoc)

This is the chance to visit a GP surgery once a fortnight and play ~~doctor~~ idiot medical student. Don’t get me wrong, I did enjoy visiting patients and I got to listen to a baby’s heart beat which was just… so f**king cool. But there is something called reflective writing. You have to write 200 words of BS every fortnight on how you’ve changed as a person. How has that patient’s interaction affected you? What personal epiphany did you discover? Everyone knows its rubbish, yet you have to do it, because reflection is part of being a doctor. I just wish you could be more realistic and not have to pretend that a 10 minute meeting with a patient means you will forever have a insight into back pain.

My surgery was in an affluent part of London so the patients were nice and I got to lunch at Waitrose once a fortnight so I can’t complain. Overall I enjoyed the experience and it really makes you feel like a medical student when you put on smart clothes and your ID badge.

Private Study and Exams

You get two/three weeks dedicated to private study, but you should have definitely started revising before then, if you don’t want a caffeine-fueled crisis. I’ve made a real aim to go paperless this year and have been using Evernote to support my learning. I don’t like to waste time when studying, so I will often make notes directly on the PDF versions of the lecture notes. I am able to highlight, annotate and even delete slides at will. I then review these at a later date and use them as revision notes. The first and second years of medical school draw so closely from the lectures that textbooks are only useful for PBLs and clarification. Barts also uses a system called QReview which allows for the recording of lectures. Great if you need to double check something or missed a lecture.

Medical school can be lonely when you have to study. I find group work to be a waste of time except for specific aspects like OSCEs and PBLs. Friends will always provide a certain level of distraction so being motivated to study can be tiring. The idea of a study group has always sounded attractive, but ultimately the idea of trying to organise other people every week till the end of the year does not enthral me.

The exams themselves were actually very nice. The 80:20 system really seemed to be prevalent in the design of the exams and I was very happy with my results. I did significantly better than my first year of biomed (AKA I didn’t oversleep for any of my exams).

Part 2

This post has focused heavily on the academic side of university. While tiring, I definitely enjoyed my first year at university as a medical student and had a lot of fun. Part 2 will discuss the extracurricular side of medical school.

The Official Med School Reading List: A Year in Review

noreply@blogger.com (Future Doc) — Sat, 28 Jun 2014 15:35:00 +0000

Last year in August, I was accepted to medical school and I blogged about the Official Barts Reading List. My opinions were based on a pre-med view point with some biomed knowledge chucked in. So I decided to review that reading list, having successfully passed first year.

P.S. DO NOT BUY any of these books. They are all available from your medical school's library. The only books I have purchased this year are not on the recommended reading list, because these books are so widely available.

P.P.S Textbooks are not essential for the first year at Barts. You hear stories of fellow students not visiting the library till third year. Yet, if you want relatively good grades, I'd heavily imply that you need to support your learning. As a graduate, I am so use to turning to several sources, not just lecture notes, that it is hard to break the habit.

P.P.P.S. But if you are reading this list, it means you have already opened you mind to the use of textbooks so ignore above.

Essential Books from the Reading List

In my opinion, these books are essential for your first year at Barts and The London SMD.

Clinically Oriented Anatomy by Moore

A good anatomy textbook is key. While lecture notes are enough for content, you sometimes need that second point of view to help cement that knowledge. I would highly recommend Moore but can now see why Clinical Oriented Anatomy is too big. Essential Clinical Oriented Anatomy is much better suited for the course and easier to carry around. It's definitely not pocket size but it's lighter on the rucksack, without lacking key knowledge.

Medical Physiology by Boron

I glanced once at Boron. The layout looked awful and I went in search of other physiology textbooks instead.

Color Atlas of Anatomy: A Photographic Study of the Human Body

This was described as non-essential in the reading list, but that is patently false. This book is key for everyone, not just students studying dissection. It uses photographs of prosections so is key for a good grasp of human anatomy. The pictures are excellent for ICAs at Barts (I swear our anatomy lecturer uses some of them in the exam).

Netter's Anatomy Flash Cards

I hate wasting time that can't be used for fun, yet could be used for studying. Making your flashcards is high energy intense so you just have to buy/borrow/steal from fellow medics. Here is where I recommend Netter's because anatomy is the subject you should be reviewing constantly! You have the choice between the app or the physical flash cards. This is the only item on the list that you need to purchase, but you should. It is so helpful to carry them around on the tube, bus, car etc. and test yourself. Brilliant for cramming before a spotter exam.

Medical Sciences by Naish

I predicted a year ago that this book would be essential and I am happy to be proved correct. This book is useful across the medical curriculum spectrum and really helps to answer a question or at least provide a sign post. This was further confirmed by my anatomy lecturer recommending this as the only textbook worth investing in for pre-clinical.

Wheater's Functional Histology

This was my saviour in Histology (or micro-anatomy as Barts insists on calling it). This book is amazing. It has some great detail and excellent photography. Not worth a purchase though. You only cover histology for the first two years. Once you enter clinical years, you'll never touch this book again.

Non-Essential Books

Books that you may need if you are weak in a certain area.

Kumar and Clark's Clinical Medicine

Another book I already own. This is useful for PBL, but I found it was more a support textbook for when Wikipedia failed. Not an essential purchase but you will probably buy this in a few years to come so at least be aware that the book exists. (This book works in conjunction with Naish's Medical Sciences)

Human Molecular Genetics

If you are coming from school and never did A2 Biology, you'll need this book. For graduates who have just done a science degree, then you'll already know the basics of what will be taught in first year e.g. mitosis, meiosis etc.

Don't-bother-with books

For first year, these books are just not worth your time. Too much knowledge or lack of relevance.

Human Form Human Function: Essentials of Anatomy and Physiology

More physiology than anatomy. If you are using the other textbooks above, you don't need this at all.

Medical Biochemistry by Baynes

If you really struggle with biochemistry in the first year, I would recommend Stryer but to be honest, you lecture notes will be good enough for biochem.

Rang & Dale's Pharmacology

Really good textbook. Great for pharmacology. Only problem at Barts is that we don't go into any sort of depth that would warrant this being a recommended text for freshers. Don't look at it till second year. Great book, just too much information.

