First Aid for the® USMLE Step 2 CS: Clinical Skills Exam (First Aid USMLE),   ISBN:9780071470582

Customer Rating: 

I read this book along with the two Kaplan books, and felt that this one was the least helpful of the three. You can see my review comparing all three books on the Kaplan Medical USMLE Step 2 CS: Complex Cases: 35 Cases You Are Likely to See on the Exam (Kaplan USMLE) page.

Customer Rating: 

I used only this book to review for my clinical skills exam. I studied from it daily and from cover to cover over a 12 week period. I also practiced scenarios on a family member, twice a week, using the dining room table as my makeshift exam table. By the time I went to take my exam, I felt confident and comfortable as I did when I practiced at home. I breezed through each clinical scenario and passed without a problem!

Customer Rating: 

The world of USMLE exams and books is quite expansive and most of the time you don't know how to navigate your way around. To begin with what anyone gets out of any book is usually subjective, and more apparent when an author gives you more opinion and less fact as we are all swayed by how we practice and think. It is difficult to think that science books would be motivated by by personal beliefs rather than scientific facts but an easy way for that to happen is for someone to give you extraneous details and obsolete material that has no bearing on what you'll actually encounter on test day.
For the step II CS, I purchased two books and USMLE world (which I recommend for everything else but this), the other books whose name I won't mention is really fit for CS in the seventies, except such an exam wasn't given then but the author needs to be abreast modern medicine.. You can't for instance expect someone to treat hysteria with a hysterectomy, or Syphilis by introducing malaria or more realistically administer 20 shots for rabies anymore.. there is a good reason we have continuing education and seminars so we are not stuck practicing some archaic form of medicine

Now to get to the beef. All you need is this book, and a friend a sibling, a well trained pet, and the 'actor' doesn't need to be trained in medicine, since they'll have the book to score you, what you have missed and what you've done correctly.. little things like draping the patient and washing your hands may seem trivial but honestly it all adds up and equally so. Maybe you didn't write in your differential for hearing loss: alport syndrome, but wrote Osteosclerosis and Meniere's disease, well each one will count for something, draping the patient might makeup for the third differential you've missed.. I am obviously pulling things out of the hat here but giving you a realistic picture. You'll be scored on a number of things, and the more you amass and do correctly the better your chances of passing... out of all the other USMLE exams, I can't imagine anyone failing this one.. These exams are alot about stamina it is true, but this is one where you don't have to wrack your brain for the correct answer.. since there is more than one correct answer.

All the cases on the actual test are quite similar to this book, you know you'll get chest pain, and hearing loss, and abdominal pain, the usual teenager, the depressed etc... if you follow this recipe to a T you can't lose!

a good advise for test date.. forget that they are actors and honestly treat every patient no matter how taxing as if they were a family member.. this is cousin Ed the annoying but I love him anyway.. this is aunt mona the histrionic but I love her anyway, that is uncle Zacharia the schizoid but I love him anyway and in general it is a good practice for life.. even if you go into pathology!

good luck on your test!

Customer Rating: 

I found that since i didn't get the book in the beginning but when I contacted the seller & showed my concern...he sent me another book ...& I got that one in the time when he said & it was as he told me about it so it was quite a good experience overall....Thanks....:)

Customer Rating: 

Study this book inside out and practice all the 30+ major cases in an 'exam-like' timed fashion with a friend, and you will have no problems passing the CS exam.