Customer Reviews

Own the Boards: Rapid Internal Medicine Board Review and Recertification Guide

5 star:		(3)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I attended the live course (2 days) in Dallas and saw the new book which is quite similar to the handout given during the course. I would say it is an excellent concise board preparation booklet. It should not be your primary source for preparation of course but can be used the month before the exam to review the board basics. I found the section about biostatistics and acid-base balance very easy to understand.

Let me start by saying that there is no substitute for good solid studing, but having said that when it comes down to crunch time you need something that can have all the info needed to remember what you've done so you can easily review. Dr. Peikari's notes are that and what is better than that is now his book. I went to his 2 day couse in Dallas and that about sums it all up !! What you don't get elsewhere is how to resolve that Acid Base and statistic problems that are always on the boards that invariably get missed and those are throw away points that don't come back and could make the difference between passing and failing !!!!!!

I used the book for the re-certification exam. I see the primary virtues of the book in 1) the second chapter, which when reviewed the immediate days before the test are very helpful with acid/base and sensitivity/specificity/PPV/NPP, 2) the first chapter on overall advice for the exam, 3) portability and dimunitive size. The drawbacks are 1) reductionist lists that are less suited to use alone, 2) small and haphazard online image bank that seemed an afterthought, 3) a price I thought was not a great value for the content. Overall, the book was helpful, but mainly as a convenient adjunct and portable reinforcing material for more comprehensive sources such as MKSAP or Hopkins.

This is a great book for those who like concise and to the point outline form reviews. I just took my ABIM recertification for Internal Medicine yesterday and found that this book helped me with multiple questions. The specific focus of this book on key points aided me as I read through my broader based study materials. Because of its format and size, it was great to carry around with me while waiting for appointments, etc and get some directed studying time in. The image bank included in the purchase is also helpful, there were some images here I couldn't find anywhere else. I learned a lot reading this book, and particularly thought the sections on statistics and ABG's were second to none, the teaching is superb. I plan to pass on these same teaching methods when I teach residents on the wards. The questions were also very helpful, similar in format to the real test. I wish Dr. Peikari would develop a book just with questions.

This is an unusual review book and I'm surprised it has received the strong reviews it has on Amazon. The first section deals very briefly - but reasonably well - with triple acid base questions and basic medical statistics. (the medical statistics are better explained in MKSAP or Medstudy) The second half - and the majority of the book - is a very sketchy and essentially useless outline of key medical topics that you should know for the board. It is simply impossible to meaningfully outline the subject material in such a limited space. Medstudy, Hopkins and Mayo all do a better job and the book added little to my preparation for the boards.