7. Allow for several short periods of relaxation
during the day. These can be taken
at mealtimes and for more extended periods on
weekends. Periodic holiday
vacations can help you to recover from long
spells of intense activity.
Looking Ahead
While at the outset of your medical school
career it is natural to focus on the courses at
hand, it is also important to have a longer-term
perspective on your education. One
needs to recognize that in its essence the first
two years are the essential preparation for
the last two-year clerkship training years. It
is thus important to master a number of
skills during the preclinical phase of your
education to be able to satisfactorily cope
with the challenges you will face when
undertaking clinical service on the wards.
In this regard, a recent report indicated that
a significant number of medical students
may have an uphill battle during their clinical
training. This is suggested from a study
that found that between 30 and 50% of clerkship
directors reported that medical stu-
dents are unprepared in six competency
areas.
A survey of a significant number of clerkship
directors indicates that they believe
that improvement is necessary in communication,
interviewing, and examination skills,
professionalism, and understandings of systems
of care and life cycle stages. As a con-
sequence of this situation, some clerkship
directors have been forced to provide remedi-
ation in one or more of these areas of
professionalism, communication, interviewing,
and examination skills, because of a deficiency
in preclinical preparation. It is thought
that preparation for the clinical skills
component of the USMLE Step 2 may prove help-
ful in this area when working on the
wards.
First-year Guidelines
Special emphasis deserves to be placed on the
freshman year of medical school, where
attrition, if it will occur at all, is most
likely. Like the first year of high school or college,
it
marks a year of transition from the triumph of
graduation to the lowest rung of the school's
hierarchical ladder. It frequently involves
relocating and having a new group of peers.
The average freshman begins medical school with
unresolved feelings about his or
her level of achievement attainable in a new
and unproven milieu. The nature of the
academic environment, with its large volume of
work and the presence of bright and
hard-working classmates, makes it difficult to
prove oneself and attain one's inner
expectations. Students with a high degree of
self-worth and those who can gain gratifi-
cation from intrinsic rewards, such as the
satisfaction derived by keeping up with and
passing through the curriculum, will best
respond emotionally to the existing stressful
situation. Providing self-praise rather than
seeking external sources of encouragement
is helpful.
The special features of the freshman year that
deserve to be brought to the attention
of prospective medical students are as
follows:
1. Students frequently have a wide range of
emotional experiences during the
course of the year, ranging from exhilaration
to anxiety, frustration, and, at
times, depression.
2. The academic program offered is usually
uneven, with some courses being
exciting and others dull. Taken as a whole, the
program is exhausting.
3. A key to success is to organize one's time
most effectively to meet your specific
needs. Allowance should be made in your
schedule for a reasonably fulfilling
personal and social life.
4. Upperclass students may provide useful
insights into the pressures to be faced
and methods of coping, as well as helpful study
tips. The advice given should
not always be taken at face value, but must be
adjusted to one's specific needs.
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