the tabletthe clinical school magazine

July 2011Issue 3

For your Ideas, Concerns and Expectations

“The Tablet” is used with the express permission of the trademark owner The Tablet Publishing Company. Please see website: http://www.thetablet.co.uk

EDITORSFern AdamsMrinal Singh

REPORTEROllie D’Arcy

FASHIONEmily Brown

WELFARELucy Loong

SPORTCillian Forde

PHOTOGRAPHYNaomi Sakai

SPECIAL THANKS TO:Dhaneesha Senaratne, Ramesh Nadarajah, Sid Lawrence, Grace Brown, Sarah Wilkinson, Charles Parker, Natasha Aikman, Graham Pluck, PasTest

CONTACT DETAILSGeneral enquiries/submissions: cambridgetablet@gmail.comAgony Aunt:courtney.tendineae@gmail.com

the tabletthe clinical school magazine

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ContentsFeature

Lonely Placement

Fashion

Agony Aunt

Sport

Issue 3 July 2011

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Find us on Twitter:@CambridgeTablet

The opinions expressed in The Tablet are those of the contributors and do not represent those of the University of Cambridge School of Clinical Medicine.

Pink shirt, beige chinos, tanned loafers, smaller -than-average cerebral cortex. Fighting off grannies left, right and centre and able to charm any nurse any time anywhere, these students exude an aura of confidence and charisma. Oft-leered at by dieticians these boys are certainly the clinical school front of house…in their minds. In reality they’re nothing more than pack animals, and the pre-historic waving of their shafts around the pool table reflects their need to be surrounded by balls at all times.

GOD COMPLEX The ultimate exponent of “ fake it till to you make it”

They have spent their lives correcting people: their parents on grammar; their nursery teacher about the alphabet; the maths teacher about trigonometry, and now the rest us about frankly anything to do with medicine. In fact, they’re more worried about Royal College exams than the pathology syllabus. You can’t deny they’re going places but for the time being even they need to pick their battles carefully. Note for future: consultant cardiologists at Addenbrooke's generally know more about referred pain from cardiac ischaemia than students, so if they are willing to “agree to disagree” that’s code for “come back in 30 years junior”.

WANNABE CONSULTANT “Am I right in thinking...”

The Medical Student Phenotype

You know who you are…Medical school is a weird and wonderful place, it manages to attract people from all corners of the globe and from all walks of life. But medics manage to take unique to the extreme and here we pay homage to some of those characters you know and love.

Printed at Minuteman Press, 154/156 Victoria Road, Cambridge CB4 3DZ

Figure 1: C.R.A.P: Cambridge Research into Attitudes and Personalities

Words: Sid Lawrence/Ramesh Nadarajah/Fern Adams

You arrive for teaching...

You want to do...

Your GCS is typically...

Your friends describe you as...

The majority of your time is spent at...

Your supervision strategy is...

Natural habitat?

5 minutes late

20 minutes early What teaching?

Medicine Coffee

A “Massive Lad”

Intimidating My only friends are my textbooks

Surg

ery I don't

The LancetHome

12-13

14-15 <8

Hos

pita

l I don't

SubstanceWard

LabMale-dominated

specialties

MBPhD Power Woman

Style Neither

God Complex

Wannabe consultant

Concourse catwalk

Peninsula's that way

You think you know it all

You actually know it all

Energy drinks

Fretter

You stay awake with...

You prefer to read...

Style or substance?

Ohm

igod, so many questions!

Bored waiting for a clinic to start? Been sent out side because the patient doesn’t want you in the room? This month’s app is the perfect way to while away those idle minutes. Prognosis: Your Diagnosis is a clinical case simulation app that provides medical and surgical case scenarios based on real patients. Follow the patient through history, examination, investigations and management—all in 5 minutes! At the end of the case, your performance is marked before you’re taken to a referenced discussion of the issues involved. A new case is added every week, so you’re never stuck for something to do. Don’t expect to learn everything from this app, but it’s definitely possible to pick one or two things up per case, albeit in a slightly unconventional way. Also available for Android. Cillian Forde

App of the Month

CCSFAIL

Consultant: “What’s this?”(Gestures to model horse)Patient: “I don’t know…your wife?”p Neurology clinic

Prognosis: Your DiagnosisPrice: Free

Clock changes to save lives?Doctors at the BMA conference have supported plans to move the clocks forward an hour in both the summer and winter, a move which would bring us in line with Central European time. It is argued that this would save lives by avoiding many traffic accidents. There has been fierce resistance from people further north in Scotland where the proposed changes would mean that it would be 10 am before they saw daylight on some days.