Essentials of Rubin's Pathology

Again, this book is better for second year where pathology really gets going.

Review: OnExamination by BMJ - First Year

noreply@blogger.com (Future Doc) — Wed, 11 Jun 2014 17:50:00 +0000

As a medic fresher, there is lots of noise when it comes to paid resources for medical school. I was recommended OnExamination (BMJ) by a third year so I thought I'd write a review of my experience.

Content

There are 639 questions for Year 1 (at the time of writing). BMJ claim they are written by doctors but I scored quite high initially and was asked if I would write for the question bank, so I take that with a pinch of salt. I only spotted one error in the answers. Most are detailed with external links for extra information. They also often explain why each answer is not possible (which I love). Some responses are pulled just from wikipedia, even diagrams borrowed. This can be slightly frustrating, considering you’ve paid for the material.

My curriculum was well covered by the content, although there were a few “very hard” questions that went into really specific detail on certain topics that I imagine are covered at other schools. The balance of difficulty is good. I am personally happy with the content and it definitely prepared me for end of years.

Layout

Basic layout with questions taking centre stage and extras on the right hand side. After each questions is completed, you are show the answer, an explanation and the chance to add some notes. You also have an on-going analysis of how you are doing (carrot and stick to keep me focused). Once done you can review questions you got wrong, straight away. Combined with the AdaptforMe function and you have some form of spaced repetition review, similar to Anki and Mnemosyne.

Choosing Your Questions

Work Smart or Work Hard. If you just want to rote work through 600+ questions, then pick Work Hard. I chose Work Smart. This allows you to customise question type, difficulty, seen/unseen, number etc. BMJ promote AdaptforMe, a form of repetition spaced review. I found this to be really useful, although it did have a few teething issues. I would sometimes see the same questions repeatedly (like three times a day) until I hide seen questions from the process. But this would defeat the point of reviewing previous seen questions.

Unfortunately, you can mark individual questions that you definitely know and want to remove from review. Also once you start the questions, you can’t move backwards and change your answers. An odd design. You can also create mock exams when you are comfortable with the material.

Overall, the flexibility in choosing questions is good and helps your revision process. However in future updates I’d like you to be able to rate individual questions on their difficult to alter their appearance in review.

Review

General results - not intuitive to find after a round of questions but does show a bell graph and where you lie compared to fellow medical students. A range of means are given to provide an estimate of how you’ll do in the actual exam. It asked for my exam date but I don’t know why. Nothing came of it.

Curricula results - The review process also identifies broad subject areas that you are weak in. It is a good indicator of where to target revision and I found to be very accurate. My weakness in physiology was reflected in the breakdown.

Day-to-day analysis - Does what it says on the tin.

Learning Journal - This allows you to access your revision notes that you have attached to particular questions. It’s also a complete history of every question you’ve attempted.

Mobile

There is support for both iPad and iOS. These have reduced function compared to desktop. You also have to download questions in advance if you want offline review. Neither of the apps crashed on me though or had any errors.

Cost

Year 1 Medical Student

3 months - £20 (I choose this)

6 months - £26

12 months - £32

They also offer Year 2, 3 and Finals. These are more expensive (see website).

Overall

Good coverage of the curriculum with varying difficulty. For £20, I started revising three weeks before my end of year exams. I covered 30 questions a day, completing all 600+ questions with time for some mock exams. I’m not sure how it would work out, if it was integrated with lectures. I’m inclined to try next year because it definitely helped with my exams and was really useful to try questions I’d never seen at medical school e.g. past papers.

30 Things I Learnt as a Fresher in Medical School

noreply@blogger.com (Future Doc) — Sat, 07 Jun 2014 21:02:00 +0000

Results were announced yesterday and I have passed first year of medical school. It's been a challenging year but so happy to have passed! My first year at Barts and The London have been amazing, so I thought I would blog about 30 things I learnt as a fresher at medical school.

You aren’t the smartest person in the room anymore.

If you’ve done three A-Levels, then I’ve done four. If you’ve done four, I’ve done a degree. If you’ve done a degree, he’s done a masters. If you’ve done a masters, she’s done a PhD. And so on. UKCAT, IB scores don’t matter. We’re all in. And from this day onwards, only 50% of us will be above average. This idea is hard for a bunch of intelligent people to swallow.

Say yes to everything. Be proud of your new university. It will be your home for four/five/six years.

Get some non-medic fresher friends. The people you live with in halls and everyone on your course may seem amazing now, but come end of year and all you’ve heard is revision schedules, some non-medic friends would be great.

There is a lot of work but it is not as much as you think. You just have to be organised. Do a little every week. Make sure you go to every lecture. If you don’t, make sure you watch the recording. So that when it comes to exam time, you have seen the material at least once before.

Don’t buy any textbooks in first year. Use the library or *cough* online PDFs.

Buy Netter's Anatomy Flash Cards.

Moan to other medics, but not your non-medic friends. They don’t care and if you do it too much, you’ll lose them. You chose medical school and while it’s cathartic to wine, do it with fellow medics.

Some subjects at medical school suck. Histology is ultimately just becoming familiar with the images. Use YouTube, online websites, Wheater’s or any other resource to master it.

You don’t need any equipment for Barts for first year. However I own a stethoscope and a blood pressure cuff.

“This won’t be on the test” or “We use the same pictures for the finals” - Medical schools lie.

You will sleep with/annoy/get drunk with a fellow medic. It happens but be careful you don’t burn too many bridges.

Medicine is like learning a whole new language.

When exams approach, you hibernate from society for a while.

You discover that an hour of study is a very short period of time. You always need more.

You need a whiteboard (or a cheap student version).

I prefer to get a good night sleep and start cramming at 6am. I’m too ‘old’ to be doing all-nighters.

Learn to block *insert distracting website here*

Do talk about grades with fellow medics. Unless you are close friends.

You learn to bullshit. Reflective writing for my GP placement is best written drunk.

Med school isn’t fair. Some tutors are nicer than others. Some placements are better than others. Suck it up.

