A Christmas Miracle!

I got the best news ever yesterday from Facebook- of all places-. . . . WE HAVE LOANS!!!!

I began my journey with UMHS in 2010 and they had student loans available at that time. In my first semester of ARP Citibank canceled their contract with UMHS in light of the student loan situation in the states. I was devastated. I ask my (at that time) husband and he suggested I continue- he could help to support me with tuition and living expenses and I could work a masters degree to fill in the gaps.

We divorced. The gap became larger. The task of paying tuition was monstrous. I was devastated, but committed.

Many of our students went seeking other schools that had loans. I stayed. I had faith. I had spoken on numerous occasions with Mr. Ross and his family and they were all very reassuring that we would get loans again. They were very helpful and I believed that Mr. Ross would work tirelessly until he came through for us- the students.

Three years later, I had not given up hope. I have been at home with my children, and a new baby for the last year. I have been studying for the Step 1, but mostly I just had not felt the timing was right to take it.

Just recently I began feeling that I had to take the step by the end of December. I just knew that this was it. I have scheduled my test date - again!- but this one I am feeling much more optimistic about. I know that this is the date that I have been given to write my exam and I am so excited that the news of student loan availability came only two weeks after sending my notice to UMHS that I had an exam date scheduled.

Once I get my test results back I can immediately begin my rotations. Money is no longer an issue! I am screaming hallelujah. A huge prayer has been answered, not just for myself but for so many UMHS students and future students.

Do I recommend UMHS?  A resounding HECK YEAH! Would I have recommended them even without loans, yes indeed.

I have so much respect for the Ross family and for what they have been able to accomplish. I am honored and blessed to have been chosen by them for my medical education. I have never regretted a moment of caribbean medical school. I have never regretted not applying to US medical schools. I highly recommend UMHS. I have nothing but wonderful things to say about UMHS.

Missing my island friends quite a lot. Hugs to the bookstore women- and the library ladies- I miss you all tons and I wish I were there to hug you and jump up and down and celebrate with you.

All the best,
Amy Jones

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USMLE STUDY UPDATE

Ok, so a while back I said that I would be taking the Step 1 in December. I am now studying for a January test date. I reserve the right to change that based on my NBME practice exams that I am taking at the testing center. I am using a study schedule made out by Topher for my last six weeks of study. His blog is fantastic! I know the exam has changed a little since he took it, but the concepts are the same and most of the material is the same. Plus, it is a huge encouragement when I know that he made a 240/99.

My study materials, Goljan audio coupled with a little rapid review, First Aid Organ Systems, Kaplan for each subject (provided as part of my tuition) and the Qbank. Uworld Qbank. First Aid.

I took two months off between finishing my fifth semester and beginning my serious studying. I began reviewing all of biochem, slowly. I made my own notes and drew out pathways. I then went to Immuno, and then I kind of got off track and started bouncing around. I have come back together and I am studying all of cardiovascular including blood disorders, and continuing with the schedule that I mentioned above. I am also using my Kaplan Qbank to help guide me to where I need more review as well as my Uworld assessment. I have been annotating my first aid with everything. I plan to try to write out the notes that I need to review eliminating the stuff that I know I know. Maybe Ill just mark through them in the first aid so that I have a visual of my progress.

My biggest "aha" moments have been understanding material that seemed so foreign in my Medical classes. For instance, I had a terrible time learning cell signaling ("This is important, you better know this"). I didn't understand Gq, Gs, or corticosteroids vs hemorrhoids. Just kidding. But you get the point. It was incredibly difficult for me to understand. Now I completely, well almost, understand and I can tell you which drugs use which receptors and the cell signaling mechanism.

Another area when I thought I would never understand the material was ANS. I thought I would die before I ever understood it completely. I get it! (mostly).

There are many other areas where I can tell you that during the classes I struggled to make sense of it, and now it just all comes together and makes so much sense.