Thin gene increases cardiovascular riskA study published in Nature Genetics has shown that variation in the IRS1 gene associated with decreased body fat is also linked to increased cardiovascular risk. This challenges the widely held belief that thin people are unanimously at a lesser cardiovascular risk.

Antibiotic resistance solution?A report published by the World Health Organisation suggests that training medical students to prescribe antibiotics prudently may be the key to combating the global antibiotic resistance crisis. With ever increasing numbers of resistant organisms emerging and fewer new therapeutic interventions becoming available this is now more important than ever.

Hinchingbrooke operations transferred to AddiesAll colorectal surgery operations due to take place at Hinchingbrooke Hospital, Huntingdon, have been transferred to Addenbrooke’s as a temporary measure, pending the outcome of an investigation. An independent investigation into colorectal surgery at the hospital was commissioned after concerns were raised by the coroner after a series of deaths. All other surgery at Hinchingbrooke hospital will be unaffected.

News in Brief

“Have you tried using your bell-end?”p Advice on how best to identify that rumbling mid-diastolic mitral stenosis murmur

“So loving and caring it makes me sick”p Consultant Surgeon

Meet the 99th centile, the epitome of the best university in the world—if you fancy attending a Nobel prize ceremony make friends now. But how-ever big their frontal cortex, they’re living proof that the limbic system is not favoured by evolution. To them ‘The Notebook’ is merely a fascinating study of the disease process. Furthermore their PhD on the ‘Recurrent PRKAR1A mutation in Acrodysostosis with hormone resistance’ will come in very handy when they’re filling out all your TTOs in a few years time.

Massive-Brained People-Hating Doctor (MB/PHD) Nine years of education cannot teach you people skills

Causing testicular atrophy and panic-buy breast augmentations as they move inexorably to the Royal College of Surgeons, the power woman is an unstoppable juggernaut. They employ shock-and-awe tactics: the clip-clop of Carvela heels is the early warning siren for all nurses to scurry to the supplies closet, patients to feign sleep and male doctors to hide their rogue masochistic excitement. But away from the hospital this lioness spends her evenings sifting through sperm donor catalogues with only a bottle of chilled pinot grigio for company.

THE POWER WOMAN Hell hath no fury like a woman

A frown from a consultant and you would have thought that a kitten had been killed and anything but ‘exactly’ will leave them on the cusp of self-flagellation. Their obsequious nature and obsession with attendance records would lead them to an R&I week lecture on ‘lipids’ in Helmand Province, even forsaking body armour to reinforce their notepad. The more indolent among us could learn from their dedication, but rewriting every examina-tion in McLeod’s word for word is a bit excessive.

THE FRETTER Midazolam at the ready

This flock of showbirds quickly discarded the introductory lecture on appropriate dress in favour of a unique approach to patient welfare. Forget inspection, palpation, percussion and auscultation—try cleavage, heels, hair and make-up with an added whiff of Chanel as they lean in to check your conjunctiva. Like sailors to sirens, doctors fawn over them but we pose three questions: Would they scrub up and risk hat-hair and dry skin? Would they get on their knees…for CPR? And finally, which would be worse, losing a heel or losing a patient?

CONCOURSE CATWALK No one knows, or frankly cares, if there are brains behind the beauty

Six years may seem like a long time but when 90% of information drains through your sieve-like brain there are just not enough hours in the day. Clerical error? (Very) Generous donation? Or maybe they were just making up the numbers (Girton college)? We all know one... but no one knows how they slipped through the net. In the Sherwood room, however, they are the cooling ‘yin’ to the raging ‘yang’ of narcissists and perfection-ists—the lives they will lose on the wards they have saved twice over in the clinical school.

PENINSULA’S THAT WAYOur canary down the mineshaft

Don’t know who we’re talking about? That’s the point—you can see them in the matriculation photo and you'll see them at graduation, but in between...

THE MISCELLANY“It’s always the quiet ones...”

NB Every medical student is unique, so please don't be offended by any of the stereotypes above. Remember you are special.

Another hospital, another ward, another admin team, another set of faces and another awful set of accommodation. In our quick guide to your DGH, Fern Adams gives you the essentials on how to survive your exile from Addenbrooke’s.

Lonely placement

WE

ST

SU

FFO

LK

Nestled amongst beautiful ancient cedar trees and next to a sizeable heath, one would be forgiven for mistaking WSH

for Centre Parcs (it’s even got that portacabin look about it). The hospital is a smallish but well thought out affair in the centre of Bury St Edmunds, arranged in an easy to navigate square. While the accommodation is onsite, parking can be a bit of a nightmare if you plan to commute so arrive early and try not to park beneath the trees if you care about what your car looks like when you’re driving around: sticky sap + bird poo = fit.

