For ACEM trainee Dr Colleen Taylor preparation is the key when facing exams.
And she should know, having been awarded the Buchanan Prize for her performance in the 2018.2 Fellowship Clinical Examination (OSCE).
The Buchanan Prize is awarded to the candidate achieving the highest score in the OSCE.
“It is obviously a massive honour to be awarded the Buchanan Prize and the highlight of my medical career so far,” Dr Taylor said.
Mental preparation
Dr Taylor, who is from Western Australia, advised fellow trainees to “be in the right headspace” to sit the OSCE exam. “It is a mentally consuming process and you need to be able to give it your best,” she said. “There is no right or wrong but I really needed a year between written and OSCE exams to mentally recharge.”
Dr Taylor said the key to the exam is practise. “Passing the written means your knowledge is more than adequate for the OSCE, but you need to practise,” she said.
“I was lucky enough to be at Fiona Stanley Hospital, where there was a huge opportunity for OSCE practise every week. Wherever you work, make the most of sessions run at your hospital, particularly with experienced DEMTs and consultants who know the exam process well. I also found working in a small group and meeting weekly for practise and moral support incredibly helpful.”
And preparing to the format of the exam is crucial. “Practise to time; seven minutes to complete a station seems overwhelming when you start, but with practise it becomes less daunting,” Dr Taylor said.
No doubt trainees will face nerves, and for Dr Taylor combating them came down to developing a strategy. “I cannot describe the physical anxiety I felt on the day,” she said. “I used tactical breathing as a large part of my four minutes outside each station. It enabled me to calm my nerves and allowed me to completely forget the preceding station, focussing on the next. Find a tactic that works for you and use it in every OSCE you practise from the beginning.”
As for her advice on the day of the exam, Dr Taylor highlights the need for a key communication skill.
“Listen to the confederate,” she said. “They are there to help you and allow them to re-direct you if needed in a station.”
Dr Taylor adds: “Be yourself. Try to immerse yourself in the station and think of it as a day-to-day encounter with a patient, rather than an exam.”
How to prepare for the Fellowship Exams
ACEM provides an extensive range of online resources featuring past papers, past exam reports, and much more. These are all located on eLearning under ‘Resources for Trainees’.