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my cs exam experience at Philly center - sc683
#1
Hi all,

I took my exam end of June in Philly & passed. Just thought I would share my exam experience with all of you as I found it helpful reading about other ppl's exam experiences when I was preparing for my exam.

Study Prep Time: ~ 6 weeks

Materials Used: FA, UW & Neeraj Notes

I started off reading FA once on my own to get myself familiar with the cases. Then I read just the beginning of UW which I found really helpful...didn't really read the cases but did practice them. I practiced cases with ppl I met through this forum on skype mostly. We practiced in a group initially & would critique each other & give advice. One person would be the SP, another the doctor. We would time each case & give a 5 min warning.

I used the pneumonic OPDSFC PAM HUGS FOSS SODA DAW SSET, also used LIQOR AAA, ABCDO. Didnt really use any other pneumonics. Before each case, I would write OPDSFC PAM HUGS FOSS...etc down. I found this to be really helpful for me. I dunno how many times we went through the cases in FA & UW but we practiced alot. I was worried about my ICE cuz I hadn't taken CK yet while some of the others in the group had (ironically I ended up scoring highest in ICE) All of us used to make lots of mistakes in the beginning but the more we practiced, the more confident we became & the easier it got for us.

I also made a list of all the chief complaints & their differentials & memorized them & used them while I was practicing. This helped me alot in data gathering. Once u have a few differentials in mind, it makes it much easier to ask questions. Studying in a group helped me cuz each person would contribute something the others didn't know. We used to talk about what to do to do well in CIS & how to get points for it....also how to handle difficult situations/patients. What alot of ppl have said on this forum is true...u can sacrifice a little in DG (history + PE)...cuz u still have PN...if u do well on that, it makes up for DG to get points in CIS. I think I also practiced writing around 25 PN's following FA.

On the day of the exam, I felt like the day just flew. Before each case, I wrote down PAM HUGS FOSS etc & I also wrote down a few differentials (this should take < 1 min) which helped me in a few cases when I was able to look down at them & come up with questions to ask the SP. I smiled when introducing myself with each patient & tried to be as calm & relaxed as possible. Forgot to shake hands with most patients...I dunno how impt that is. I followed my pneumonic. I used to circle impt things on my sheet like any counseling I needed to do or anything I needed to particularly talk about in closure that I thought I might forget. I counseled right after the history for most of my cases so I wouldn't forget it at the end or incase I ran out of time. The first few cases I felt like all I was doing was general exam & heart & lungs for PE. I did sacrifice on the PE to leave more time for counseling & good closure. For example: I remembered that I had to do fundoscopy in patients with a PMH of diabetes/hypertension but I purposely skipped it cuz I felt it would take too much time. For neuro exam, I just picked one thing from each: motor, sensory, cerebellar etc I finished most of the cases with around 2-3 mins left.

I felt like I forgot some impt things & was worried whether I would pass or not. For example in one case I forgot counseling entirely, in another case I didn't do an abdominal exam when I should have. But if you are nice to the SP's, they will even help you a little even if you forget something. Two of my SP's smiled at end & one was kinda smiling during encounter...not sure what that meant at the time.

Before I took the exam, I was a little concerned cuz a few of my friends who lived close to Philly took their exams at Houston & Atlanta just to avoid taking it in Philly. They had heard things similar to what are often said on this forum about Philly. I took it in Philly anyway cuz it was the closest to me. I had no problems at Philly center. The SP's were cooperative, the proctors were extremely friendly as well.

To those that passed, congratulations!!! To those that failed or are struggling, u CAN do it...dont give up!! As others have said, this exam isn't about how much you know, its about the way you present yourself & if the sp is happy with you, you will pass!!

This forum helped me alot so I wanted to share my exam experience in the hope that my post might help someone in the same way....everyone's doing a great job with their posts. Good luck to everyone who will be taking their CS.
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#2
Congrats for the success...
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#3

thanks gaurav....congrats to you too.
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