Dear Doctors,
I felt like an alien when i decided to go for PLAB 1 because of two basic reasons:
- I was much older than the vast majority of the doctors.
- I was out of touch from medical field for 20 years and being a senior civil servant had no time to prepare or even get a feeling of this subject after a lapse of almost two decades. I just studied for one month about 4 hours daily!!
After i posted yesterday that I have passed, an overwhelming number of doctors congratulated me and almost all asked for guidance which i shall try to provide here as clearly as possible.
IELTS is a separate story and i believe i had an edge because of my 18 years of executive job with English as an official language. When i graduated from medical school i am sure i was not prepared and capable to pass IELTS in first attempt. But i can give a few tips on that too.
After booking my seat for PLAB I had no idea where and how to begin. I contacted my old college fellow doctors and one of them guided me to go for a course with onexamination online. I didnt like the idea though. I went to a book shop and asked the bookseller where to find books for PLAB 1 and he referred me to a shelf. Oxford handbooks, Pass Medicine, On Examination plus hundreds of other books were there. As i recalled my friends’ recommendation regarding On Examination I bought On Examination for PLAB 1 Volume one and two. To be honest it was French to me when i opened it because of two reasons:
- I did not do MCQs in my medical school as there were written answers in papers.
- My rusted knowledge was not consistent with the books.
I searched on internet and ultimately found this Facebook group. I simply started following it and started to get a feel of what this exam is all about. I came to some conclusion as follows:
- If I believe some participants’ input and guidance and in depth analysis it will be impossible for me even to start preparing.
- If I believe another group of participants, it would be a piece of cake.
So, being a civil servant expert in analyzing and making policies I sat down and asked myself the following questions: - Is PLAB 1 a specialization exam? The answer is NO.
- What is this exam for? The answer is that it tests a doctor whether or not he is capable of serving in UK on a bare minimum level.
- What is the qualification of the majority of the applicants? The answer is young fresh graduates with just one year of House Job experience.
In view of the above I reached the conclusion that I do not need to go too deep on the topics because it is not a specialization exam.
I downloaded 1700 MCQs and the Samson Notes. In the beginning I started jumping between the 1700s and the Samson notes and slowly and steadily the following facts sunk in: - There are limited topics which present themselves in different scenarios.
- The basic answers are almost the same whatever the scenario.
- There is pattern to what PLAB needs to analyze.
In the process of my preparation I came across a few doctors on the forum whom I found in two categories: - Trying to genuinely help for the sake of help
- Trying to behave like pide pipers with young doctors following like the rats in the story to their trumpets
- Trying to find and create difficult questions with even more difficult explanations by citing NICE Guidelines and confusing specialized explanations
The second ones were the more dangerous as the followers started to forsake their independent minds and becoming totally dependent on that particular track on which the pide pipers were taking them to. So I stopped even reading their explanations and following them.
I stuck with Samson Notes and the 1700 MCQs (Solved and Unsolved). One file I found interesting was that of Rabia Taimoor which along with answers provided ample explanations and was honest to cut and paste which was the right approach. I studied PassMedicine file also as it covers all the NICE Guidelines. There are certain give aways like no matter what the scenario is the first thing in emergency is to secure airway (Always for ABC) or an unconscious person must be checked for Blood Glucose etc.
So here is my final resource list which I followed: - 1700 MCQs with answers from Rabia Taimoor
- Samson Notes (No matter how funny they seem when studying they are perfect for PLAB)
- Pass Medicine File
Plus we need to consider one thing. The passing score this time was 124 which means that you have a space for 76 mistakes in exams. This is a huge space. If certain topics are confusing you just leave them and don’t waste time on them. Master the topics which are easier for you.
During exams time management is an issue. Psychiatry is simple but the discussions in this group has made it so confusing. Remember that you will be working at a very junior level and not a specialist psychiatrist. Drugs to be remembered are very simple and limited in number.
Last but not the least because I was away from medicine I had to refresh concepts and You Tube videos on USMLE and PLAB helped a LOT. A LOT. Wherever you are stuck conceptually refer to youtube. It did miracles for me.
Also don’t leave any question during exam for later solving. It will keep on keeping you anxious and you will keep on referring back to them wasting your precious time. Go with the most basic option. The more you indulge in technicalities the more you will be confused. Good Luck all.
P.S. I am creating a Facebook Page titles PLAB 1 for Dummies and shall be continuously guiding in a systemic way and hope that it will benefit you instead of confusing you.
Regards