Post by Admin on May 2, 2014 2:55:37 GMT -5
My exam was in the first week of last December in Philadelphia, and alhumdilah, i passed
This group helped me alot, during my preparation, so I wanted to share my little experience
I studied for about 20 days, only used First Aid, watched videos form both cse videos and USW, and from youtube
I wanted to practice cases over skype, but could not find anyone with similar schedule
I have included the notes i used for history taking, hope it helps
www.mediafire.com/?1u95k6knb8nspsa
or
(just replace * with 4)
Also the notes by Dr Marwa Badr is very useful "including cases not in FA", and for patient notes (best), i printed each case in these notes. Dr Marwa have made an excellent effort in these notes, she combined notes from FA, neerag,
UW and wrote a single note, i have checked most of cases notes myself, so do not waste your time, like i did, and use these notes "many thanks DR Marwa:) "
1- Practice your entrance more than a hundred times ( i used to think that this a silly advice, but in the exam u are nervous, so its better to memorize the few lines of your entrance)
2- Try to practice loudly, even if u are alone ( helps your accent)
3- At least practice few times in live, if u can not find anyone, use a puppet or a pillow for physical examination (i did that), it really helps
4- In FA cases, only highlight new symptoms or questions in each case, so that in the final days, u only read those lines
5- Use a single fixed scheme for all cases (very important), and only add the highlighted symptoms for each case
6- You will not have time to ask and do everything in the exam (i did not believe that bef exam, but its true), for example, i wanted to do ophthalmoscopic examination in 3 cases, but did not have time. But i always did all system exam (only parts), GE ---> sclera and pulses, Heart and chest ---> only auscultation. Abd, neuro and joint exam when needed. Full examination only when relevant.
7- Master neuro exam very well, i needed it in 4 cases
8- When purchasing your airline tickets, take a tour at travel agencies in tahrir square, u will find wide price differences ( i recommend aphrodite or travco)
9- try to be in US before exam, as early as u can, to adjust your sleep hours, and for final days revision. I was in US 5 days bef exam, but now i wish i went more early. The day of flight and the next day, u will not be able to study at all
10- I was advised to go to test center 2 days bef exam, but this turned to be a waste of time. Test center location is very clear, u will never get lost, even if its your first visit.
11- All centers are the same, i have heard this advice many times, from egyptian and US friends, but did not believe it. Turned out to be true, so do not lose your self confidence before exam like i did. In the last days before exam, i regretted choosing Philadelphia center, esp in exam day, me and another german doctor were the only FMG, but alhumdilah i passed
12- AS regards SPs they were friendly and professional
13- Do not bring lunch or drinks, its provided there
14- Always keep extra copies of your electronic ticket, i lost one copy at Heathrow's airport
15- I wrote all headings of history items and examination before entering, and this saved me a lot of time during the encounter. I always was the last to enter, this made me very nervous and less confident, but turned to be a good strategy, as after entering the room, i did not loose any time remembering what to do
16- For physical examination, i practiced it on a puppet hundreds of time, so i was like a robot when doing it ( this is very important to be very efficient when doing PE)
17- Closure and counseling is vital in exam (i did it in all my cases), once u hear 5 min announcement, u should be finishing your exam, because after closure and counseling, the SP will always have a question for u, and u need to answer it thoroughly
18- You always read that u should speak in a loud voice, but i could not do that, my voice tune is a quiet one, i used to hear other candidates voice in my room
, but this turned to be not necessary, just be yourself, just like your usual clinic practice, be friendly and honest with SPs and they will respect that
19- During your flight, keep an analgesic within your reach, esp outgoing flight, its a long duration
20- When choosing your hotel, do not restrict yourself to nearest one to test center, taxi is not that expensive (about 20 USD), choose the one with the best package
21- Another thing that bothered me during and after the exam, in few cases, i only wrote 2 or 3 DD, now i think its ok
22- Last one, is the advice that i have heard many times, as u will too, do not think about the exam when u are done, after the exam, i was 100% sure that i will not pass, but alhumdilah, i passed with high ratings