My advice is to take it slow (as slow as is possible in four weeks) and learn it well. You may not feel like you know it, but trust yourself. Do the end of chapter questions and review the material if you don't understand it. The best way to learn is to get questions wrong. Prepare well for your exams on the island, and you are preparing well for the Step 1. I haven't seen anything in the text books that wasn't covered at some point in my time on the island.

Others suggest making a schedule and sticking to it. I am trying, but it is very hard to study all day everyday. I am away from my family with another family who is a great support. They make dinner every night and I make my own breakfast. They do the dishes and clean the house, and buy the groceries-pretty much everything. I cannot emphasize enough that that it is exactly what you need. It is imperative to have your mind clear for studying.

I am cutting it short, but I hope you can glean a little information from this short entry.

Until next time,
Amy

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How to Enjoy maine from an upperclassman.

To all of my fellow classmates and underclassmen: 

Enjoy Maine!!!!

I hope that you can look back on your time in medical school with fond memories, as I know I will.

Remember to see everything you can while you are here. I know that the weather may not be great but Portland is a fantastic place. 

For those of you who are coming next semester there are many places to ski.

There is an outdoor ice skating rink at one of the local recreation centers. I think the one in Yarmouth. 

The nightlife is eclectic and artsy. Go to Matthew's- tell Mike and the bartenders, "Amy Jones the med student sent you in to say, 'hello'". 

Go to Oasis, check out the life size beer pong, jenga, and connect four. They usually have great entertainment. Upstairs is a dance club with a Dj, and outside (in the summer) is live music.

Amigo's. They have pool (billiards) and real Mainers go there. It is the place where real men with beards hang out. Most of the women have tattoos and piercings. Just throw on some jeans and throw back a beer. 

There are a multitude of other little pubs and clubs and bars. Most have their own feel and regulars. I enjoyed hanging out in the old port with buds after a long day of studying "a million and one diseases that will make you feel bad when you get old".

Have a PBR (Papst Blue Ribbon)- PBR is to Maine as Carib is to St. Kitts. 

Never wear high heels to the Old Port.

Go to Reggae fest after breakfast. Reggae fest is on Peaks island in the summer on sundays. It is awesome! Trust me. You will love it. 

Try to spend less time at the Maine Mall than I did. 

Macaroni Grille has half priced bottles of wine on Thursdays. 

If you get the chance to eat at Four Street - the restaurant- it is the best food you will eat in your life. 

Also, check out East End cupcakes and Duckfat. 

There is an Imax 3D theater less than 30 minutes from portland. 

There is also a water park if you are here in the summer. 

Get a tour-guide book of maine and it's attractions. There are tons of lighthouses and some pretty spectacular sights to see up the coast, if the weather is nice enough. Great photo ops.

There is a Whole Foods, Trader Joe's, Hannafords, and Shaw's for groceries. Most of the time you can find a Hannafords and Shaws. The Hannafords is located across the street from where you have class. That was a no brainer for me. 

Transportation by bus is possible but would be a pain. Bring a car or rent from Hertz. Some have found pretty good deals if you buy your plane ticket through something like priceline.com they usually have a rental car deal.

Some people live in Old Orchard and I think they love it. I prefer to be closer to the city and classes. 

I think this about sums up what I can think of right now. I hope that I haven't created a post like this one before. In preparation for my board exam, I have returned to Maine, and I was reminded of all of the great places I went when I was here before. Studying this time is different and I haven't even been to one of the places I mentioned. With my estimated test date at the end of December, I really have put off all things for another time. I have one more blogpost to write and then I probably won't write for a while. I hope you will join me again, when I post about my first USMLE board exam experience. 

Thanks for continuing to read my blog. I wish each of you all the best. 

Until next time, 

Amy 

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Quick Update

A quick update-

All apologies for not updating you all sooner. I am sure you all were wondering if I passed the exit.  It is challenging to come from studying for two years and then study harder ( trust me it is much more intense than studying for that final block exam or even more intense than studying the first block exam in Med 1.) than you have ever before.

