1

Study Aids and Revision Tips for Medical Students

Medincle - It is specifically designed for med students with SpLDs or who speak English as an additional language. It is on the DSA list of approved AT. Created by doctor with dyslexia. https://www.medincle.com/ Simple Med - SimpleMed is an entirely FREE platform for Medical Students to learn and revise Medicine more easily, with concept-based articles and a free multiple choice question bank! SimpleMed is built by Med Students, with only the key information needed and without the extra fluff - all with the aim of reducing the stress that students experience. https://simplemed.co.uk/ Khan Academy - Khan Academy is an American non-profit educational organization created in 2006 by Sal Khan, with the goal of creating a set of online tools that help educate students. The organization produces short lessons in the form of videos. Its website also includes supplementary practice exercises and materials for educators.

https://www.khanacademy.org/coach/dashboard Medical terms and roots

https://cjnu-matt.webs.com/List%20of%20medical%20roots,%20suffixes%20and%20prefixes.pdf

ISMP list of confusable drugs

https://www.ismp.org/recommendations/confused-drug-names-list

Pronunciation of common drugs

https://clincalc.com/PronounceTop200Drugs/

https://www.drugs.com/uk/

3D Body anatomical software: https://www.zygotebody.com/Medical words plug-in for Word Spellcheck: https://www.medincle.com/https://www.lexable.com/global-autocorrect/ - they also have a medical dictionary that can be activated to help with spell-checking medical assignments.

2

Metacognition/Learning preferences

• What kind of learner are you?

• What exactly works and doesn't work for you?

• Are you using your preferred learning strategies in an effective and reflective way?

• Can you explain how exactly you revise?

• Is there part of the procedure that you are missing out or that you need to strengthen?

• Use active, multi-sensory learning. Work to your strengths and consider ways of working that you hadn't previously used – look at: visual - word, visual - picture, auditory, kinaesthetic

The exam

• What exam consideration, if any, are in place for you?

• Are you having problems scanning the questions and possible answers?

• If you are having visual scanning problems, there are features within Microsoft to screen out external visual interference, change the background colour of your screen or reduce visible lines of text to one or three lines within Immersive reader.

• Do a mock multiple choice test every day, so that it is almost second nature when you get to the day of the exam.

• If the exam is on screen, use zoom to make everything appear bigger - this will enable you to focus on each of the multiple choices, and the size will help to pick up small words that often make a big difference to the choices.

• A strategy for coping with a multiple choice exam, where reading for accuracy is essential: drop the wrong answers before spending longer deciding between the likely ones.

• In questions where you have little knowledge, go for pure strategy: if, out of four possible answers, a concept is present in three of the answers, then that is most likely to be one of the concepts in the correct answer. Doing the same with the other concepts in the choices can often help to establish which choices to drop.

• Do the easy questions first – not ij the Vignettes thoughVignettes etc

• HUG method for answering questions: Highlight the verb or action word in a question Underline important information Glance over the information again to make sure you have understood the question correctly.

3

Revision preparation longer term

• Revision starts the day you receive something new to learn and a particular kind of systematic rotation system of revision can get you to the day of their exam in a calm(ish) state of mind. Yes, you have limited time, but you can set something in motion now, so that you become clear as to what you know and can identifies quickly just the bits you don't and work on those. Low-level self-quizzing.

• How organised are you when managing time? Maybe this is not an issue, but sometimes you have to take a step backwards to go forwards, so that the revision stops for a bit while you plan, mark out and begin to practise a new revision routine. Year planner, 4 week timetable.

• ASK Moodle page

4

Reading Techniques

Read with your brain not your eyes – they are just the means

Go through a book, article or lecture slides 3-4x more quickly than 1x slowly

Work Smart - gain 80% of the meaning by reading 20% - the 80/20 method gives the brain an overview of the article or book that you are trying to absorb.