You become surprisingly at ease at being in a room full of dead, partially dissected cadavers. Remember to be respectful but name your cadaver!

Older years are key for past papers and how to tackle OSCEs. Clinical skills is not very joined up well at Barts.

Caffeine can become a food group

There is always one fresher that you can diagnose as an alcoholic

Don’t get sick. Look after yourself. If you need to see a doctor, GO. It will just get worse.

If you are sick, tell your med school. They accepted you. They want you to finish the course. They will look after you.

You can multi-task, but not everything e.g. washing-up while food is cooking NOT studying and watching TV

You cannot learn everything. It is not possible. Draw a line at when to stop and move on. This is not A-Levels where there is one textbook to learn.

Be keen. Everyone else is. Regardless of what they say.

You are not alone. Everyone is in the same boat. Make some friends, relax and enjoy it. You’re going to be a doctor!

My first week at Medical School

noreply@blogger.com (Future Doc) — Mon, 23 Sep 2013 17:57:00 +0000

Saturday
My first day at Barts as a real medic. I pre-booked an enrolment session because I had experienced QMUL's enrolment process before. After enrolment I headed over to Whitechapel for an introductory lecture and then the opportunity to meet my new Barts 'mum' and 'dad'. This is a brilliant scheme where two older students will take a fresher under their wing. I was unfortunately abandoned by my originally assigned parents, but was quickly adopted by two amazing third years. They took me under their wing and we headed off to Spoons. After several free drinks, we made a pit stop at someone's house for shots then headed over to the student union (The Griffin). More alcohol ensued. Good night. Bed.

Sunday
Waking up with a slight hangover, I grabbed Sunday lunch with my housemates, which also turned out to be a hangout of one of my Barts parents. Freshers never stop so it wouldn't be Sunday without going out to The Griffin. Black and white are the colours of Barts, subsequently the night is called Black and White. Obviously you have to wear a certain colour.

Monday
It's finally Monday. After another night out, I get the morning to lay in. Except I went to central to meet a friend for a McDonald breakfast. She's been out of the country during summer, so it was the only chance we had. Naturally I was so nervous about the first real day, I could barely eat my delicious McBacon Roll. Come one o'clock we had a series of introductory lectures about how amazing Barts is.
Once our first day of lectures finished, I headed over to the union after grabbing food. I watched my Barts mum and dad partake in a sketch show. It was funny with lots of in-jokes that I will come to know and love. After that I had intended to head to Ministry of Sound, but I got roped into the Griffin Quiz. We ended up doing very well and winning a round of drinks for the team! All credit goes to my family member who knew all the Norse gods. After that, the Griffin kicked us out at 10:30 (outrageous I know) so we headed to a pub called Good Sams near the Royal London hospital. Stayed till the last tube, then headed back to Leyton with my new parents.

Tuesday
Another day of lectures. Although this one ended with a twist. This is a tradition at Barts and I won't go into much detail as I don't want to ruin it for future Bartians.

Wednesday
More lectures introducing us to the Prehospital Care Programme (helicopters and ambulances). Then the afternoon was filled with a tour of the Freshers Fayre before I headed out in the evening for a curry with a sports club. Barts Freshers Fayre was very different to my previous experience at QM. While smaller, it had a much better community feel and people were desperate to get you to join their club or society. I signed up for everything, mainly for the free stuff.

Thursday
This was a light day in comparison to the rest. An hour and half in the morning on how to search for journals AKA netskills. As someone who holds a dissertation graded as a first, it was slightly dull.

Friday
Probably the best day so far in regards to lecture content. PBL process, something I'm familiar with at QM, was more clinically focussed and has a much more exciting method of execution. We then moved onto SSCs where I had to listen for an hour on how to make a poster. Again, the definition of a poster varies from the day-to-day use of the word. They are more like artistically displayed essays on size A1 paper. I don't think I've ever dealt with that size paper before. Performing Medicine was the my favourite lecture. It's run by a Drama Company who were established to teach medical students key skills such as public speaking and body language. The lecture was very engaging and ultimately very funny.
After a day of lectures, I grabbed some food then headed to the union for TOGA night. Another tradition at Barts (there are quite a few). I also found out on the way where my GP placement will be next Thursday. Things are moving quickly and getting clinical fast.

It's been an intense week. Little sleep and lots of contact time. But that's what has made this amazing! I've excited for the future and also a little apprehensive of the work load. Wish me luck.

NEETs, GCSEs and dispair

noreply@blogger.com (Future Doc) — Fri, 23 Aug 2013 14:35:00 +0000

Yesterday, the Office for National Statistics (ONS) released the stats on Young People Not in Education, Employment or Training (NEETs).

NEETs are up. The stats show NEETs are higher than when the current government came to power. That's over a million young people aged 18-24 who are being failed by the government. When I worked at the DWP, I use to see a lot of NEETs. In fact, because of my age I ended up be assigned to specifically see NEETs because my manager hoped I could relate and impart something. I could and I couldn't.

A lot of stereotypes exist about NEETs. Images of illiterate chavs and lazy chavettes are conjured into the heads of others. This was very rarely the case. I saw graduates, I saw school leavers and they all wanted to work. They hated the system. Living on a pittance and having the government invade their lives. It was not enjoyable for them and they wanted to tell the Jobcentre to 'fuck off' as soon as possible.

I did my best to help. I got a few onto courses for literacy and maths. Others I managed to get jobs from the Future Jobs Fund. It was horrible when that was scrapped, just as I was leaving the department. I saw people who had escaped into full time work come straight back. It was horrible and I felt worse because I knew I was running off to university to hide from the recession.

What made it worse was something that I had suspected for a long time at the DWP, but was only confirmed this year. A third of NEETS rarely left the house. Outside of Jobcentre appointments and household requirements, these young people were being isolated from society. I can only imagine the depression that must afflict some. It's a horrible way for people to live. But if that wasn't enough, the press and the government call them ‘spongers’ and ‘lazy’ to demonise them. Talk about kicking them when they are down.

So to see this news today that NEETs are higher than when the ConDem government first came to power is very disheartening. I don't want to blame parties or get political on this blog. NEETs are just something close to my heart because I saw their pain and struggle. I live a very sheltered, clich middle class life and this reminds me that not everyone else in Britain has the same opportunities as me.