The medical education centre is a snazzy glass-fronted building with a large library, various seminar rooms and the medical education staff: go here for grand round, internet sign-up, book loans (which you’ll need since the accommodation wireless is so dodgy) and for your info pack on the first day.

The doctor’s mess is on the ground floor next to the new pharmacy (which, when installed, covered up all the windows in the mess—hello nuclear bunker). Although a bit dingy it has all the usual amenities with pool, table football, sofas, Sky TV, free tea, coffee and newspapers. And what’s more, it is used infrequently by the junior doctors—a students’ haven!

The hospital itself is great because the doctors are keen to teach. And if they don’t offer it up spontaneously, invariably they are still keen if you suggest it yourself! Full of friendly staff, lovely patients (most of the time) and a fair number of students—even if they are grads—West Suffolk is rather nice.

The Hospital

H

Medical Education staff: You only see them on the first day and if you have any problems so I don’t even know their names...

The office is incredibly easy to find. Little and large, one nice one snappy, you’ll figure out which way round!

Dr Paul Siklos: the recorded voice of the OSCEs and those thrilling examination videos and lectures on ERWeb. Used to be director of the grad course until—ding “move on please”.

Dr John Clark: Scottish endocrinologist, new director of the grad course.

Mrs. Sarah Gull: if O&G could stand for anything else with this lady it would be “Ohmygod you’re totally Gaga”. Lucy Cavendish tutor.Dr. Jessica White: Hughes Hall tutor and a rather intense respiratory physician.

The People

The Area

Bury is particularly nice—the perfect size to walk into town with all the standard amenities you could wish for. Clustered in

the centre is a new-age shopping centre (ARC), Cineworld (with cursory Frankie and Benny’s of course) with various restaurants and high street shops packed around. Closer to the hospital (a 5-10 min walk down the hill) is a Tesco Express and pub. The larger Tesco is near the sugar factory off junction 43 of the A14.

WSH boasts what must be the only cafeteria in the East Anglia Deanery that is so popular that no one uses the doctors’ mess.

Time Out is a huge hit with all the staff at WSH (hence the empty mess) and the food and drinks are great. Win.

Outside of the hospital the Spread Eagle is a favourite, but there are plenty of pubs locally and many restaurants dotted around.

Food & Drink

AccommodationThere are two mains blocks of accommodation. Both have free wireless internet, if infuriatingly intermittent. Most

Car: hop on the A14 eastbound and get off at junction 44. Follow the signs to the hospital. In total it takes roughly 30 mins by car

and really isn’t taxing at all. Train: Jump on the train direct from Cambridge to Bury (on the Ipswich line): A mere 42 min-utes that runs once an hour. Between these times you can change at Ely but it’s best to check in advance.Bus: The number 11 bus from Drummer Street will take you to Bury via Newmarket. Taking roughly 1h15 this is the cheapest but longest op-tion and the first bus will get you into Bury for 08.45am providing there are no delays. Beware the last bus back to Cambridge is at 5pm!

Travel

West Suffolk Hospital, Bury St. Edmunds

Words: Fern Adams/Graham Pluck

4

accommodation is in flats of four with nice showers, irons and ironing board and clean kitchens that are equipped the essentials for cooking. The flats are cleaned daily too. The classic hospital bedding is provided so take a duvet if you get cold and a pillow if you don’t want to rustle all night long. Parking is conveniently right outside the accommodation and the hospital is approximately 30 seconds walk!

qMap of West Suffolk Hospital

Lonely PlacementK

ING

'S LY

NN

Verdict

p Map of QEHKL

Queen Elizabeth Hospital, King's Lynn (QEHKL)

• The Hospital: King’s LynnEasy to get around, friendly, welcoming and all in one place.

• The People: King’s LynnAside from the UEA students, King’s Lynn is easy to fit into and everyone is part of the team.

• The Area: WSHBury really is a lovely town with lots to do on those boring placement nights in.

• Food and Drink: WSHCheap cakes, coffee and brilliant food in the hospital canteen—who’d have though it possible.• Accommodation: TieWhile both have plastic pillows and duvets, they each have their pros and cons. At the end of the day, both

The Hospital

H

Travel

The People

The Area

Food & Drink

Accommodation

are clean, comfortable and have excruciatingly slow internet.• Travel: WSHEasy, little to no traffic and you don’t have to have to travel to the deepest depths of the Fens. No webbed feet here apart from the ducks in the court-yards.• Overall: West Suffolk Hospital Ducks in the courtyards, how can that not be a winner?!

