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Showing posts from June, 2019

My experience of working in neurology as a SHO

Neurology is a fascinating field. Partly because I have no idea about neurological conditions and I find it extremely difficult. And partly because the consultants are extremely friendly- as they do not have a lot of inpatients and do not do acute medical on calls ( unless they are part of acute stroke rota)- They teach their juniors and encourage them to learn. As a SHO, I found it incredibly helpful for my PACES exam. I honestly had no idea about neurology other than the differences between upper and lower motor neuron lesions. I still think I have not learnt a lot but I got the opportunity of seeing rare "PACES cases". PS: This is my experience and management plans differ from trust to trust. This blog post is only to give you an idea of what I have experienced as a SHO in neurology. A WEEK IN THE LIFE OF A NEUROLOGY SHO: This is how my week in neurology usually goes: 1. I come at 9 AM everyday and my consultant, registrar, a physician associate and the nurses go thr...

How to choose your referees/ staff members to fill out your assessment forms

We as IMGs need references at different stages of our careers. 1. When we are applying for our first post as non trainees - This is from our home countries 2. When we ask our consultants to fill out competency forms- ie foundation competencies, core competencies: Usually in the NHS 3. When we are applying for core training/ trainee SHO posts in the NHS - this is usually our consultants in the NHS we have worked under in our non training post. 4. When we are applying for higher specialty training- this is usually our consultants in the NHS we have worked under in our training post. I am going to address this issue in the form of FAQs. REFERENCE FORMS  As a rule, you should always inform the relevant consultants that you are putting their details down as your reference BEFORE you submit the application/fill out the form. An email/face to face discussion should suffice to take permission .  Why do we need references? This is to ensure that a particular doctor has a good record....

My advice to IMGs who are starting in training posts (ST1/2/IMT)

This blog post is for those IMGs who have accepted training posts in: 1. GP training 2. IMT 3. ACCS This post is ONLY relevant for GPST1s and other trainees who will be working in medicine and its allied specialties. Here are some tips: PORTFOLIO: Get used to your portfolio from day 1. Here is what you should do: 1. Pay for it ASAP ( You will be sent an email a few weeks/days before your post starts). 2. Open the different forms and see what they mean. I have made a guideline on it here: http://omarsguidelines.blogspot.com/2017/03/maintaining-your-e-portfolio.html 3. You will have access to online tutorials of whatever e-portolfio you get so use this opportunity to learn about the features. 4. You will be explained about your portfolio in detail in your induction as well. However, try to familiarize yourself with it before that so that you can ask questions or confusions you have. 5. Send assessments to people you know will give positive comments. These can be any health care assi...

My experience of MRCP PACES- passed in the second attempt (June, 2019)

I passed my PACES in the second attempt. Unfortunately, I do not have any golden tips or any shortcuts to suggest to my readers here. However I would still like to share my experience. MY PREPARATION - FOR THE FIRST ATTEMPT I started my PACES preparation when I started my core medical training year 2 in August, 2019. I gave my MRCP 2 two years ago in September, 2016 and as you can expect, my knowledge was very rusty. I knew the basics ( I frequently saw sick patients on the wards and tried my best to act up as a registrar when on call by volunteering to clerk the sickest patients) however my differentials of spastic legs and how to diagnose a case of CIDP in 5 minutes was not something I had come across in my 2.5 years as a SHO ( 1.5 years as a non trainee SHO and 1 year as a core medical trainee year 1). I decided to attend PACES courses. I attended my deanery based course (free) 8 weeks before my exam and that was an eye opener. However I was a bit discouraged ( the mock examiners ...