Source: Notre Dame School, Cobham

On a more cheery note (warning - not cheery). GCSE results were released today and it turns out there has been a fall in GCSE grades. Schools are accused of repeatedly entering students in GCSE maths exams to ensure that precious C grade is achieved. School seems such a long time ago now but I can remember that culture beginning.

I was heavily pushed by my school to choose to do AS Critical Thinking rather than a GCSE. It was already obvious I would obtain my 5 A*-C so little help was offered there. They wanted to find another way to score points from me to boost their reports. I, naively, jumped at the chance to do an AS level and it was probably instrumental in my switching colleges on results day. Yet when you enter the UCAS system, you quickly learn that Critical Thinking means nothing to universities. Many will not accept it, and those that do will only accept it to AS level.

Schools should be focusing on getting a great grade over two years, rather than pushing students to repeatedly take exams in the hope of scrapping a pass. Gove says that his new GCSE system will prevent this abuse. Lets hope he's right.

The Official Reading List for Medicine at Barts and the Royal London 2012/2013

noreply@blogger.com (Future Doc) — Tue, 20 Aug 2013 23:48:00 +0000

UPDATE: I've finished my first year as a medical student at Barts and the London School of Medicine and Dentistry. I have subsequently reviewed the official reading list HERE.

Things are starting to move quickly now. I've just completed my pre-enrolment requirements online and I've received an induction timetable. I've booked some fresher events (we get a boat ball and a toga party!) I've also been given a reading list. I'm excited and surprised at some of the choices. See below (all links are to Amazon, I tried to do some fancy pictures but the formatting threw it all over the place).

The two essential books recommended are:

Clinically Oriented Anatomy by Moore
Medical Physiology by Boron

I've had my eye on Clinically Oriented Anatomy for a while. It's got some good reviews on TSR and on the occasional flick through in a bookshop, seems to have a nice layout. Oddly my reading list says that if I can't 'cope' with the full sized version, I should get the Essential version. I assume because it's just a big book and this is something a bit more pocket size.

Boron's Physiology looks an absolute bore but then I've always hated physiology at QM so hopefully I'll be surprised.

A third book is highly recommended but not essential for dissection:

Color Atlas of Anatomy: A Photographic Study of the Human Body

I already own Marieb's atlas and I've got Netter's flashcards. I do like an atlas with photography not diagrams of human prosections so this could be a potential purchase if my current atlas is not enough.

A number of other books are listed under 'essential books' for the five years:

Human Form Human Function: Essentials of Anatomy and Physiology

More physiology with the classic athlete on the front cover. Is that the only genre of stock picture people use when they publish books about physiology?

Medical Biochemistry by Baynes

My only experience of this book was in chm form (thankfully a dying ebook format). It was not a good experience which has led me to hate this book for completely illogical reasons.

Rang & Dale's Pharmacology

I have a lot of experience with this text. I even own the kindle version. This was the core text for my pharmacology module in second year. While not detailed enough for the more biochemical info, it was more than adequate for a clinical medicine point of view.

Kumar and Clark's Clinical Medicine

Another book I already own. I regularly used this for PBL and have heard lots of good things from fellow medical students. It's a beast though, so I'm glad it comes with a digital copy. There is a new edition though which annoys me slightly.

Medical Sciences by Naish

I've been watching this book for a while. Something draws me too it. I'll def be checking it out of the library to have a nose.

Essentials of Rubin's Pathology

I don't remember when but I own the accompanying iPhone app for this book. I'm hoping that this will seriously help me during my pathology lectures.

Wheater's Functional Histology

This was my saviour in Histology. This book is amazing. It has some great detail and excellent photography. Not worth a purchase though. You'll use it for one module then never look at it again. I'll borrow it from Whitechapel like I did two years ago.

Human Molecular Genetics

Ah, one of the first books I ever bought for university. This was the recommend text for my Human Cell and Human Genetics modules in first year of Biomed. It's an okay book, but it really lacks the detail required for the third year of a Biomed course. I don't know how it will hold up for medicine with the field changing so rapidly.

I am excited by the release of the booklist, but I've learnt my lesson three years ago. Wait till you are there and know what books you need. In reality I will probably not buy any of these books that I don't already have. I'm watching a freshers facebook group and a few current students have said that these books are only recommended because the authors teach at Barts. I'm not surprised.

I will probably purchase the Oxford Handbook of Clinical Examination and Practical Skills (Oxford Medical Handbooks) and I already own the Classic Cheese and Onion book. I already own several anatomy books along with the range of books I've collected during my three years at QM. I even picked up a PBL based book the other day at my favourite bookshop.

A secondary debate is what format I buy these in. Almost all of them come in Kindle form so I could have them on my iPhone, iPad, Air and Kindle DX. But I still cling to paper, even though I want to go paperless (illogical, I know). I should make the change. It would force me to work paperless and it would significantly reduced the book load for my rucksack. Plus the kindle form is cheaper when compared to bought new. ~~It's even cheaper when other means are used.~~

A-Level Results Day 2013

noreply@blogger.com (Future Doc) — Thu, 15 Aug 2013 13:57:00 +0000

So today is A-Level Results Day. It's also the day that Barts told UCAS that I now hold an unconditional offer to study Medicine at Barts. This is the epitome of official. UCAS knows. Barts knows. Everyone I've ever spoken to knows.

Congratulations to everyone who got what they wanted today. It's a wonderful feeling to know that your hard work paid off!

Commiserations to anyone who missed out on an offer or didn't get the grades they'd like. It feels like the end of the world, but it really isn't. There is always another way and things are not as bad as they seem.

TOP TIP: Take a deep breath, hang out with your friends or go speak to your parents. Parents usually best in this situation. They know what this means to you, but they can also step back and give you a dose of realism.

I remember my results day. I need an A in Chemistry but fell short, getting a B. Full story can be found here and here. I ended up taking a gap year to look at my options. It wasn't realistic for me to retake any A-Levels, so I went on to study Biomedical Sciences at university before gaining a place at Medical School. It took four extra years but I'm there. I wouldn't recommend my route but if you are that determined, it shows anything is possible.

