Medical Idioms

After mastering clinical knowledge, familiarizing yourself with everyday spoken English is important in preparing for each 15 minute patient encounter for the Step 2 CS.
Practicing patient exams with a native English speaking American is imperative, as along with developing an ear for the language, the teacher can give you feedback regarding your interaction with the patient and steer you in the right direction.  Tips regarding body language, physical proximity, and appropriate responses should be provided by the teacher.  For example, if a patient is angry or upset when you enter the room, it may be best to avoid physical contact (shaking the patient's hand) for the time being.  At the end of the interview if you have succeeded in calming the patient down you may then consider parting ways with a hand shake.
Also, if the patient tells you he has a "throbbing headache" will you understand what he means?

 What if the patient tells you he's been feeling "down in the dumps?"

There is a great idiom site I like to use with students with a list of medical idioms.
Along with practicing patient interviews using Kaplan medical, my video clip exercises and idiom reviews are sure to help anyone pass the Step 2 CS.

Facing the Aftershock

Read my article by clicking on the text below:
The people of Japan in the face of disaster

Student Writing

History of me

何家榮

Kawing, Hong Kong

I have been studying piano for more than twenty years. I heard about the piano when I was four.  A classmate of mine in kindergarten who started learning piano at the age of four influenced me in learning piano.  Her father gave her a piano as a gift at her birthday party which made me wish to have a piano as well. 

At the age of eight, I finally started learning piano and owned my first piano. At the beginning, I studied and practiced really hard, but after a couple of years, I felt tired of playing it. In the following few years, my parents continued to force me to practice piano. Finally, I reached the Advanced Diploma level of piano in 1996.

In 1997, I attended a music foundation course in one of the universities in Hong Kong. The two year course provided me with a lot of musical knowledge, including western music history, music analysis, coral singing and performance techniques.  All of these reactivated my interest in music and also exposed me to the musical world on a higher level.

I graduated from a university in the UK in 2003, majoring in music. After that, I came back to Hong Kong and started my career. I am currently a performer, an educator, and a music producer. I enjoy my work and would be very happy to share my experiences in music with everyone.

Student Writing

An unconscious habit

　無意識の癖

Masaharu Yamauchi

山内　雅晴

Last month, I went to the blood donation center to donate plasma for the 95^th time. For me, providing blood that is as pure as a baby’s blood to society is my mission, I think.

So going there once or twice in a month is a routine event in my daily life. That day, as always, I took a medical examination given by a doctor, checking my blood pressure and taking a blood sample before donating blood. A plasma donation takes twice as long as a normal blood donation－almost one hour. They need to separate the plasma from the blood in a separator. And the separated blood is returned to my body. Although I like donating blood, I still don’t like being given a needle for a donation that is thicker than a normal one. Anyway it worked out well.  Also today, my blood was properly provided to society. The last process is to check the blood pressure by using an easy manometer to measure it binding my wrist like a watch. I didn’t expect this to cause trouble. Since the position where I put the device on my wrist is the same as my watch, I loosened the watch but didn’t take it off my wrist. A few minutes later, it displayed that my pulse was normal. And a nurse said, “Thank you for your cooperation. Please go home carefully. If you don’t stop feeling dizzy, call us.” And before leaving the center, we are supposed to be given a gift (toothpaste set, towel, socks, etc) from the reception clerk. When I got a toothpaste set and started to leave there, I realized that I didn’t have my watch on my wrist. I imagined I must have forgotten it on the chair. I returned to the desk and I told her that I may have forgotten my watch on the chair. Although she checked it, nothing was found. I tried to keep calm and said, “Thank you. I will look for again.” In my mind, I became upset and I started searching in my pockets. But nothing was found. I couldn’t recall what I did after loosening my watch. A few minutes later, I found it on the upper part of my arm. It was very embarrassing for the clerk and me.

Practice the "R" sound.