TSR Med Students&#x27; Society Part V

Original post by Miss Purple

Hi all, I know everyone's busy but I'd be really grateful if someone could help me with my elective applications.. I only have 1 shot at each and I wouldn't want to mess them up.. Thank you! :smile:

Hi Miss Purple, what kind of help do you need?

Reply 7982

Ghotay

13

Original post by MrsHamster

Hey guys, I'm new here and have a question for you all. I'm currently a final year in London. My boyfriend is an F2 and is applying for his paeds training now. He's keen on Wessex as he thinks he is more likely to get in and it's cheap to live there. I'm much more keen on London because it's my home and all my friends and family are there. I'm just worried I will feel lonely in Wessex, albeit I'm sure I will have good work friends. My main concern is if we were to have a family we would have no support at all.

Anyone experienced a similar difficult situation? I obviously don't want to make him do something he doesn't want to, but also need to consider whether I will also be happy there.

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This is an unfortunate situation, because you both have perfectly reasonable, but different priorities.

Firstly, I think you need to establish what is your boyfriend's MAIN priority, the cost of living, or the likelihood of getting in? If it's the cost of living, that's pretty unarguable. Maybe try drawing up a budget for a year for each place to see how the cost change would affect your finances, and see if you can talk it out. However, I'm guessing it's more about the likelihood of getting in. Just looking at the competition ratios, they aren't HUGELY different. 2 vs 2.2 for last year, and 2 vs. 2.6 for 2014. I wouldn't necessarily count that as hugely statistically significant. So a compromise could be that he applies to London this year, and if he doesn't get in he could apply to Wessex next year.

Secondly, would this be a permanent move? That would make quite a difference on how you feel about it. Perhaps you could compromise and agree to move to Wessex for a while, and then move back to London when you plan to start a family

Then again Wessex really isn't that far away from London at all. It's like a 2 hour drive, you could still see your friends and family every weekend without difficulty.

Finally, I do know some couples who live apart for career reasons, and for some of them it works really well. I actually know one married couple where the wife lives in Birmingham with the kids, and her husband works in London. Obviously it's not for everyone, but especially if you know it's going to be temporary, you might consider it. And you might have to do that anyway, what if he gets into London/Wessex and you don't?

Reply 7983

lcsurfer

Original post by Helenia

Pretty comprehensive, I think - this diagram helps explain the difference between the two injection depths

Was there anything else you wanted to ask, lcsurfer?

Original post by Hygeia

Spinal

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perfect thanks! so a spinal is a complete block of motor and sensory? while an epidural is more of just sensory block as in pain relief?
I think i was just overly confusing myself massively, especially after being on anaesthetics in the labour ward.
Thanks :biggrin:

Reply 7984

Helenia

20

Original post by lcsurfer

perfect thanks! so a spinal is a complete block of motor and sensory? while an epidural is more of just sensory block as in pain relief?
I think i was just overly confusing myself massively, especially after being on anaesthetics in the labour ward.
Thanks :biggrin:

In both cases it depends on the volume and concentration of local anaesthetic given. A spinal (usually ~2.5ml 0.5% "heavy" bupivicaine + a small amount of fentanyl/diamorphine) will usually block motor and sensory conduction, though they may come back at different rates. If you use lower volume/concentration then your block may be less dense or rise less high.

A low-dose epidural (commonly ~10ml/hr of 0.1% bupivicaine + 2-4mcg/ml fentanyl) used for labour analgesia or post-op analgesia should only provide a sensory block - and may only block pain but not touch sensation, which is fine, though some people will have "wobbly legs," but if you "top up" the epidural (a bolus of up to 20mls either 2% lidocaine or 0.5% bupivicaine) for theatre, you get a much denser sensory block and usually a motor block too.

You don't need to memorise those doses or anything, I'm just using them to illustrate my point.

Reply 7985

Spencer Wells

12

Original post by lcsurfer

perfect thanks! so a spinal is a complete block of motor and sensory? while an epidural is more of just sensory block as in pain relief?

Yes, although you will almost inevitably get some motor block with an epidural, especially if it's used to provide surgical anaesthesia as opposed to analgesia, but it does depend to an extent which level it is sited at, and which drugs are put down it.

Reply 7986

username2279217

7

Original post by Ghotay

This is an unfortunate situation, because you both have perfectly reasonable, but different priorities.