Congratulations again to all. I know how wonderful this day can be. I spent mine on the phone calling clearing hotlines before going to the pub.

My First Medical Student Timetable: FunMed

noreply@blogger.com (Future Doc) — Mon, 12 Aug 2013 16:34:00 +0000

UPDATE: If you want a review of my first year as a medical student at medical school, have a look HERE

So after the vague details I got a few weeks ago, I've been updated by a friend at Barts with a more detailed timetable for the first part of my degree, FunMed. FunMed is short for Fundamental Medicine and appears to be aimed at getting everyone to a level playing field. It's a ten week period right at the beginning of the course where you are bombarded with overviews of every part of medicine and expected to pass a two-part test (written and spotter) at the end. This is where I'll have my second opportunity to use the dissection labs at Queen Mary and was a key reason in choosing Barts as my medical school.

The detailed version of the FunMed timetable can be found HERE. It's a 10 page PDF and I've stripped out a lot of the details, specific to my medical school to avoid confusing people (and make sure I don't get into trouble for sharing). If you can't be bothered to look at that, then here's my week-by-week run down.

WEEK 0 aka FRESHERS
So Freshers. I'm excited because Freshers was a fun, blur filled time (I still have my t-shirt) when I started Biomed. A few induction lectures which I think will be boring as hell because after three years at Queen Mary, I feel like I know a bit. The key stuff will be things like contacts at the new student office etc. The most interesting lecture is the pre-hospital care program. This is the chance to be involved with Helicopter Emergency Medical Service (HEMS). I really want to do this as one of my Student Selected Components (SSC).

WEEK 1
Freshers is officially over. But I'm sure that the fun will continue. This week seems to be filled with a lot of "An introduction to..." lectures but I'm most excited about my first anatomy practical. Yes, I'm strange I know.

WEEK 2
Quite a bit of genetics this week. I'm not a fan of genetics but seeing as I've done it for three years now, I should be able to nail these intro lectures. There is my second PBL already. Also no, I don't know what Thursday is about.

WEEK 3
Week 3 and already got a test. On cells and tissues. Should be interesting. More genetics as well.

WEEK 4
More cell stuff. Nothing exciting to report.

WEEK 5
Moved on to pathology and cancer. Also started MedSoc Day 2. I'm not sure what this is but it takes up all of my Thursday.

WEEK 6
Another test. This week is immunology and drugs.

WEEK 7
Last anatomy practical. Also an briefing on the two part exam in Week 9. This is probably the point where if I haven't done any revision I start to freak out. But of course that's not going to happen. Right?
There is also a lecture on viruses by Professor Oxford. I interviewed Oxford for the paper two years ago and found him to be a delightful man. I'm excited that he's going to be teaching me as he's the foremost expert on the flu virus and is regularly interviewed by the BBC and SkyNews during a flu epidemic.

WEEK 8
Microbiology test this week. They sure do love their tests in Medicine. Starting to freak me out. Also a load of biochemistry. Shudder.

WEEK 9
At this point, I would have made it. PBL done. A few last minute lectures before the big FunMed test on Friday. This is a two part test: written and spotter. Written will either be MCQs or Single Best Answer and Extended Matching Questions. Medicine doesn't like too many essay or written based questions because there are so many tests that it can seriously slow down processing time.

Spotter is the exciting test. This is very similar to my anatomy practicals in first year of biomed. A cadaver will be labelled with several pins and I will be asked to identify structures or note the repercussions of damage to that labelled structure. I did very well in anatomy in first year, scoring repeatedly as top of the class for timed exercises such as complete the skull or put the spine back together.

NEXT: Cardiorespiratory
After 10 weeks of intense testing, I'll start two weeks of Cardiorespiratory lectures before breaking up for Christmas. I think I get two whole weeks which is better than I expected!

If you want to see the year overview for a first year at Barts CLICK HERE.

COMMENTS
Med school is busy. You seem to be in every day which is a change from biomed. A good change though. I always felt that biomed was wasting so much time every week. I'm glad that Wednesday afternoons are still protected for sports. It's also pretty cool that your whole year group is doing the same thing, so I can understand how a sense of community develops very quickly. You work together, you party together. Bring on September.

Moving house and other stuff

noreply@blogger.com (Future Doc) — Tue, 06 Aug 2013 20:51:00 +0000

So I have officially moved house. As I have mentioned before, this always fills me with fear. Yet I have struck gold. I found a private landlord who is organised, responsible and not going to screw me over. Me and two of my housemates have moved to Leyton to a house that is B-E-A-utiful.

I would post pictures but I don't want to get robbed, so take my word for it went I say it is a nice, adult house. It's got exposed floorboards, the walls are finished white and all the furniture is from IKEA. It is definitely a step-up from Mile End. I've already been invited to a street party, my new borough was just named Greenest borough of London and they have those brown recycling bins for food (we have them in Somerset but not Tower Hamlets). Also, funny story. I got locked out of the house on the second day and had to formally meet my new neighbours, soaking wet, asking them for a boost over the garden fence.

We rented a van for the day and we are all moved in. It's pretty expensive to move house (I'm late to this epiphany). All these little payments are required and soon you realised you've spent quite a bit. But it's almost September and that means two things:

I start medical school soon!!!!!!!
Holiday in Spain with the family!

I've finished all the paperwork required for medical school and I'm currently having a course of vaccination boosters. Subsequently I'm waiting for my UCAS to change to 'unconditional' and I think Barts Admissions Office are getting annoyed of my emails asking if it's going to change yet. I can't help it. I'm very excited. This is a dream that has taken several years to achieve (as followers of my blog will know) and I'm going to enjoy the moment. Although I should probably has more humility about it.

Finally, I went up to Bristol yesterday for lunch with my mum. We celebrated my 2:1, my new house and generally everything being sorted for September. I also paid a trip to my favourite bookstore in Bristol, an Oxfam Charity Shop. This shop has the best selection of second hand books. With Bristol Medical School so close, it has an eclectic selection of medical books. I always visit once every few months to grab some bargins. Previous purchases have included recommended books for my Anatomy, Haematology and Pathology modules. This time I found a few PBL workbooks (good as new) and a few general fiction books on my Amazon wish list. Plus it's all for charity so it's a double whammy.

