TMJ Show - TheMDJourney Podcast

Sometimes there's too much pressure on pre-meds on coming up with a plan on how to study for the MCAT. Getting into med school I get it, it's one of the many important tests you have to take on your way to becoming a doctor. But under all that pressure, is a plan that has to be made on how to study. There are lot of ways to study, resources that everyone seems to be recommending and all-...

Good grades on your clinical rotations can play a big role in your application for residency, so how do you stand out? After several years in the classroom, here you are about to start your first set of clinical clerkships. For med students like yourself that don't know where to start, well you are in the same position as Tony. Tony is in his 2nd year in a Caribbean med school and in this lat...

How do you study during your first year of med school!? As a new med student, it can be really tough to start to find your footing and see what works. What got you through premed, doesn't always take you all the way to med school graduation, residency match, and even past Step 1. Histology, Pathology, Krebs Cycle and many other topics can take up a lot of your studying time. And by the time y...

How do you overcome a low Step 1 Score and still get into residency!? Step 1 has turned into more of a pass/fail exam and if you don't perform well, there are still things you can do to be able to reach residency. Step 2 is key and being prepared for that and performing is really important. But outside of exams, you have to reflect on yourself and the work you've done. Why do you want to...

It's not breaking news to anyone that med school is expensive. But which ones are the most expensive and what institution holds the number 1 spot with over $68,000.00+ in tuition per semester!? Here's a breakdown! Becoming a doctor is not cheap. Going to college for pre-meds alone can bury you in student debt for years, even decades if things don’t go as planned. Then you are off to med...

As pre-meds plan how to get into med school, they may think that some institutions are just beyond reach whether it be due to their acceptance rate, too high of an MCAT, GPA requirements, high tuition costs or others. But what may surprise you is that some of the hardest medical schools to get into, are not what you think. In fact, you can be thinking about going to one of the pickiest med schools...

As 4th year med students say goodbye to med school and look ahead to the USMLE Step 3 and residency, a lot of questions come up. “How do you prepare for what’s next?”, “What is Step 3 like?” “How much time should I spend on the boards for residency?”. So, at the start of this series, we'll talk to real people in different paths of their M.D. journey and talk all about the life of and becoming...

Productivity and time-management YouTubers have praised the powerful app Notion for what it’s done for their lives. Now, I am going to take you to a full breakdown on how I use it to simplify my life - from working as an internal medicine resident, coaching my students, up to my daily routine and everyday life. Like you, I heard about Notion from the Ali Abdaals and Thomas Franks of the YouTube pr...

One of the most powerful study tools out there for med students is Anki. But how do you use it like the pros who get honors? There is no such thing as the perfect study tech stack. Everyone will have their own note-taking, flashcard, calendaring and reminder apps. For flashcards in particular, there’s Quizlet, Brainscape and many others. But what I often caution my students is to be careful about...

How can you save money while in residency? Saving money as a medical resident may sound unrealistic. After all, you just spent years studying as a pre-med and then a medical student and took out loans worth $100,000.00+ more or less. If you’re lucky, maybe someone sponsored or paid for your education, or got a good-paying job that fit your schedule in med school. But in a lot of cases, you’re prob...

What is running a code actually like!? You see it a lot in movies and have probably heard about it through actual doctors whether you’re a pre-med, med student or outside of the medical field. One of the most dramatized parts of being a doctor is running a code, especially code blue. A team of medical staff from doctors, nurses and others drop everything they are doing when they get paged or calle...

I talk a lot about getting into med school, USMLE Step 1, 2, & 3, studying, life of a medical resident, how to become a medical doctor and the general M.D. Journey, but I haven’t discussed how exactly I became a doctor. I started thinking about a career in medicine when I was younger. I thankfully did not have any major medical issue, but people close to me did. The impact of seeing what a doc...