Preview - flick through the book, article, lecture slides, just getting the boundaries of it

Then read intro and conclusion/summary ONLY

Then look at diagrams, graphs, contents, chapter headings and index

Then if you able to - highlight in one colour all the sub-headings and chapter headings (even if they are separated out and in bold, it helps to break up the text) and read them out loud

Then highlight the first sentence of every paragraph in another colour which will tell you the topic/subject of that sentence (don’t read any more than that for now) and read it out loud

Decide which areas of the text you need to go into in more detail 5-minute Mind Map jotter: Spend five minutes before reading jotting down everything you know about the subject before starting reading – it puts your brain in the right mindsett and new knowledge hooks onto old knowledge much more easily than simply launching in and reading new material. Set Goals: Why am I reading this? What do I want to get out of this? As with a journey you would set a destination and use a route map, do the same when reading a book or article. This also helps to establish the right mind-set. Keywords and Key Themes: Think about keywords and key themes, it gets the brain in the right mental place too but like the jigsaw, the brain will start to look to infill the gaps when you use this with the 80/20 technique. Read Actively: Write notes in the margins or a notebook - either summaries or spin off thoughts that could be used in an essay later – the kinaesthetic action of writing notes even if those notes are not looked at again has been shown to re-force the memory of the information. Chunk your time:

Set a time period before commencing any study for instance 2 to 3 hours and decide how much you would like to cover in this time period. This gives the brain an overview of the overall study period and research suggests that the human brain has a very strong tendency to complete things.

Set a timer for a period of say 30 to 40 minutes. Even if you are in the middle of a sentence when the timer goes off stop and take a break. Write a couple

5

of words about each paragraph you have read. Set a timer for your break of 5 to 10 minutes and go and do something different.

When you return to your study read over your quick notes and then look over briefly what you have just studied, this helps to embed the memory and reinforces what you have just read. Have a look over what you are about to study very quickly and then start next study period of 30 to 40 minutes setting a timer.

Have another 5 to 10 minute break and when you come back skim over the last two study sessions that you have completed. Carry on in this way for the overall amount of time that you decided on at the beginning.

Beginnings and Ends: The beginnings and ends of anything studied tend to be remembered more than information covered in the middle. The above method of studying creates more beginnings and ends and therefore more chances of committing information to memory. Recall and Concentration: This way of studying also keeps recall and concentration high. Working for 2 1/2 hours straight means that recall and concentration tend to drop dramatically in a continuous 2-3 hour study period. Breaks: The breaks themselves are just as important as the study periods because they give the brain a chance to assimilate the information and to intra-integrate with previous information learned.

6

You could try - Dual Reading: Alternate between 2 chapters/books/articles. Read a paragraph, have a break then flip to the next text or read between an overview – say an internet text and a more in-depth text. This helps to associate information with what you already know and helps set the text in context and can keep concentration high. Tips to reinforce the memory of what you have read: Condense down your notes to identify key words and core themes which will be useful for revision. Being able to hear a lecture or read a book and then summarise it in your own words as succinctly as possible is a key skill to learn at university and very helpful for life. To help you find key words and core themes imagine you have to explain your work to a relative or friend in the most logical and understandable way you can. This technique focuses the mind and concentrates the information. Review is an excellent return on your investment. 5 minutes can potentially save you hours of time when it comes to the exams. 80% of what we learn or study is forgotten within 24 hours – so you must review information within 24 hours to embed it in your memory. If you further reinforce that by skimming through what you learned with 10mins on Day 2, and 5mins on Day 7 and 2-4mins on Day 30 – you will not have to start re-learning information again when it comes to the exams – you are building strong neural pathways.

7

Mindfulness

MIndfulness has been shown to be helpful in dealing with difficulties such as concentration and focus and the spontaneous wandering mind symptoms of ADD or ADHD.

Practise one of the quick relaxation techniques suggested in Charmaine McKissock’s Great Ways to Learn Anatomy & Physiology (GWTLAP), every day, if possible. The second edition includes Mindfulness meditation techniques, which can be practised anywhere. Here is a link to a sample chapter that the publishers Palgrave Macmillan are offering - this gives an idea of the contents and some sections that might be useful.

• http://www.palgrave.com/resources/sample-chapters/9781137415233_sample.pdf.

Download StopBreatheThink mindfulness app from the Google Play store (Android) or Apps store (iPhone/iPad):

For Android devices:

• https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=org.stopbreathethink.app&hl=en_GB

For iPhone or iPad:

• https://itunes.apple.com/gb/app/stop-breathe-think-meditation-and-mindfulness/id778848692?mt=8

Jon Kabat-Zinn – The Body Scan

• https://www.masterclass.com/classes/jon-kabat-zinn-teaches-mindfulness-and-meditation/chapters/guided-meditation-the-body-scan

Jon Kabat-Zinn - Book: Catastrophe Living

• https://www.amazon.co.uk/Full-Catastrophe-Living-Revised-mindfulness/dp/0749958413

8

Committing new information to memory

The Palgrave Study Skills book ' Great ways to learn anatomy and physiology' by Charmaine Mckissock. Includes memory and learning strategies for body systems, numeracy, time management and more.