P.S. I've got a few emails about how I'm funding my second undergraduate degree. That deserves a whole other post later this week.

Can I see some ID?

noreply@blogger.com (Future Doc) — Mon, 15 Jul 2013 16:01:00 +0000

2:1. It’s official. The confirmation email came through on Wednesday and my university cannot take my grade away from me now. With my degree sorted and my place at Barts and the London Medical School (pretty much) confirmed, it’s triggered a number of things for me to do.

First, with my result confirmed I know that I am staying in London so I need to house hunt. I hate house hunting. With a passion. It figuratively/literally fills me with dread. Renting a property has so many issues and finding a good landlord is like a needle in a London haystack. Plus one of my housemates is off to Colombia next week until September. This adds stress that I’m trying to ignore right now. I’m looking at Whitechapel and Stratford if anyone knows any good three beds (Do I sound desperate?).

Secondly, meeting the academic requirement is just part of the offer. I have to divulge my criminal and medical status so that I can get GMC approval and the medical school can make adjustments for any disabilities etc. What this means is I need to undergo a CRB check and show my vaccination history. Sound straightforward right? Wrong. Pre-empting my acceptance to Barts (risky I know), I gave my GP the vaccination form nearly three weeks ago to complete. She said it would be a simple job and done by the next day. Several phone calls later and a visit to Glastonbury festival, it was still not done. Finally after three weeks I get the phone call saying its ready. Turns out I’d only had the MMR jab and chicken pops so I’m not even sure what took so long. The plot thickens. Barts would like me to start a Hep B vaccination course. But living in a small town, means everything takes time. Apparently my town has run out of vaccinations this week and I should phone back next week for an appointment. I forgave them though because they gave me a lollypop. Seriously.

Moving on to the CRB check. Not only is it going to cost £50 (can someone confirm this right, I feel like I’m being ripped off), it requires me to show three forms of ID. I thought at first that it was some error. That they meant I had to show one of three forms of ID. Nope. Phoned up and checked. They need to see my birth certificate, passport and driving licence. Bit over the top in my opinion. I’m not even applying for a job, but I guess I’ll be working in a hospital/GP clinic from the get go so they need to check this stuff.

So it’s a bit of a busy time at the moment. Graduation is next Friday. I finally get to throw my mortar cap into the air. I cannot wait! My parents are going to come and stay the night. They’ve booked a hotel and we’ve got tickets for the Shard’s viewing platform. It’ll be a day to remember and it marks the start of an exciting new journey in my life.

Glastonbury '13

noreply@blogger.com (Future Doc) — Mon, 15 Jul 2013 15:58:00 +0000

Glastonbury is my favourite festival. This is the third time I’ve gone. It is the pinnacle festival and represents music (both undiscovered and cliche) to me. With the unbelievable headliners The Rolling Stones, I felt the excitement build in the weeks before hand. I live in a very small seaside town in the West Country so Glastonbury is a hop, skip and jump away from me.

This time I went to Glastonbury with three of my friends from university. We camped in Bushy Ground. It’s my favourite field and the best in my opinion. You’ve got a slope; you’re close to John Peel and the Dance Village (now renamed but I refuse to call it anything but the Dance Village); and some of the nicest toilets around.

I won’t bore you with a blow by blow account of who I saw but I will mention some highlights. Haim were the first act I saw on the pyramid stage, a justified decision. They had a brilliant stage presence even after their bassist had a diabetic attack. MS MR, a favourite band of mine, played on John Peel and gave an intimate set. Their vocals held strong and I’m glad that they can sing live. Lastly, Rolling Stones. I would never declare myself a super fan, or even a fan. For a pub quiz I could only name a handful of songs. Yet as they churned out the set list, I realised that the Rolling Stones are so systemic in British society that I’ve heard all the songs and most, enough to sing along. I was definitely there to say I had seen them. Judging by the size of the crowd, I wasn’t the only one. The atmosphere was electric. I was dancing around with strangers and chatting to long lost friends. This is Glastonbury. This is why I go. When I compare it to more commercial festivals (cough Reading), I can’t imagine going anywhere else now.

South West's largest twister board

I say I go for the music, but in reality its really food. It’s like a mecca for food options. I always have the hog roast. I always go to the place that gives free garlic bread with its pasta. Recently I’ve added ostrich burger to must eat. This year I discovered a Spanish tapas bar. For £7 you get a tray bigger than a baby loaded with my favourite Spanish foods: chorizo, potato bravos, chicken skewer, couscous, garlic mayo dip, salsa, olives, pasta with parmesan and grilled red peppers. Mouth watering? We walked past this place so many times that I started to have dreams about it before we finally passed at a mealtime. To top it off, I found a place open at 4am selling churros and chocolate. My Spanish day of food could only be topped by my evening spent in a Mexican day of the dead nightclub.

Glastonbury is amazing. If you haven’t been, you should.

Timetable of a med student

noreply@blogger.com (Future Doc) — Fri, 21 Jun 2013 18:40:00 +0000

UPDATE: A more detail post about my first medical student timetable can be found HERE.

So I'm starting to understand why medical students got annoyed when other university students complain about how busy they are. I've been sent a timetable for FunMed (fundamentals of medicine) which aims to make sure all the first years are on the same page. 9ams everyday. Solid days last till 5pm (or later if in dissection labs). Plus I've got two exams on everything learnt in FunMed. Intense.

This schedule makes my Biomedical degree look like a joke. The amount of free time I had was ridiculous! I can't wait to jump in and it's clearly a manageable timetable but I understand why medical students party hard.

My sister (who went to university this year) is coming home this weekend. Apparently she's bought me a few books on serving medical school. I can't wait to read them. I love those kinds of books. Really puts me in mind set.

It's actually happened. Here I come med school!

noreply@blogger.com (Future Doc) — Thu, 20 Jun 2013 20:59:00 +0000

Every post starts with an apology. I got a little busy and forgot about this blog….