Firstly, I think you need to establish what is your boyfriend's MAIN priority, the cost of living, or the likelihood of getting in? If it's the cost of living, that's pretty unarguable. Maybe try drawing up a budget for a year for each place to see how the cost change would affect your finances, and see if you can talk it out. However, I'm guessing it's more about the likelihood of getting in. Just looking at the competition ratios, they aren't HUGELY different. 2 vs 2.2 for last year, and 2 vs. 2.6 for 2014. I wouldn't necessarily count that as hugely statistically significant. So a compromise could be that he applies to London this year, and if he doesn't get in he could apply to Wessex next year.

Secondly, would this be a permanent move? That would make quite a difference on how you feel about it. Perhaps you could compromise and agree to move to Wessex for a while, and then move back to London when you plan to start a family

Then again Wessex really isn't that far away from London at all. It's like a 2 hour drive, you could still see your friends and family every weekend without difficulty.

Finally, I do know some couples who live apart for career reasons, and for some of them it works really well. I actually know one married couple where the wife lives in Birmingham with the kids, and her husband works in London. Obviously it's not for everyone, but especially if you know it's going to be temporary, you might consider it. And you might have to do that anyway, what if he gets into London/Wessex and you don't?

Thanks for your advice. After thinking about it for a while I do feel a bit better. I think his main priority is securing a place on the paediatric training programme. Although the ratios are roughly the same, he feels London will have a higher quality of applicant (have a BSc and research, which he doesn't have. He has however passed 2 of his paeds exams!). So I can understand why he wants to go for Wessex.

It would be for 8 years which is quite a long time. But yeah I think it's best that he goes where he wants to, rather than resenting the fact I asked him to go for London. Like you said it's really not that far away anyway. I'm sure everything will work out in the end and there are lots of positives to working there (might even be able to afford more holidays yay).

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Reply 7987

Is it just me or do people tend to forget things they have learnt in previous years? I feel like I don't remember anything other than the obvious obvious things :frown:

Reply 7988

Original post by Nottie

Is it just me or do people tend to forget things they have learnt in previous years? I feel like I don't remember anything other than the obvious obvious things :frown:

Its definitely not just you! I find it comes back and is easy to understand stuff when you revise it again, but recalling it off hand is often impossible.

Reply 7989

chillisauce

1

Original post by ForestCat

Its definitely not just you! I find it comes back and is easy to understand stuff when you revise it again, but recalling it off hand is often impossible.

How are you feeling for the OSCE?

Reply 7990

Original post by chillisauce

How are you feeling for the OSCE?

Not scared enough probably. The written papers will be far worse I fear.

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Reply 7991

Original post by ForestCat

Its definitely not just you! I find it comes back and is easy to understand stuff when you revise it again, but recalling it off hand is often impossible.

yeah, I wanted to give my notes from 1st year to my medic children but guess I will need them for myself...

Reply 7992

Original post by Nottie

yeah, I wanted to give my notes from 1st year to my medic children but guess I will need them for myself...

Oh yeah, don't give your notes away! Keep them through all of pre-clinical years. I don't know about Nottingham but our exams can encompass anything ever basically. So whilst are end of pre-clinical exams will have a large proportion of neuro and pharmacology, the rest is on anything we've covered the last year and a half (2.5 for undergrads). Thats a lot of **** to learn!

Reply 7993

Original post by ForestCat

Oh yeah, don't give your notes away! Keep them through all of pre-clinical years. I don't know about Nottingham but our exams can encompass anything ever basically. So whilst are end of pre-clinical exams will have a large proportion of neuro and pharmacology, the rest is on anything we've covered the last year and a half (2.5 for undergrads). Thats a lot of **** to learn!

oh I think our exams, except for the OSCE, are just on what we have learnt in the given module. However, lots of things from first year are still relevant in 2nd year and even though we won't get questions on stuff we did last year, we still need that knowledge to understand this year material.
OSCE though is all 2 years

Reply 7994

Original post by Nottie

oh I think our exams, except for the OSCE, are just on what we have learnt in the given module. However, lots of things from first year are still relevant in 2nd year and even though we won't get questions on stuff we did last year, we still need that knowledge to understand this year material.
OSCE though is all 2 years

Lucky you! Although I suppose it could be more challenging in the fact you need to know more details about that module.

But in general, all exams suck!

Our OSCE is in less than 2 weeks, examinations and history taking mainly but the added bonus of questions after. Oh the joys!

Reply 7995

Original post by ForestCat

Lucky you! Although I suppose it could be more challenging in the fact you need to know more details about that module.

But in general, all exams suck!

Our OSCE is in less than 2 weeks, examinations and history taking mainly but the added bonus of questions after. Oh the joys!

and then you start clinical years?

Reply 7996

Original post by Nottie

and then you start clinical years?

If I pass the OSCE and the writtens in Jan, then yup... thats the plan.

Reply 7997