Quizlet is useful and can store them in different files per "condition" Make flash cards - with names spelt either word within word or phonetically or graphological methods/details of drugs on reverse - bullet points - side effects, dosage, dangerous combo, taken for what condition ..... Mind maps

• A new book available on Amazon written by a medical student from University of Hull: Mind Maps for Medical Students by Olivia Smith

• Look inside: http://www.amazon.co.uk/Medical-Students-Olivia-Antoinette-Smith/dp/1482250314

• Mind Master: Tony Buzan - iMindMap program Edraw: www.edrawsoft.com/download-mindmap.php

• MindMapfree: mindmapfree.com • www.matchware.com MindView • https://www.inspiration-at.com/ • www.mindmeister.com • www.mindmup.com • Miro Mind Mapping – good for group work: • https://miro.com/aq/ps/mind-map-software-new/

Mnemonics

• Mnemonics stimulate your imagination using words and other tools to encourage your brain to make associations

• Rhymes: Necessary – it necessary for a shirt to have 1 collar and 2 sleeves • Acronyms: e.g. HOMES = Great Lakes – Huron, Ontario, Michigan, Erie and

Superior • Memory Palaces or Roman Rooms /Routes: Linking something you know -

your home - to information unknown through imagination • Remember: Imagination and Association = Memory

• This BMJ student guide has mnemonics on page 22 survivingmedicalschoolbmjguide.pdf

• You could also look here for mnemonics: https://www.oxfordmedicaleducation.com/emergency-medicine/abcdefghijklmnopq-assessment/

• Create mnemonics using the first letters of each part of the procedure or key words to make up sentences - like using Rinse Out Your Grandfather's Boots In Vinegar to remember the rainbow colours, for example. for entertaining and memorable mnemonics, try:

9

• Mnemonics and Study Tips for Medical Students, Second Edition: Two Zebras Borrowed My Car (Hodder Arnold Publication) Paperback – 30 May 2008 by Khalid Khan:

• http://www.amazon.co.uk/Mnemonics-Medical-Students-Second-Edition/dp/0340957476/ref=pd_sim_b_1?ie=UTF8&refRID=1XJKJ5EWM2WXMFKH32QT

• Try www.joglab.com to help to make them up - it only needs to make sense to you.

Visual reinforcement

• Create large visuals (posters) as these could give a visual reference from which to draw as you write. Look at the illustrations of parts of the body in GWTLAP.

• Create your own framework for procedures that can maybe match with others, then use the same colours throughout too – e.g. assessment things in red, planning things in orange, medication in yellow, etc - use colours that follow in a recognized pattern as well - red, orange, yellow, etc from rainbow.

Auditory

• For fluent pronunciation of physiology terminology (but perhaps not very advanced) try: http://www.howjsay.com which has an English voice version.

• Having broken down those fragmented long medical words for spelling, reconstruct and rehearse the whole word as it is spoken. Use word derivations, such as:

• cyte = cell

• ase = enzyme

• erythro = red

• osteo = bone

• hepatic = relating to liver

• Try reading/speaking things aloud and recording yourself, using these recordings to play back, buying yourself a little extra time as these can be replayed whilst travelling, cooking, eating, etc.

Kinaesthetic

• If you are already using flashcards, you might find it useful to use the cards to develop flow charts of procedures/differential diagnoses to be learned by physically laying them out in different patterns that emphasise the connections between the ideas. Maybe use some linking cards such as: IF, THEN, NOT etc.

10

• Also understanding and verbalising the logic behind the sequence might help.

• Try physically acting out doing the procedure whilst talking through it. If there are any available podcasts of it, all the better. Try learning procedures by imagining performing them on people you know (and either liked or disliked, depending on the procedure) and developing a dialogue that prompts you to carry out the correct steps (this includes imagining the consequences of getting it wrong). For each procedure that featured a central character, make a revision sheet. The emotional investment and black humour makes the learning more memorable.