…but it was worth it because I got in!!!!

I finished my exams in May, got my results back this week and I got a 2:1. I’m going to Barts and the Royal London Medical School in September.

At the moment I’m too excited. I’m not sure what to write. Let me know if you’ve got questions in the comments.

Question Spotting at University

noreply@blogger.com (Future Doc) — Mon, 09 Jul 2012 01:52:00 +0000

Question spotting is significantly frowned upon by university lecturers.

It means you've only learnt a small proportion of the course and are at risk of being tripped up in the exam.
Lectures are lazy and want to reuse questions but still be satisfied that you kind of learnt the course.

My department, SBCS, has a policy of releasing the past three years of exam papers. I know that at Barts, the policy is to release none, completely preventing exam spotting.

Three years is unfortunately or fortunately enough to spot patterns.

Rule 1 - If you are provided with practice or exemplar MCQs in high quantities, these will be used in the exam.

Rule 2 - If you are given a FAQ booklet about exams and they explain how to do calculations or answer particular questions, they will 99% come up in the exam.

Rule 3 - If you have essay portions like me, then try and find the common themes in the essays. Setting mark schemes for essays in long winded so lecturers will tend to pick four or five topics for essays, saving the rest for shorter questions.

Based on my results, using question spotting for some modules appears to have gained me a C. That means that less than a week's worth of revision for one module has allowed me to pass with a comfortable grade. I don't recommend it as it's a risk that tripped me up in one or two exams but it helped me cut out a lot of crap. I promise I won't do it in medicine (mainly because its impossible as they don't release past papers to stop this)

Summer

noreply@blogger.com (Future Doc) — Mon, 09 Jul 2012 01:47:00 +0000

Once again I start by apologises for leaving my blog alone for so long.

Exams are over. Results are in. I turned up to every exam and passed. I am currently on a 2:2 but waiting on the results of my extenuating circumstances from my appendix to bring my results up to a 2:1
I am back in Somerset for the moment, working in Wetherspoons. It's shit. I hate it. But its money. Which I seem to have spent.
I can't remember if I've mentioned this, but my Nan has oesophageal cancer. It is stage 4 and terminal. It has already led to several complications and she's getting weaker as the days go by. I expect her to go into the hospice within the fortnight :( To make things worse, my Grandad has been diagnosed with a kidney lesion. Apparently it has been caught early enough to be treated by microsurgery with no need for removal of the whole kidney. It appears cancer is in my genes because everyone of my Nan's ten brothers and sisters has died from a form of cancer. Now my Grandad has it, I'm sure I will get a form when I'm older.
I have been researching funding for Medicine. Looks like I can claim independence (from my parents) if I have a kid, get married, am financially independent or my parents die. I don't want a kid, my parents are still alive and kicking and I am not financially independent therefore, I need to get married if I want Student Finance to take my as an independent.
Housing is sorting for next year. Load off my mind. It's a three story house with a living room and a garden. YAYYYYYYYY. No risk of being mugged or gas leak. Plus the landlady is amazing!!!

I realise that this post is very 14 year old girl, with my emoticons and CAPS. Soz babes xxxxx :P

Second Year Exams

noreply@blogger.com (Future Doc) — Wed, 23 May 2012 23:08:00 +0000

So after fully recovering from appendicitis, I had less than a month till exams. I started off very worried but thanks to the motivation of an offer and to do better than 1st year, I am well on my way to getting that essential 2:1.

With four exams done, and four more to go, I am half way through and can't wait to be done. But in the weirdest way I am so glad that I am choose to do subjects that are examined. Many people claim to hate them and prefer coursework, but I love the thrill of opening an exam paper and knowing that you are going to destroy it!

That feeling happened today in my immunology exam. I have loved this subject since the module began and my notes were of such high quality that I was sharing them with class mates for revision (a first for everything I know). So when I opened the paper today, the MCQs were probably the biggest test. I sailed through the SAQs (at university and 33% of my paper was drawing pictures) and my essay was textbook. I feel like Pharmacology all over again (went very well thanks to question spotting).

I've had some housing drama today which has prevented me revising for my exam on Friday. I stress myself out about housing way too easily. But that's another story that I won't tell here.

Third year projects were also released today. I got my top choice. It's a science communication based project. It has zero lab time (yay!) and is all about writing (double yay!). As someone who has written for student media for two years, being asked to write two new scientist style articles doesn't worry me in the slightest. I'm aiming for a high first in this project and I think combined with PBL I should be able to do very well in my third year.

I wish I had more to write about medicine. In just over a years time I will be starting at Barts and the Royal London medical school. Till then, I'm a biomed who knows he should make use of his last year at Queen Mary (I know Barts is part of QM but when you join, you have to disown QM complete to be a BL medic)

My Interview at Barts

noreply@blogger.com (Future Doc) — Sat, 31 Mar 2012 15:33:00 +0000

When I first started applying for medicine, I heavily relied on TSR and blogs for advice and guidance. Subsequently I have always seen my blog as a learning tool for others following in my footsteps. Now that I have an offer I can share my interview. People can understand what I was asked and how I responded.

Before the interview I was asked to read this article and "hear my thoughts" on the issue.

14th February 2012
I arrive, register and am taken to the Common Room. I am then taken to the Old Library where I sit with a few of my fellow coursemates and some people I don't know. The Old Library is a big, spacious room and they have set up several booths to conduct the interviews. I can hear little snippets of each conversation i.e. "New Scientist", "What would you do...", "Passion".

Me and a friend talk with the medical student. All being 21 we are more confident than the 17/18 year olds next to us, waiting for their interviews.

I'm finally called and the interview knows exactly who I am. It was hard, two guys and the rest girls. I'm Caucasian and the other guy is Asian. If you knew my name, you'd make the same judgement as well.

She leads me to the very last booth in the room telling me about who she and the other interviewer are.

