Gina
Forum Junior
Topics: 9
Posts: 50
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Hi, everybody..
I took the exam on FRiday, it wasn't as hard as I thought It will be, the must difficult thing to deal with is TIME!!!!.
Any way I did my best, I hope everything goes OK.
For anyone preparing for this exam...take your time with Internal Medicine. Be aware every exam is different.
I will post the result, which I hope is good.
BEST of luck to every one.
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| RoC
Forum Junior
Topics: 5
Posts: 48
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Gina:
I'm sure you will have a good result in your test. Thanks for share your experience with us...What books did you use in your preparation?
Again, thak you and my best wishes. 
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| Gina
Forum Junior
Topics: 9
Posts: 50
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I read all Kaplan lecture notes.
Crush the Boards, plus I added my own notes completing things that I consider important. I read this book 3 times.
Kaplan Q-bank
Kaplan Q book
NMS 2nd Edition.
Mosbys Medical Dictionary, It has pictures...and you can search for any syndrome , it is breafly detailed, any word..or even some pathologies, I think that any IMG must have this Dictionary. I come from South America, so I couldn't bring all my Medical Books .
Best of luck!
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| RoC
Forum Junior
Topics: 5
Posts: 48
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thank you so much Gina. where are you from?
I'm from Mexico and i been in US for one year, again thanks.
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| Gina
Forum Junior
Topics: 9
Posts: 50
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Ecuatoriana.
I've been 3 years, working full time in a Hospital and studing on my own.
Last year i passed step 1, very difficult, not a great score .
I wish you the best, by the way a follow what the american students who rotate here for surgery tell me to read.
Once more , GOOD LUCK!
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| FAT_GOITER
Forum Senior
Topics: 18
Posts: 110
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Gina,
Have you ever discussed your chances of getting a residency with your own hospital? You have a US hosp. expereince but not as a doc...correct?
Are they asking you to spend an year or so as an observer/researcher etc or they intend to take you as you pass the exams since you are alredy employed with them?
One more question. How much Crush the Boards cover the exam? There are certain things which are given very briefly for example Leukemias/Lymphomas/Platelet disorders etc. I wonder are they really not important for the exam?
If some body has reviewed only from Crush the Boards , how much chances he/she has for passing the exam?
I have expanded my material so much that I rememer nothing but general points and I am so frustated and planning to take the exam afer crush the boards reviewing one or 2 times. Will you suggest that?
Thank you very much Gina for your help
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| Gina
Forum Junior
Topics: 9
Posts: 50
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Hi.
Crush the boards covers all the topics tested, BUT as you say ONLY BRIEFLY, so thats why you have to do your own notes on things you consider important.
IM is the base for a good exam.
About the hospital I work, the bad thing is that they only have residency in IM, Family Practice, surgery and Ortho, but not PEDS, which is what I want, but you Know the GOOD thing everybody tells me is that Im on the field , I work as First Assitant in Surgery.
Well..I have to go now. I wish everybody the best.
REMEMBER EVERYBODY IS TESTED DIFFERENTLY.
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| RoC
Forum Junior
Topics: 5
Posts: 48
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Gina: muchas gracias por tus respuestas, tengo otra pregunta
Como es que conseguiste esa posicion en un hospital? Yo soy anestesiologa, hice la residencia en Mexico y trabaje como tal por 8 anos, sin embargo parece que eso no me ayuda en este pais. Muchas gracias y tambien mis mejores deseos. Disculpa que escriba en espanol, esque extrano mi idioma... :wink:
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| Gina
Forum Junior
Topics: 9
Posts: 50
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Hi RoC.
Hi Give me your email so I can write to you .
When I came here I starded working as a Medical Assit with no certification for some spanish pediatrcians, there I met some peolpe on my same conditions..I apply for a certification as a med Assit, just by using your diploma and your medical backgound, with this I started giving my resumes at different hospitals like flyers. Hopefully for my luck and "i think a little push from heaven", a Bulgarian doctor who had my position got a residency in GYN_OBSt, so the hospital was in an urgency for a surgical assit for general surgery so I interviewed and 4 months later they called me.
I think that you just have to look and look, you will never know when you can have a good opportunity.
BUt you know what it really helped me , to have a licence or certificate of something in medicine, in my case that Medicall assistant certificate.