5

King’s Lynn have cleverly designed their hospital to be based on just one corridor looped into a circle —so whichever

direction you choose to set off on, you’re guaranteed to arrive at your destination! Couple this with the fact that the hospital is really quite small and you’ll realise that it’s quite hard to claim getting lost as a reason for turning up late!

The upside of King’s Lynn diminutive size is that you can quickly start to feel like part of the team—you’ll soon recognise lots of the faces in the mess and on the wards. However, the main downside is how quiet it can be. The doctors’ mess is quite busy during the day, but is empty at night (max. 3 of us even when the Apprentice is on!). Sadly there aren’t many perks either—the sofas and flat screen TV are in the room reserved for doctors (apparently we have to be invited in, but you can usually take over at night as it’s empty anyway), and you have to pay to use the pool table. The free tea and coffee isn’t too bad though.

Most of the teaching is based in the Education Centre. It can be found in a corridor that runs down the middle of the hospital – a handy shortcut to the front of the hospital from the accommodation if you want to avoid going around the outside in the rain!

The librarian is a great person to get to know—she’s generally very helpful with the computers/printing/getting lost! Dawn

the clinical skills tutor is very enthusiastic, and happy to teach (find her in the education corridor towards the back of the hospital). The surgeons are a good bunch, but some of the medical registrars can rope you into paperwork-heavy ward rounds. Word of warning: UEA students are bussed in for some specialities and can occupy all the clinics.

The hospital is about 2-3 miles outside of the centre of King’s Lynn. If you hear someone talk-ing about a “Gaywood”, then

don’t worry—that’s just the name of the local estate that the hospital is based in! There are two big Tesco’s within 1-2 miles which are perfect if you have a car, but not ideal to quickly walk to. There’s also a Morrison's next to the station.

For lunch, the hospital canteen (1st floor) has a good selection of hot food and sandwiches, but isn’t the cheapest. Unfortunately

it shuts at 4pm, so is no use for dinner. There’s also a coffee shop near the hospital main entrance, but expect Costa prices. Usual selection of cakes and paninis, queue gets pretty long at lunch. For breakfast it’s easiest to eat in the accommodation, and probably recommended for lunch too. Asda can deliver food to the accommodation in the evenings if you order online.

Most of the pubs are in the historic town centre, which is quite far from the hospital—take a taxi or have a designated driver. The Lattice House is one of the nicer pubs—a Wetherspoons in an old barn-like house with quite a good atmosphere. They run a pub quiz on Mondays, often with a bonus medical round. Food and drinks are pretty cheap.

Keep an eye out for the doctor’s mess nights out, usually advertised in the TV room.

The rooms have been quite recently decorated and come with plenty of storage space, and the kitchens are adequately equipped.

Beware if you enjoy hot showers though as the water is lukewarm at best. Maintenance is often done on the bathroom without prior warning, so don’t be surprised to find two men dismantling

Car: Driving varies massively with traffic – on a Sunday night it takes just over an hour, but on a Friday afternoon it has taken

almost two hours. Take the A10 until you reach the outskirts of King’s Lynn, then take the 4th exit at the massive roundabout and the hospital is on the 1st exit of the next roundabout. Parking is pretty limited near the accommodation, but we can use the staff car park 2 minutes down the road. Make sure you display the parking permit provided to avoid a hefty fine.Train: Leave Cambridge every hour with a journey time of roughly 45 minutes. Price: Just under £11 for an off-peak return (with a YP railcard).The station is about 2 miles away from the hospital. The bus stops outside the hospital entrance, and taxis are available (although they need to be booked in advance).

it when you wake up. Sheets and towels are provided, as is a “duvet”. However, I would avoid this as much as possible—it’s made entirely of plastic and feels strangely similar to the nappies we were using on the Paediatric ward! Wireless internet is available but is painfully slow—iPlayer doesn’t work at all. The accommodation office is behind the Willows block if there are any problems, but they keep limited hours.

Top tip: For a shortcut to the hospital, look for a little door just past the GUM clinic and you'll find yourself next to the Macmillan Centre.

Words: Sarah Wilkinson/Charles Parker

Fashion

Let Emily Brown be to your wardrobe what your Oxford Handbook is to your future as a doctor

6

For me, the only good thing about returning to school in September each year was the obligatory shopping trip

in the days beforehand, in which one was equipped with a new lunchbox, pencil case (with matching stationery, naturally), and, if you were really lucky, a new bag.