I sit down, announce "So this is it" and they both smile. We begin by discussing the process in which I am applying. Deferred entry for 2013. This moves onto my modules choices for third year of Biomed and I discuss the SBCS restructuring. One of my interviewes is a medical scientist and is very concerned about this. She is a lecturer on my third year module of Endocrine Physiology. We have a genuine conversation on it, before we realise that I'm here for a medicine interview.

We discuss the benefits of having a degree before medicine, and one of my interviewers thinks that all applicants should have a degree before hand because it matures you and makes you a better medicine applicant. I'm loving this interview already.

I am then asked about the article we were asked to read. I start by discussing the journalistic points of the article and then move onto the ethical reasons. I talk for a few minutes, running through my prepared answer and coming to a logical conclusion.

We then discuss a scenario about someone who is obese and would they remain the same weight after the operation. I am repeatedly pushed to defend my opinion at this point. I assumed it was a test to make sure I would stand my ground on the subject.

I am then asked "Why Barts?". I start with my mention of Hackey, Shoreditch and Bagels (all my friends laughed at this). I then move onto clinical reasons such as local prevalent diseases. They stop me at this, as if they have heard enough already and I wish I could have talked about PBL and dissection.

We move on to "What have I done to prepare for medicine?"

I discuss work experience, volunteering, working for DWP. This briefly leads them to review my personal statement and ask me how JD Wetherspoon could possibly be beneficial to Medicine. I explain about my A&E work experience. How I dealt with drunk people in both situations.

"Has anyone tried to put you off medicine?"

I discussed how I know medical students who have cried at exams. That the course was so intense they broke down. This was a difficult answer. I was criticised for this because if students can't deal with exams, how can they deal with being a doctor? I responded and defended my statement.

I also talked about other negatives I've viewed from my work experience and what I know.

"How would I deal with death as a doctor?"

I started off answering this about in terms of a medical student. I was stopped and they reasked the question. I then talked about empathy and professionalism and I knew I had hit the buzz words. Lots of nodding from one.

"Any questions?"

This surprised me. They said it had been "a good interview" and I was very pleased to hear that. I didn't know what to say. I couldn't believe it was over so quickly, so I just ended with "Barts has always been my first choice. Plus I'm in love with the library." They agreed. One of the interviewers wished she could enjoy bagels with no consequences. We all laughed, I shook hands and left.

After
Apart from one job at the student union, I have got every job I have interviewed for. I felt confident about this but at the same time I felt like I could have said so much more. I lived in nervous wait for over a month before I heard. I love the two woman that interviewed me and when I meet them again, I will thank them over and over!

Advice for Barts
Barts are so nice. It blew me away how nice they were. At the same time, I heard from friends that their interviews were not as nice as mine.

In my opinion, Barts made you feel comfortable but were not afraid to push you so that you would defend your opinion/answer. I felt on a few occasions that they were being conflicting, just to see how I would deal with the pressure, how I would respond to the attack on my view.

I can't fault Barts. They were lovely to me and I got an offer. Plus I'm probably known as 'Bagel Guy" in the admissions office.

Last teaching week of Year Two

noreply@blogger.com (Future Doc) — Sat, 31 Mar 2012 14:58:00 +0000

Listening to : Obsessions - Marina and The Diamonds

It's the end of term. I came back for a week but couldn't attend half the lectures because my recovery from my appendix is taking much longer than expected. But I'm ploughing through. I have four weeks till my first second year exam. SCARED.

I need to get a 2:1 (60%) this year. I have something to aim for. I have something that I have dreamt of for years. Yet I am filled with panic at the thought of the knowledge I must cover. I never learn. I'm always in this position.

But enough about that. I'll recap this week at uni. I came back and my flat was a mess. Now, I'm not a neat freak or anything but when all my plates have been used and left all over the place I was mad. I shouted at a guest who was staying (brother of a flatmate) and made him tidy it up.

Then I came to uni and met up with people. Out of the seven or eight that applied to medicine, two got rejected. One of my close friends was one of them. I feel horrible for her because, while I've been dignified about getting an offer, others haven't. Another friend who was rejected before interview has been quite nice about the whole thing. We had an end of term BBQ yesterday (SUNNY) and we had a good chat about what his plans were. It's nice that I can talk about it with people. Hopefully they don't see me as a twat now.

Also as we make the move to third year, we have to decide projects. Every conversation with course mates seems to cover the topic of projects.

"What you going to do?"
"Who've you spoken too?"
"What are you interested in?"

I hate labs. I think I've expressed that feeling a lot on this blog. So the idea of giving up my summer to work in a lab for two months is hideous. Almost none of the projects interest me. And the one that I wanted isn't being run this year because of the Olympics. Damm Olympics. Although it got my Hackney Weekend tickets so I shouldn't complain.

Yes, because I live in an olympic London Borough, I had access to exclusive Radio 1 Hackney Weekend tickets. I choose Saturday because Jay-Z, Two Door and Ed Sheeran are playing. Best £2.50 ever!

Anyway choices. I want the module worth 30 credits called Project Skills. It's lots of essays, mock journals and New Scientist style articles. With my experience in Student Union journalism, I think this module is for me. YET it's very competitive and they are using my grades from first year. If I don't get it, I have to do a basic lab module and an extra module.

I shall cross that bridge when I come to it because I HAVE AN OFFER FOR MEDICINE :D

Offer!

noreply@blogger.com (Future Doc) — Wed, 21 Mar 2012 14:09:00 +0000

That's right. I am currently holding an offer for Barts and The Royal London Medical School to study MBBS Medicine for 5 years.

SO EXCITED!!!!! AND NERVOUS!!! AND CRAZY!!

It hasn't really sunk in. I've waited for this day for a long time. And now it's here. All I'm doing is jumping up and down shouting.

It's conditional on me getting a 2:1. Which means I need to work. Now.
So back to my essay :(

Waiting

noreply@blogger.com (Future Doc) — Wed, 14 Mar 2012 16:29:00 +0000

You're waiting for a train.
A train that'll take you far away.
You know where you hope this train will take you.
But you can't know for sure.
Yet it doesn't matter.
Now, tell me why?
Because you'll be together!

One of my favourite movie quotes.

I'm still waiting. Post offer open day is next Wednesday. Very soon. I just want to know.