If you’re a med student getting ready for USMLE Step 1, I understand there’s a lot of pressure on how to prepare for the exam. Let me help you lessen the stress by introducing a resource that can eliminate the guesswork of where to begin and what to study, and get you a step closer to 250+, Picmonic! As a medical resident who has gone through all the exams from Step 1 to 3, I remember what it was...

The USMLE Step 3 is still fresh in my mind. After studying, taking and thinking about how the test went, all while doing residency, there definitely are a lot of lessons learned. After Step 1 and Step 2, med students already have an idea on how USMLE exams go and how to prepare for them. By the time Step 3 rolls in, you’d have close to a complete plan of which resources to trust and what strategie...

I finally took Step 3! I had my views on how easy or hard certain parts of the test would be. The test affirmed some of those, but had some pleasant surprises along the way. We’ve talked a lot about Step 1 and Step 2, the different ways to study and resources a med student can use. So, when Step 3 came along, I had a better idea on how to prepare and what resources to trust. Sometimes, you can get...

Many aspiring doctors wonder how former med students got more done in less time during their stay in medical school. So many can crumble under the pressure and get overwhelmed by the 8-10 hour days of med school life. It’s always one thing after another from Step 1 and dedicated prep, Step 2, clinical clerkship, preparing for the match and so on! I have heard this concern a lot from my coaching st...

The COVID-19 pandemic took over 2020 and we can only hope for things to get better this year. But what is life actually like to take care of COVID-19 patients especially in the ICU!? I can tell you, there’s a lot of humble pie, an appreciation for what a united team can do, and a reminder of the sacrifice and important good work healthcare workers do in this moment of crisis. When I was first assi...

Picmonic is a great learning platform that can play a big role in helping med students study, remember and prepare for their clinical rotations and have a better path towards honors. But how exactly does it do that!? By the time you get to your 3rd or 4th year and start preparing for your clinical clerkship, you’ve probably heard enough buzz about it to maybe get super excited, really nervous or s...

What’s the difference between an intern, a resident and a fellow!? There are many things to remember, understand and analyze in med school. But figuring out the different terms to refer to a doctor from a physician, resident, intern and attending can also be an added confusion. We will tackle three of these terms and have a clearer understanding of the key differences between a new practicing doct...

With so much to do and a never-ending list of things to think about, it may seem impossible to have a job in med school. In an ideal world, when you realize you want to work in medicine, the only work you want is related to healthcare. But in reality, there are monthly bills to pay and tuition fees that aren’t getting any lower. Plus, you realize that those salaries you googled are only entering y...

What is it like working 28 hours straight in the hospital!? When and why do residents take on overnight calls!? Do you really lose that much sleep!? What should you know before doing your first call!?   As a 2nd year resident, I can tell you, overnight calls are not the most exciting in the world. It’s fair to say that you’d rather be home with your loved ones and pets. But there are definitely be...

How do you study better in med school? Are residents paid for their long shifts!? What resources should I use for Step 1!? What study strategy should I implement with those resources!? What should be changed in med school!? I have received so many questions about medical school, being a resident, studying for tests, and others that I wanted to make a video to answer them all! This video will tackl...

How do you study for the shelf exams in your rotations effectively!? Med school life comes at you fast when you’re preparing for your shelf exams and working on your clinical clerkship. You know there will be a test after it, but finds it difficult to prepare in real-time and becomes easier said than done. Pre-meds and undergrads can only imagine what med students already in this phase of their M....

How do you keep up with your USMLE Step 3 Schedule? I am studying and preparing for Step 3 and a lot has changed since my first video and how I planned to tackle it. Hours and in my rotations and time in the hospital has forced me to make changes in my study schedule, number of questions reviewed for UWORLD per day, taking on a new resource and others. Not everything is going to plan but others ha...

How do you create amazing assessments and plans in medical school? For some premeds and med students, there is too much information coming at you fast! This makes piecing together information to have a cohesive, understandable and actionable assessment for yourself, nurses and other doctors really difficult. With everything going on in med school, especially with your rotations, sometimes there&ap...