Pre - Orthopedic Residency

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OrthoBod

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Hey All,

I am in a non US medical system. I finally got an orthopedic Residency spot. 50 Interns competing for 4 spots. Phew!

I have 2 months before I start my residency training. I wanted to know what things should I do which will help me out in the coming years.

Our curriculum is designed as: 1st year- all Off rotations for 5 months together (Plastics, neuro, GS, vascular etc) Then 1 month simulation block with labs so attendings teach us directly (AO courses, K wire fixation, plaster application etc) and then 6 months of basic ortho rotations. From 2nd year curriculum them divides into sub specialities, trauma etc with research blocks and electives.

I am concerned about how I can best prepare for 1st year.

Because I am from a different country and not studying in UK, USA or Australia, with every year we are encouraged to do International Board or diploma together with residency e.g MRCS, American Board etc..
After graduation, the more qualification you have, more opportunity for a specialist job or spot for fellowship.

I am currently meaning to finish Practical Fracture treatment and Orthopedic Examination (Both by Mc Rae). I couldnot get my hands on Handbook of fractures. What other books do you think I should read pre residency?
Do I read up and finish preparing for MRCS in the coming 2 months?
Do I forget about everything and just travel! and have fun.
Do I focus on research and finish it off?

What would you do?

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It is very difficult to retain readings without having something practical to apply it to after, so reading ortho topics in isolation may not be extremely beneficial in the long run. But, if you really want something to do, Netter's concise orthopedic anatomy is great for the foundational things you'll be asked about as an ortho intern. You can always peruse through orthobullets.com and review the high yield topics. Other than that, I'd just enjoy your time before things get crazy.
 
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Hey All,

I am in a non US medical system. I finally got an orthopedic Residency spot. 50 Interns competing for 4 spots. Phew!

I have 2 months before I start my residency training. I wanted to know what things should I do which will help me out in the coming years.

Our curriculum is designed as: 1st year- all Off rotations for 5 months together (Plastics, neuro, GS, vascular etc) Then 1 month simulation block with labs so attendings teach us directly (AO courses, K wire fixation, plaster application etc) and then 6 months of basic ortho rotations. From 2nd year curriculum them divides into sub specialities, trauma etc with research blocks and electives.

I am concerned about how I can best prepare for 1st year.

Because I am from a different country and not studying in UK, USA or Australia, with every year we are encouraged to do International Board or diploma together with residency e.g MRCS, American Board etc..
After graduation, the more qualification you have, more opportunity for a specialist job or spot for fellowship.

I am currently meaning to finish Practical Fracture treatment and Orthopedic Examination (Both by Mc Rae). I couldnot get my hands on Handbook of fractures. What other books do you think I should read pre residency?
Do I read up and finish preparing for MRCS in the coming 2 months?
Do I forget about everything and just travel! and have fun.
Do I focus on research and finish it off?

What would you do?

To keep things simple, if you want to prepare at your stage of things - read textbooks! Not articles (too current and unsettled), not orthobullets or Miller's review (you don't have the context).... you need to build a base of knowledge. I'd recommend the textbook Skeletal Trauma, and take notes while doing so - you'll never have such free time to read them again.
 
I feel your pain! It can be hard to layer on the info if the foundation is underdeveloped.

For building a basic study plan for the year to get the fundamentals down, I would use the following resources:
1. OKU review books - paragraph form, basic info
2. JAAOS review articles - great literature reviews at the beginning of each one

For preparing for cases, do a mix of:
Trauma - AO surgery reference, also has an app, this goes over classification and treatment options and approach
Vumedi - has some good videos, with ok search function, so you can get some visual preps
Orthobullets
 
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