CYCLING THE TOPIC: THE LAST MINUTE.COM REDEFINED!

Residents often ask me "Dr Rishi, what should we do in our last two weeks before the exam- I'm confused about what to do."

I often refer to this as the critical period - the so-called "make or break" where you can bolster up your grade from a borderline fail to good pass or potentially self sabotage yourself catastrophically particularly at this point when you feel in limbo- waiting for the exam to come and close to burnout but terrified about taking any break in case you lose momentum.

The key for me is keeping it simple- consolidate, consolidate, consolidate!

I always believe that at this late stage, particularly in a VIVA or clinical examination, it is important not to try and cram lots of minutae of information but instead - focus on overview, the bigger picture and consolidate - the so-called "what we have we hold" policy. Remember it is better to know 75% of the information really well so you can recall it, understand and apply it using higher order thinking than cramming 95% of the syllabus in a haphazard manner and cramming late facts which push important information out of your head.

Another thing I tell my students is to really utilise your time well- you can cover alot more in your study groups or individually by not working through a full 5 minute VIVA station for each topic. It is clear that at this stage you know how to talk for 5 minutes but it is all about crystallising those key points and buzz words or 'triggers' and just spending a quick 30 seconds to a minute running through the main points of the topic.

For example- instead of learning the detail of a subtrochanteric fracture- my buzz words or triggers would be " subtrochanteric fracture, pathological until proven otherwise, bisphosphonates or cancer, exclude pathology and cepahlomedullary nail."

I refer to this technique of running through a topic in 30 seconds as 'cycling the topic'. In this way by utilising this technique I was able to run through 20 questions in a subject area in less than an hour.

In fact- as a treat in my last week- I would take a walk to get a pizza (apart from the unhealthy eating, a good walk is great for the brain to get the oxygen flowing!) and on the way I would set myself a target of covering the whole of hands or 'cycling the topic'. In this way I would kill two birds with one stone- cover a large amount of information quickly, get a break and some fresh air and have a really rewarding cheat meal!

I was able to stay fresh, focused and created this technique of 'cycling the topic' to help me in the last week before my exam. I would thoroughly recommend it to my students- don't panic and cram, stay calm and cycle the topic and stay fresh!

For more of these techniques, check out the Tips and Tricks Course on www.letstalkdr.com.