Product Description

APPLICIABLE FOR THE MRCS OSCE EXAM! This text is designed to take the MRCS candidate through the clinical examination. It offers information on how the clinical exam is organized, the marking scheme and how to prepare for the exam. The chapters go through the exam bay-by-bay, including details regarding set-up in the bay, commonly asked-for examinations and cases that are accompanied by photographs where appropriate. There is a chapter on communication and tear-out summary cards are featured for each chapter to aid revision.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #110163 in Books
• Published on: 2002-08-31
• Original language: English
• Binding: Paperback
• 528 pages

From the Author
I hope this book fills the gap I found when studying for my MRCS. I wanted a book which tells you all you need to know to pass the exam in one volume instead of having to go from text to text; EXAMINATIONS, CASES, PICTURES and BACKGROUND INFORMATION. This book lists the examinations needed for each bay of the MRCS clinical exam and describes exactly how you go about each examination in an easy-to-copy scripted format. There are scores of cases, each with a picture of what you might see, the sentence you should say when presenting the case and a facing page of fine print background information you might need to answer the examiner's questions. Anyone taking Surgical examinations should find this useful, from medical students to CCST candidates. The book will be sold in many countries and should be useful for surgical trainees around the world, but it is specifically aimed at the surgical SHO sitting the MRCS examinations in the UK.

About the Author
I am a general surgical Specialist Registrar in the Yorkshire region of England specialising in coloproctology. I gained my MBChB with honours in Manchester after an honours BSc 2(i) in Biological sciences. I was co editor and co author of the Essential Revision Notes for the MRCS;Systems Modules textbook, also by pastest which is one of their biggest selling texts. I have two gorgeous children and am married to an equally gorgeous Radiologist.

Customer Reviews

Prepare yourself for the Clinical
Things are a changing, what with intercollegiate exams and reduction in working hours and whatnot. But what is certain is that you can't change the past and Cathy Parchment-Smith has done a great job of reviewing and analysing candidates and subjects in the clinical part of the (then) MRCS England exam.
A breakdown of topics, provided presumably from exiting candidates, lets you know exactly how often "examination of inguinal hernia" came up. Summary cards for each examination are exhaustive and provided in a handy cut-out format.
Basically this text lets you know what to learn, how to remember it all and dispells fears of being asked to spot minutiae in each examination bay. Let the statistics convince you..
Much recommended.

Minor flaws, but truly excellent.
I've just passed the Intercollegiate MRCS first time (all 3 parts). I attribute part of that success to this book. I agree with the other reviews that there are some flaws and these are as follows:

1. As in the other reviews, I was a little annoyed at the lack of some page reference numbers not being filled in properly, but in all honesty, this was not that important as it's easy to know what topic elsewhere in the book the reference is to.

2. I also noticed a few minor errors in the subject matter, but these were also fairly inconsequential and fairly obvious (e.g. there is one instance when the text says 'left hypochondrium', when they clearly mean 'right'. But everyone knows that's where the liver is. If you don't, I agree that you will find the exam difficult and this book will not help you.

3. An example paragraph to describe each pathology is accompanied by an illustrative picture which does not go exactly with the description, for example, the text will describe a left facial lesion but the picture will be of a right facial lesion, but both are meant to be just an example

4. The book is fairly pricey

However, I do feel that this book is indispensible for revision for MRCS as:

1. There are quick reference cards in the back of it that detail every examination you could be asked to do in the exam. These were EXTREMELY useful and portable for spare times between clinics and examining friends etc.

2. The pictures of pathology are very, very helpful. I saw very similar things in the actual exam and would have been a bit confused had I not seen them here. For example, there is a very good station on the appearance and indications for the various stomas etc.

Saved countless hours attending clinics with the different specialties! (which I found difficult, time consuming and quite ineffectual)

3. This book is very readable. I got through it 3 times before the exam. Justified the price somewhat!

4. Divided up into sections like the exam stations. The author has surveyed candidates coming out of the MRCS clinicals and have statistically analysed the top cases (top 5 cases in each station and those which are 'very common' and 'common') so you know what you are likely to get prior to the exam.

I don't think I'd have passed without it.

Expensive
Have successfully sat MRCS clinical exam but did not rely on this book very much. It has a disorganised layout, an over-relyance on footnotes and pictures that can be found in other books.

The collection of pictures is one of the books saving graces, but other than that there is not really much to commend. Would advise looking elsewhere.