Again, thanks for your help, and my best wishes to all who are planing to take the exam
This group helped me alot, during my preparation, so I wanted to share my little experience
I studied for about 20 days, only used First Aid, watched videos form both cse videos and USW, and from youtube
I wanted to practice cases over skype, but could not find anyone with similar schedule
I have included the notes i used for history taking, hope it helps
www.mediafire.com/?1u95k6knb8nspsa
or
(just replace * with 4)
Also the notes by Dr Marwa Badr is very useful "including cases not in FA", and for patient notes (best), i printed each case in these notes. Dr Marwa have made an excellent effort in these notes, she combined notes from FA, neerag,
UW and wrote a single note, i have checked most of cases notes myself, so do not waste your time, like i did, and use these notes "many thanks DR Marwa:) "
1- Practice your entrance more than a hundred times ( i used to think that this a silly advice, but in the exam u are nervous, so its better to memorize the few lines of your entrance)
2- Try to practice loudly, even if u are alone ( helps your accent)
3- At least practice few times in live, if u can not find anyone, use a puppet or a pillow for physical examination (i did that), it really helps
4- In FA cases, only highlight new symptoms or questions in each case, so that in the final days, u only read those lines
5- Use a single fixed scheme for all cases (very important), and only add the highlighted symptoms for each case
6- You will not have time to ask and do everything in the exam (i did not believe that bef exam, but its true), for example, i wanted to do ophthalmoscopic examination in 3 cases, but did not have time. But i always did all system exam (only parts), GE ---> sclera and pulses, Heart and chest ---> only auscultation. Abd, neuro and joint exam when needed. Full examination only when relevant.
7- Master neuro exam very well, i needed it in 4 cases
8- When purchasing your airline tickets, take a tour at travel agencies in tahrir square, u will find wide price differences ( i recommend aphrodite or travco)
9- try to be in US before exam, as early as u can, to adjust your sleep hours, and for final days revision. I was in US 5 days bef exam, but now i wish i went more early. The day of flight and the next day, u will not be able to study at all
10- I was advised to go to test center 2 days bef exam, but this turned to be a waste of time. Test center location is very clear, u will never get lost, even if its your first visit.
11- All centers are the same, i have heard this advice many times, from egyptian and US friends, but did not believe it. Turned out to be true, so do not lose your self confidence before exam like i did. In the last days before exam, i regretted choosing Philadelphia center, esp in exam day, me and another german doctor were the only FMG, but alhumdilah i passed
12- AS regards SPs they were friendly and professional
13- Do not bring lunch or drinks, its provided there
14- Always keep extra copies of your electronic ticket, i lost one copy at Heathrow's airport
15- I wrote all headings of history items and examination before entering, and this saved me a lot of time during the encounter. I always was the last to enter, this made me very nervous and less confident, but turned to be a good strategy, as after entering the room, i did not loose any time remembering what to do
16- For physical examination, i practiced it on a puppet hundreds of time, so i was like a robot when doing it ( this is very important to be very efficient when doing PE)
17- Closure and counseling is vital in exam (i did it in all my cases), once u hear 5 min announcement, u should be finishing your exam, because after closure and counseling, the SP will always have a question for u, and u need to answer it thoroughly
18- You always read that u should speak in a loud voice, but i could not do that, my voice tune is a quiet one, i used to hear other candidates voice in my room
, but this turned to be not necessary, just be yourself, just like your usual clinic practice, be friendly and honest with SPs and they will respect that19- During your flight, keep an analgesic within your reach, esp outgoing flight, its a long duration
20- When choosing your hotel, do not restrict yourself to nearest one to test center, taxi is not that expensive (about 20 USD), choose the one with the best package
21- Another thing that bothered me during and after the exam, in few cases, i only wrote 2 or 3 DD, now i think its ok
22- Last one, is the advice that i have heard many times, as u will too, do not think about the exam when u are done, after the exam, i was 100% sure that i will not pass, but alhumdilah, i passed with high ratings
Again, thanks for your help, and my best wishes to all who are planing to take the exam