what does it take to fail CS

[av35]

So I just finished CS the other day and honestly if I had to grade myself I would should have failed, but reading through ppl's post and speaking with ppl afterward I am having trouble understanding how one fails, this is assuming that I actually pass.. i thought the cases were straightfoward, but like others i went in to the rooms and it was a total disaster by the time i finish questioning, i did not have enough time to do a a proper exam....there were things i left out of my notes...i realized this morning that on one(of the many) i had forgotten to write things pertaining the CC in the PE that I had tested...only b/c i was rushin to finish the note. one or two of the encounters i was baffled b/c all the questions i was asking were not getting answered...maybe it was a psych case i don't know...i really hope that i pass

I am assuming it would be worse to fail the CK though? any thoughts

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[kcrd]

I think there is a lot of slack in the grading of this test, because after I finished, I was sure that I failed, too. I passed the test but I had I had at least 2 cases where I had no idea what the problem was, so my h+p was far from focused. I had one case where I spent so much time on the history that I didn't have a chance to do a physical, and one where I totally bungled an ortho exam of a shoulder. I also missed putting certain exam findings and hpi details in a few soaps.

 

[Daiphon]

keep in mind that, fundamentally, this is an english test --> can you speak it & can you understand it.

there is a lot of leeway in the grading... oftentimes there are a few encounters that are training for the standardized patients and/or attempts to introduce new scenarios into the CS.

also, keep in mind that the CS was founded primarily on canadian and ECFMG data; so there is only one real year, thus far, of US medical student data on which to base the pass/fail benchmark. as more of us get hosed by having to take the test, it will likely become harder to pass.

long story short: wash your hands, introduce yourself, ask appropriate questions (my SP's were horrible with the open-ended q's, so i went straight for the specifics), don't be afraid to say "i don't know... but we'll find out," and don't sweat the test. if you fail - retake, it's not nearly as bad as failing CK.

my $.02 (actual cash value 1/20th of a cent)
-t