I wish you the best.
Yo te escribo pronto, juntas nos podemos ayudar.
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| FAT_GOITER
Forum Senior
Topics: 18
Posts: 110
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Thanks for your reply Gina.
Right before taking your exam, what percentage of questions in Kaplan Q Book and NMS you were doing right?
Thanks again
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| Gina
Forum Junior
Topics: 9
Posts: 50
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Q-Book IM 70-80%
Gyn OBst 80%
Peds 70%
Sur 70%
Psy 80%
NMS 65-75%
Something like that!
When I did the practicing test on the USMLE disk 82%.
It is very important two understand two things for a good score:
1. Know the material from what ever source you like and stick with it!.
2. Practice the exam, do LOTS of QUESTIONS thats the KEY for success .At least 3000 Q.
P.D: Learn to deal with time, test your selfs reading the question, undertanding it and answering in 72 seconds or less than that.
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| nyc
Forum Newbie
Topics: 1
Posts: 11
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hey gina.
i recently took step 2 and got a 72.
that was mid-feb. got my results in midmarch.
i got quite a few questions like the one you were talking about -like they ask you the mechanism of disease instead of asking you the diagnosis. i was a bit thrown off by that but i thought i put down pretty good guesses. i did kaplan qbank and qbook and they didn't really have any questions like that.
i was wondering if you think i'll have a problem with those kind of questions if i haven't studied for step 1 yet. (i'm a IMG).
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| nyc
Forum Newbie
Topics: 1
Posts: 11
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this is open to ANYBODY...
one more question. how thoroughly do i have to go over the explanations on kaplan qbank. shud i take notes on all of them or just the ones that i go t wrong.
after doing many questions, i found myself spending ALOT OF TIME WRITING DOWN ADDITIONAL NOTES INTO MY KAPLAN NOTES FOR MED, PEDS, ETC. IT'S JUST THAT A LOT OF STUFF ISN'T IN THE NOTES.
sorry for all the questions but i'm getting nervous since i have only about 3 weeks left til i take it again. i don't know if i am rushing myself so that i can also take step 1 and csa/step CS in time for the match deadline and stuff.
:roll:
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| Dr_kholioo
Forum Junior
Topics: 9
Posts: 74
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thank u gine soo much
___________________
“We all have great inner power. The power is self-faith. There's really an attitude to winning. You have to see yourself winning before you win. And you have to be hungry. You have to want to conquer.” Arnold Schwarzenegger
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| Gina
Forum Junior
Topics: 9
Posts: 50
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Hi Ninja
I heard a lot of things, peolpe who took step 2 first passed or viceverse, in my case I think it helped me, but remember I haven't got my score yet..so I dont Know.
Do lots of Q and try to understand VERY well their explanation, use other books if you have to, I completed with and IM textbook, things that were really hard for me.
GOOD LUCK NINJA!
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| lucky
Forum Guru
Topics: 23
Posts: 505
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hello ninja,'
i'm having the same problem. Don't know whether kaplan is enough or not!
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| Gina
Forum Junior
Topics: 9
Posts: 50
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HI Im GINA!!!
Today I found out I PASSED my exam through OASIS...
For everybody..when doing QA rewiew the right and wrong answers..and UNDERSTAND THEM very well.
Good luck
Now Im' getting ready for CSE.
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| Maggie
Forum Newbie
Topics: 0
Posts: 5
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Congratulations Gina!!!
Thanx for all the infos.
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| FAT_GOITER
Forum Senior
Topics: 18
Posts: 110
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Can you please post your score?
thanks
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| Gina
Forum Junior
Topics: 9
Posts: 50
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204 which gave me 83, is not a great score!
Good luck to all of you.
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| FAT_GOITER
Forum Senior
Topics: 18
Posts: 110
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Thanks for your reply Gina. Congratulations on passing and scoring very decent.
I took your advice on focusing hard on "Crush Boards", after reading your initial comments. My exam is on Friday..lets see how it goes.
I know this is not CS form but it would be great if you could share what you are doing abt it and how lenthy the material looks like?
thanks and good luck
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| ampicillin
Forum Newbie
Topics: 4
Posts: 32
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good luck fat goiter. make sure you post on your exam day afterwards what you thought , what u did to prepare and how prepared you felt. Thanks much
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