Block II: the HemOnc-ster

She is pictured left, the HemOnc-ster. Block II (out of eleven total) has the reputation of being one of the toughest in the second year. After the "wake-up, let's roll" introductory class (Block I: Tools for Diagnosis) where we were in lecture from 8am to 5pm almost every day, the more typical MS2 schedule began with Hematology-Oncology. Case discussions were every morning from 8-10, followed by two or three lectures through noon. The professors' PowerPoints were essentially 1 disease for each couple of slides (60 or so slides per lecture), and these pathologies would be the topic of case conferences the next morning. HemOnc is especially notorious for its amount of memorization and commitment to minutiae, and we weren't disappointed. The final exam average was around a 79 (the reason previous classes have dubbed this exam, "the HemOnc-ster"), which is the lowest average on a test that I can remember. I don't think the average has ever been below an 80 (and if I'm wrong, an angsty med student will surely correct me). The test questions were extremely detailed and a bit picky, so quite a few people I know thought they had a better grasp on the material than their performance gave them credit for (including myself). My least favorite question-types on these exams are, "Which is MOST CORRECT?" or "Which is the LEAST CORRECT answer choice?" All the answer choices my be right, but one of them is less right. Wonderful. I can't wait for my first patient to present to the emergency room with a multiple choice notecard on her forehead that says:

I am sick. I MOST CORRECTLY have:
a) TB
b) nodular-sclerosing Hodgkin's lymphoma
c) CHF
d) otitis media
e) all of the above
f) some of the above
g) none of the above - now i'm dead thanks to you...

But hey, moving on. There's no multiple choice in real life.

This year has certainly been a wake-up call. Ever once in a while, folks that I knew in my previous life (aka college) ask me how it's going. I usually say, "It's going, it's going. This year is a helluva lot tougher than last year. Way more studying." For some reason I expect a modicum of sympathy from this response, like I didn't choose this career path. Or perhaps I shouldn't have to put in all these hours in the coffee shops and library. I don't know why I am looking for sympathy. I know that this is a demanding career. I know that I didn't sign up for a nine-to-five or other normal job, and med school is supposed to be difficult. I guess I just simply wasn't ready for my free time to dwindle so rapidly. The pass/fail system made last year extremely easy (excluding biochemistry), and I had plenty of time to undertake many other endeavors. The material wasn't as important, and tests were biweekly. Now it feels like I'm studying for a test every few days. I told Mike Wilson that this would be a tough fall, and he said, "Good. I don't want my doctor to be an idiot."

Fair enough.

So, slowly I have settled in. Very slowly. I recognize now that I won't be able to do the same things as last year, and I'm going to have to put in a lot more work. Next year the days will be even longer (although I won't be sitting on my ass all day reading!), and residency will be the toughest. But mentally I've started to get my head around the fact that this is life. This is what I've gotten myself into. And maybe, just maybe, I'm ready.

So bring it on, Cardio.


(I was later corrected that the lowest average we've had on an exam was a 78. It was on the cardiovascular test during physiology this past spring... thank you angsty med students!)