Welcome to my first #PathTweetorial!
HOW TO PREPARE FOR PATHOLOGY BOARDS
Now that I've finished AP and CP #PathBoards, I would like to share some tips that might make it easier for those who will be taking it in subsequent years!
My tips will cover the following:
#yAdvice
HOW TO PREPARE FOR PATHOLOGY BOARDS
Now that I've finished AP and CP #PathBoards, I would like to share some tips that might make it easier for those who will be taking it in subsequent years!
My tips will cover the following:
#yAdvice
1) Mentality throughout residency. Two words: Be engaged!
Take every day of every rotation during residency seriously, even if it's not your favorite subject.
Take every day of every rotation during residency seriously, even if it's not your favorite subject.
Some #PathBoards questions cover concepts you might learn during a online hospital training module on your first week of residency orientation (i.e. lab safety).
Many questions cover practical issues that pathologists deal with on a day-to-day basis - things that would be second-nature for those who take ownership of their cases start to finish (from grossing to microscopy to writing up reports).
Take a look at @TheABPath's outline of exam content for AP and CP boards...
AP: abpath.org
CP: abpath.org
No question bank will be enough to make up for 3.5 years of coasting through rotations with minimal engagement.
AP: abpath.org
CP: abpath.org
No question bank will be enough to make up for 3.5 years of coasting through rotations with minimal engagement.
On the contrary, a resident who is engaged with every rotation during residency and makes a genuine attempt to learn the basic info that is needed for practicing each subspecialty of pathology will need minimal pre-test preparation to succeed on the Board exam!
2) RISE exams
The format/style/difficulty of #PathBoards questions felt very much like that of the RISE exam.
A good approximation of what it's like to take AP/CP boards would be taking either of the AP/CP sections of the RISE exams 3-4 times back-to-back.
The format/style/difficulty of #PathBoards questions felt very much like that of the RISE exam.
A good approximation of what it's like to take AP/CP boards would be taking either of the AP/CP sections of the RISE exams 3-4 times back-to-back.
It's also worth noting the correlation between RISE exam scores and #PathBoards pass rates as previously published:
pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov
pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov
In brief, RISE exam takers in the bottom quartile had up to a 50% fail rate in 2008, while RISE exam takers in >50th percentile had a <1% #PathBoards fail rate.
So RISE exams can be a good way to get a sense for how much/little you need to stress about passing boards!
So RISE exams can be a good way to get a sense for how much/little you need to stress about passing boards!
3) Books
There are many out there, but this is my short-list of books that I would consider to be essential for all AP/CP residents:
There are many out there, but this is my short-list of books that I would consider to be essential for all AP/CP residents:
Molavi's Practice of Surgical Pathology
Read as much as you can before starting residency, and keep going back to it to make sure you are getting a solid "big picture" understanding of each organ system.
amazon.com
Read as much as you can before starting residency, and keep going back to it to make sure you are getting a solid "big picture" understanding of each organ system.
amazon.com
@natasharekhtman's Handbook for Surgical Pathologists
The introductory sections on IHC are essential reading. Use it on a daily basis during rotations to help understand how IHC panels and molecular tests are used to differentiate tumors.
amazon.com
The introductory sections on IHC are essential reading. Use it on a daily basis during rotations to help understand how IHC panels and molecular tests are used to differentiate tumors.
amazon.com
Rosai's Surgical Pathology
The more you read it, the more it grows on you. Intimidating at first, but it became my go-to book for surg path rotations in PGY-3 and beyond. Wish I started using it earlier.
amazon.com
The more you read it, the more it grows on you. Intimidating at first, but it became my go-to book for surg path rotations in PGY-3 and beyond. Wish I started using it earlier.
amazon.com
Quick Compendium for CP
High-level bullet points for all things CP. Great, high-yield images for board review. You will need to seek out other sources for more details on some subjects, but this book is essential.
amazon.com
High-level bullet points for all things CP. Great, high-yield images for board review. You will need to seek out other sources for more details on some subjects, but this book is essential.
amazon.com
4) Videos - here are some educational videos that I wish I knew about earlier in my training!
When starting out residency, it's important to do some refreshers on histology.
Dr. Kraft's brief, efficient videos are worth a watch:
generalhistology.com
When starting out residency, it's important to do some refreshers on histology.
Dr. Kraft's brief, efficient videos are worth a watch:
generalhistology.com
Dr. Swerdlow's brief, organ/tissue-specific, Shotgun Histology videos are excellent:
youtube.com
youtube.com
For Dermpath, Bone/Soft Tissue, and Hemepath review, watch as many of @JMGardnerMD's videos as possible
youtube.com
youtube.com
Pulmonary Pathology: Dr. Cecchini (@Path_Matt)'s board review videos are superb:
youtube.com
youtube.com
youtube.com
youtube.com
Congratulations! You made it through the first half of this #Tweetorial.
But the BEST is yet to come...
See the second half here:
But the BEST is yet to come...
See the second half here:
It's here, friends!
☝️ @bshjoy @LEZAMALEZA @RafatWattar @K_JohnsonMD @Edkhine @moseeto
@sarabdelhadi @ppowelldo @MaiElzieny @A_Chandra23 @TheLabDoc
☝️ @bshjoy @LEZAMALEZA @RafatWattar @K_JohnsonMD @Edkhine @moseeto
@sarabdelhadi @ppowelldo @MaiElzieny @A_Chandra23 @TheLabDoc
Apologies! The links in the below tweet erroneously were to the exam schedules instead of the blueprints ☺️
The blueprints are here:
AP: abpath.org
CP: abpath.org
Those docs and more can be found here: abpath.org
The blueprints are here:
AP: abpath.org
CP: abpath.org
Those docs and more can be found here: abpath.org
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