Steps to Work on USMLE Step2- CS..

Person who ask question is fool for 5 minutes but who never ask, is fool forever.
And one more thing also....
Giving advise is really easier than following it.

Even though CS is totally unpredictable exam , from the experience of all of my friends and mine, here I am giving you few steps to follow to Pass Clinical Skills.

1) Read pdf of the orientation material provided by the ECFMG. and also download video and watch it.
look at

• Onsite orientation step 2 CS video
• Video Stills of Step 2 CS video
• PDF.

2) read FIRST AID book Chapters

• Guide to the USMLE step 2 CS
• Patient Encounter

3) Find out the partner to practice, either online or in person.
4) Mug up performa.
ask for performa made by your friends or given in famous books/online like First Aid , Kaplan CS book, USMLE World.
Here in next post i am giving you performa made by two efficient Doctors. They have gathered data from different books.

5) Start doing Major cases given in Book- First Aid.
In starting , practice speaking of

• Whole performa alone.
  
• Questions of Symptomatology alone.
• Examination alone.
  

Than switch on to whole cases ( without timer ON ) including writing practice of Patient note. You can exclude doing Examination at this time of practice. In your free time watch videos of USMLE World ( If you are FMG/IMG and not good at English Pronounciations , watch Hollywood movies too in your free time) and learn how to examine in proper manner. ( you need not have to do whole examination in proper way,Practice speeding up for the all examination )

Patient Note sample Given in the orientation Material by ECFMG is too poor in quality. ask for patient note of your friend.

I will post sample patient note in few days.


6)Once you complete all cases in the First Aid, switch to the cases given in the USMLE World.

Practice this cases with timer ON, including writing practice of Patient note.

7) Repeat First Aid Major Cases and do mini cases and start practice of giving spontanious answers to odd questions asked by the SPs near end of the encounter. ( Students, who have passed CK, need not to do minicases. Minicases in the First Aid are for those who can not think of DD of one symptom)

• Few challenging quetions and sample answers are given in the First Aid.
• Gather odd Cases encounterd by your friends and think of questions of those perticular symptomatology.
• Practice few common cases with your friend/s who have given the exam.
  

You are done with your Part of the CS Preparations.