adeelmd
Forum Elite
Topics: 40
Posts: 401
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I just took this course (passcsa.com) on may 14 and it was great! the day started with a quick review of what's important for csa, plus answers to any questions. He quickly went over physical exam procedures; and showed us any specific "signs" we should know. I think he was best in explaining how to counsel patients, and how to write a good patient note. By far the most important part of this one-day course were the 8 cases you got. The sp's weren't excellent, but it went very far in exposing my own flaws and getting a grasp on what test day is really going to be like. Going in to the day, I was hoping to see 10 sps; but I was just dead tired by the 7th (the last patient was a blur). He personally observed me on one patient encounter and then had a 15 minute private discussion with me about my pluses and minuses.
This course should not be taken by someone who is just starting their preparation. It is a "refresher" course plus a mock exam that should be taken after you really feel ready for the test. Most of us are able to practice and get the entire encounter into 15 minutes... but to then write a patient note, and then go on to the next case one after another... is a totally different experience. The cases are very similair to uw or 1st aid cases and I hope are a fair assessment of the exam. Also, get plenty of sleep because the day is long (11:00 -8:00) with no breaks! (10 minutes for lunch, 5 minutes here and there). Anyway, for $500, it's a good way to know whether or not your are ready for the test.
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| elina
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Thank you for this great review. I know that you also took Swartz course, and I would like to ask you how you feel about combination of Swartz and passcsa. I guess taking both would be ideal, but if one needs to choose, which is better 3 days of Swartz OR 2 days of Swartz plus passcsa? You seem to have a good insight when it comes to these things :-) Thank you for your answer!
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| adeelmd
Forum Elite
Topics: 40
Posts: 401
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I think the combination is really ideal; and the courses compliment each other very well. I also think that if you do take the scwartz course, you really do need all three days to get the best from it.. The best way to look at it is that Schwartz are like the "kaplan lecture notes" and passcsa is like "kaplan qbank"... both will prepare you from a different perspective. If I were you I would try my best to get that third day of schwartz in...
If you have a lot of people (that are good patient-actors) that you can practice with then you should go for three days of schwartz, but if you don't have a good study partner to practice with then 2 days + 1 day is good.
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where i lay my head is home.
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| elina
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Thank you and best of luck for your exam!
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