Archive for 'Tips & Advice' Category
How to Avoid the Survivalist Mindset Throughout Medical School
when you go through life thinking “if I can make it through this, things will be better later,” you eventually forget what “better” means. the despair that accompanies the perpetual postponement of an enjoyable life has a way of making its presence known. I spent the last decade researching and writing books about students who [...]
Coping with Failure as a Medical Student
It is part of our profession that we will never stop trying to be perfect and – just as true – that we will always fall short. As a student, it tends to be about the tests you are taking and the feeling that you will never study enough. As a resident, it’s the feeling [...]
Lost Cell Phone – Tips for Surviving the Deprivation
Hack College offers useful pointers for getting by without your mobile device. Use Google Voice. having a Google Voice number can save your life – link your phone calls to your roommates’ or friends’ number temporarily and use the internet to text your friends. Not to mention the online contact database. Find a temporary phone. [...]
How to be a Good Medical Student
An excerpt from Kendra Campbell’s 8 pointer’s for first-year residents – equally applicable to medical students… 1. Show up early, stay late. 2. Know as much as possible about your patients. 3. Be BFFs with the nurses. 4. Do things without having to be asked. Figure out what needs to be done, and do it [...]
Peer Evaluation – How to Compliment Fellow Medical Students and Residents
Chris Birk… 1. Be Specific Detail is …the heart of a great compliment. Hone in on a specific achievement or aspect and focus your words on that. A vague, generalized comment that can be recycled throughout the day …lacks real meaning because of its cookie-cutter nature. Specific compliments have lasting power. So do those that [...]
How to Succeed in Medical School – Advice for all 4 years
Dr. Lisabetta Divita @ SDN… MS-1 and MS-2 How will you know what could be asked on an exam? Obtaining exams from previous years is perhaps the most important investment you could make. Get copies of previous exams. Old exams give you the best idea of the style and scope of questions that will be [...]
Clinical Years – Acting the Part
Eric Tam @ Medscape… “Medicine is showbiz” Terrible as it sounds, there is some truth in it. The point my professor was trying to make was: It is not enough to be nice. It is more important to act nice. It is easy to ignore or act briskly with a patient when ten tasks await [...]
How to Choose the Best Mentor During Medical School
For those on the hunt for mentorship, take a look at mudphudder for pointers… good mentorship is key to kicking off a successful career… finding a supportive mentor is all about asking the right questions of both the prospective mentor as well as the mentor’s trainees. As you are going through the process, think about [...]
Practical Advice for the First Year of Medical School
Alex Folkl offers his advice for first year medical students… Lesson 1: Medical school is hard, but not in the way you would expect What’s hard is the volume: There is so much material that it’s oftentimes difficult to determine what warrants another pass and what can safely be left for another day. Lesson 3: [...]
5 Ways to Pursue Medical Education After Graduation
By Arthur Czuma at TheHeart.org: Medicine is a field that’s constantly updated with new discoveries and revisions of best practices. It’s critical for physicians to stay abreast of new medical technologies and current trends in the field of medicine and science. There are several ways medical doctors can educate themselves once their residency or fellowship [...]