Using technology

• Youtube clips offer a great way to revise, especially for anatomy. Also some of the US colleges have on-line quizzes, for example

• http://ect.downstate.edu/courseware/haonline/quiz/practice/u8/quiztop8.htm

• http://inst.visiblebody.com/index.htm

• http://www.getbodysmart.com/index.htm

Microsoft Accessibility Features

Immersive Reader

What is the Immersive Reader? The Microsoft Immersive Reader is a free tool, built into online Word, OneNote, Outlook, Office Lens, Microsoft Teams, Forms, Flipgrid, Minecraft Education Edition and the Edge browser, that implement proven techniques to improve reading and writing for people regardless of their age or ability. In Tool Bar click View tab, see LH side Immersive Reader (sometimes called Read Aloud) . Dictate - Type with your voice Convert your speech to text with Dictate in online Word, PowerPoint, and Outlook for

PCs, which supports dictation in 20+ languages and real-time translation to 60+

languages. In Tool Bar find Dictate on RH side under Microphone symbol (with

Editor beside it).

Change background colour

In the Tool Bar click the Design tab, on the far RH side you can change Page Colour.

Changing computer fonts and colours, using a coloured overlay or reading ruler

Screen Tinter Lite (Windows PC) is a simple page colour software

11

bltt.org/software/screentinterlite/

Screen Shades (MAC OSX) – simple page colour software

www.macupdate.com/app/mac/41154/screen-shade

Crossbow Educational provide coloured overlays, reading rulers and overlay screens for computers

www.crossboweducation.com

Make memorising and learning more fun and you will remember more

• Overall, to introduce the idea of systems thinking, basically create a story or flow around the information to learn. Then within that overall approach:

• For diseases: create a template flowchart in which to capture the name of the disease, its pathogenesis, symptoms, diagnostic tests, diagnostic differentials, treatment, prognosis;

• For systems (eg endocrine, cardiovascular): create a circular (eg endocrine) or linear (alimentary) flowchart capturing the major elements on the main axis and the contributory elements either side.

• Buddy group: Have 1 or 2 colleagues form a buddy group for the next two ideas:

• Learning by teaching: once the information is charted, teach it to colleagues, members of the family, even a pet (dog) or the mirror.

• Playing Academic Trivial Pursuit: take out key ideas/concepts onto index cards (key word on one side, explanation on the other) then play trivial pursuit with them with the buddy group.

• Playing Pairs or Pelmanism: a card game used as a memory trainer. • Use some old business cards or buy some blank business shaped cards from

somewhere like Amazon. • Write a drug name, spelt correctly on one card then write what it is used for

and what it does on another card. • Or Write a disease name, spelt correctly then write symptoms on another card

or a disease name and potential remedies on another card. • Place the cards face down in the shape of a square on a table in front of you.

You should have a square of 50 or so cards blank side up in front of you. • Pick up cards in pairs from random positions. If the cards do not match i.e. the

drug name does not match a card saying what it does or a disease does not match symptoms or potential remedies, put them both back down.

• Then pick up another pair of cards, if they don’t match put them back down. If they do match take them out of the square and put them together on one side.

• As you work through the cards you gradually find that you can pair them up but it is also training your memory and helping you to remember information.

12

• Look up the card game Pairs or Pelmanism online to give you a clearer idea of how to play the game.

• Rhythm/melody: For those who are musical and can remember melodic lines and/or long lyrical sequences this can work. A good intro piece of music is the Gospel Song ‘Dry Bones’. Available in itunes and also a very graphic demonstration on

• Youtube at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hYeQUXXYvK0 . A medical student who one week could manage to recite only a half dozen of the 206 human bones, by the next week, using Dry Bones, had all of them down pat.

Useful Links

Remote Learning with Microsoft Microsoft Remote Learning

Assignment Survival Kit https://www.staffs.ac.uk/ask/

Forest – stay focussed and in the present

www.forestapp.cc

Sarah J Myhill BA(Hons), MArchD | Dyslexia Specialist Tutor & Academic Skills

Support PGCLLD, AMBDA FE/HE, ADSHE 5755

TimeManagement

http://bit.ly/MindToolsTimeManagement

Procrastination

http://bit.ly/MindToolsProcrastination

Prioritisation

http://bit.ly/MindToolsPrioritisation

Trello – Visual Task List ToDoist – Linear Task List

https://todoist.com https://trello.com