I have been asked multiple times for advice about the exit. Here is my advice. Refer back to this post for my thoughts on advice. Take away what you want.

• I went to all of the ICM classes. 

• These are really good for helping to make the information that we learn on the island tangible. The information becomes a little more 'real', if you will. So some of the cases, especially the one where I didn't get the correct diagnosis has burned primary adrenal insufficiency into my head. I didn't really understand it completely before my virtual clinic case. 

• I went to all of the ICM lectures and small groups. 

• These are great for learning the labs. I never knew enough about labs, and it is more memorization than concept in some cases. Each small group discussion will be different, but for me it was fantastic to have that interaction. I used that information for my virtual clinic patients. I tried to ask myself "what labs should I order to confirm my diagnosis?" and "what would I expect the results to be?". These lab values can be very helpful when studying pathologies that have minute differences where the lab values can be a very quick way to differentiate between two different diseases.

• I went to grand rounds.

• Lets face it, no one really wants to go. Sometimes the discussions are interesting and useful. It is also good practice for the future. As a physician we should continue to learn and be well educated in medicine and health care. The best way is to read studies and keep up with research. That is basically what grand rounds help to do for physicians, residents, and medical students. 

• I enjoyed virtual clinic.
 

• Virtual clinic is the place where you get to practice doing what most of you will probably be doing for the rest of your life. Obviously there are branches of medicine where you may not see your patient alive or in person-pathologist and radiologist-are the two that come to mind. I used that time as a time to understand how all of the systems work together which gives me a fuller understanding of the process of disease. Also, writing the SOAP notes helps to show illustrate where some improvement could be made. Getting first hand feedback from a physician was priceless for me. In most cases it was confirmation that I was created to be a physician. 

• I tried each Kaplan professor and attended the classes that I felt would be most beneficial to me.

• I decided to take control of my life and make a choice. I went to most of the Kaplan classes, but there were a few where after I attended the first lecture I knew that I could read the book myself in shorter time. I made a decision based on what my midterm score said I needed to study and based on the amount of time I had left. I don't regret my decision. I am not suggesting you do this. Many of kaplan instructors will help you decipher which information is tested every exam. That is a good way to make sure you know the basics and the most important facts. I have began my intense board exam study now, and I make sure to highlight those and at the very least have a list of "I know that if I get a question on this subject matter I will get it right". 

• I studied my weakest subject the most and for every organ system. 

• Phsyiology. It was my weakest subject area, so in the beginning when we did organ systems, I read my physiology BRS for each organ system as we covered it in ICM. I tried to link physio with every other subject during Kaplan. For example: in biochem we discuss metabolism which deals with hormones and control of metabolism. I reviewed the endocrine physiology behind the secretion of these hormones. I believe that made a huge difference. 

• The night before my final exam I read up on the subjects that we had not covered at all. 

• We did not discuss embryology or behavioral science or anatomy. So I read First Aid for those subjects. I just read. I didn't make notes. In fact, I was in my bed relaxing trying to fall asleep. 

• Plus I made sure to do all of what I did for the midterm as far as sleep and food and breaks. 

Clicking the end test button was somewhat forced and if it had not been, I am not sure that I would have ever clicked it. I signaled for the proctor to come over to ask a question which was interpreted as I was finished (my test was complete). She went to get my score sheet, so I had to click the button which would reveal my fate.

I had a complete Sympathetic (ANS) reaction. My heart was racing and my blood was pumping. You can figure out all of the other actions of the sympathetic nervous system, suffice to say it was a very intense moment.

And then I saw my score - 53%.

I had passed the exit. I would be allowed to sit for the USMLE Step 1 as soon as I felt ready. I was deemed competent and in that moment, the grade confirmed that I had some small gift, talent, or knowledge that would allow me to become a doctor one day.

For those of you who are in Maine now, I know that this post is a little late, but perhaps you can glean something from it.

To all of the Med 4's still on the island and coming to Maine next semester, I wish you all the best.


Until next time,
Amy

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