Hi! Congratulations on getting through your first professional year. It’s been said that the first and the last years of MBBS are the most difficult ones. The first; because you’ve just stepped into a medical college and you realize on the very first day that it is not what you expected or what you were told by your parents. The size of the books and the formalin filled cadavers make you want to take a U-turn and run as fast as you can! Well, there’s that and a lot of hard work and perseverance required but there’s lot of amazing stuff that you must have come across in your journey through the I MBBS that probably made you love what you are doing. The last? Well, I am yet to find out.
Now, the Second Year is here to make you love your field even more. It’s about getting closer to your batch mates and working together with them in the postings and while organizing college fest and making new friends. It’s about finding new hobbies and other crazy ideas because you have lots of time on your hand (2nd year is of one and a half year). It’s also about learning how to juggle between all this and not lagging behind in studies. I’m here to guide you through all the studies and other stuff that comes your way as a 2nd year MBBS student. So let’s get started!
In this post, I’m going to tell you about the important postings and what is expected of you. The next post will comprise of a brief outline about the four academic subjects that you are to master before the end of this academic year and certain book recommendations and my personal tips about how to make a subject more easier and fun to learn and understand.
POSTINGS
There will be 4 major postings:
- Medicine
- Surgery
- Gynecology and obstetrics (OBGY)
- Community Medicine (PSM)
There will be other postings like radiology and dentistry etc. too.
Tips for Postings:
- Be punctual: Do not be late for the posting i.e., if the doctor in-charge of your batch asks you to be present at a particular time for lecture or demonstration be present at that particular time.
- Dress like a doctor: Always wear clean apron and dress up in a formal manner with proper shoes. While attending Surgery posting in OT, remember to carry your OT dress and OT shoes.
- Carry all the necessary items: you should always have your stethoscope, hammer and torch on you.
- History taking/ Case taking: This is the most important thing that you’ll learn in your postings in II MBBS. The teachers themselves never cease to emphasize on the importance of proper history taking. Proper History Taking itself is half the diagnosis. So remember to carry with you a long book and take history of as many patients as you can. Case presentation is also of importance and is taught to you along with that.
- Be nice to the patient: Respect the patient. Don’t ask unnecessary questions. Talk to them in a calm manner and soft tone. Speak preferably in the local language to get the most information out of the patient. Do not diagnose the patient and prescribe any medications on behalf of the doctor. It could get you in trouble.
- Be confident: Answer the teacher with confidence. When in doubt ask.
- Know your hospital: It is a good thing to know your surrounding. Try to explore the hospital, know what is where.
- Attend casualty and wards: This will help you gain more practical knowledge and may be you could end up gaining some first hand experience
- Study the subject: Try to read about the subject and the topic dealt with in your posting. Buy or borrow from your seniors or batch mates the books recommended to you by your teachers for that particular postings. This will help you to stay on the same page as the teacher when taught and to avoid drawing a blank when asked something.
- Some colleges hold post-end exams while other colleges don’t. These marks are non-evaluative and are not a part of internal assessment. Some colleges don’t even take the 2nd year postings seriously. But it’s better that you push a little and get as much the benefits of the postings as you can.
Book recommendations for postings:
Medicine:
- Hutchinson’s Clinical Methods
- Bedside Clinics in Medicine by Kundu
- P.J. Mehta’s Practical Medicine
Surgery:
- Das: A Manual of Clinical Surgery
- Das: Clinical Methods in Surgery
- Bailey and Love’s Short Practice of Surgery
PSM:
- Park’s Textbook of Preventive and Social Medicine
- Textbook of Community Medicine by A. P. Kulkarni
OBGY:
- C. Dutta’s Textbook of Obstetrics
- C. Dutta’s Textbook of Gynecology
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