Now, unfortunately, we have entered the Real World where there is no longer an idyllic six-week summer holiday (or even a three-month vacation, ahem) to separate one academic year from the next. However, friends, we can still recapture that back-to-school excitement by investing in a new bag for the start of the next part of our training; here’s a handy Tablet cut-out-and-keep guide to assist you in your hunt for the perfect specimen.

There are many things to consider in the choice of a suitable bag for the medical student or junior doctor. One is size: the bag must be able to comfortably hold your phone, notebook, diary, stethoscope (plus or minus assorted other bits of medical kit), multiple pens, Oxford Handbook if you are that way inclined, and, most importantly, a selection of snacks. Be sure, too, that the bag has plenty of pockets, especially of the nifty concealed type—these are useful for secreting cash, as well as the aforementioned snacks. Don’t go for a bag that’s too big, though; I once met a lady who told me with glee that she’d recently found a tin of tomato soup in the bottom of her large handbag, which she’d been carrying around in blissful ignorance for at least a couple of months. Do not be this lady.

In terms of the look of your bag, the satchel styles which came into vogue last summer are still very popular, and eminently suited to our purposes: there are many examples available that are a reasonable size, and they look professional without being stuffy. In addition, they can be worn by both boys and girls (let it never be said that this column focuses exclusively on female fashion...!), and can be carried with the strap across the body, which is much more comfortable (and better for the ol’ musculoskeletal system) than wearing a bag on one shoulder only. Colour-wise, go for black, tan or dark brown to keep things smart; for bonus points, match your bag, belt and shoes (practical life advice from my sixth-form tutor).

Of course, price must be factored in; as with everything in fashion, bags can be cheap, expensive, or the Holy Grail, value for money. Pay enough that it is able to withstand the rigors of hospital life, bearing in mind the frequency with which you will use it (remember that cost-per-wear is a useful unit of measurement if parents, boyfriends/girlfriends, or other interested third parties still need a little persuasion). Do not, however, purchase a beautiful but expensive creation that will break your heart when you scuff it, scratch it, spill things in it, and sling it under the nurses’ station in the rush to get to teaching.

So there you have it, the motive and the means to go bag-shopping this summer; all you need now is the opportunity—and the matching stationery…

13" Vintage Brown Satchel£78 Cambridge Satchel

Company(cambridgesatchel.co.uk)

Leather Twist Lock Vintage Style Satchel£70 ASOS (asos.com)

ZACWB1323476

Tan Smart Satchel£32 Miss Selfridge

(missselfridge.com)49D58HTAN

Transfix Me Tan Suede Leather Bag

£69.99 Clarks (clarks.co.uk)

Brown’s Beauties

Agony Aunt 7

Data Interpretation for Medical StudentsPrice: £25.99The ability to interpret clinical data accurately is imperative for both exams and your future career as a doctor. PasTest’s ‘Data Interpretation for Medical Students’ provides notes and sample questions on a comprehensive range of topics from haematology to ECGs to genetics.

Recommended as a good investment for the clinical years, it is apparent that the book is not solely aimed at passing finals. Rather it is more of an introduction to data interpretation specifically involved in clinical medicine.

Each of its fifteen chapters is subject-based, providing notes and tables on a specific topic, before the end-of-chapter cases section allows you to assess your learning. The book concludes with a ‘Complete Clinical Cases’ chapter, which integrates many different types of data interpretation into a series of cases. The layout is clear and concise, but I found the lilac colour scheme tiresome after the first few pages.

Don’t expect a book that will guarantee you ace data interpretation in your finals. Instead expect an excellent resource that will help you build your knowledge and understanding of clinical data interpretation. 4/5

• PAUL HAMILTON • IAN BICKLE •

Data Interpretation F O R M E D I C A L S T U D E N T S

Things are hotting up! As the days get longer, the skirts get shorter and the frolicking of May week leaves its miscellaneous itches in many a knicker, I thought maybe we should talk about sexual health. Sure we all probably have more than the average

knowledge of STIs, but can we practise what we preach?

Dear Courtney,A few weeks ago I landed myself in a

rather peculiar situation. I was on my GU medicine placement and found myself sat in a clinic with a doctor who had, how shall we put it, literally seen a rather different side of me. The first 15 minutes of the clinic I spent trying to enter the mindset of a GU physician but not to understand the ins and outs (excuse the pun) of sexual history taking, but instead to ponder whether or not he remembered me. I wondered whether you could offer any advice to prevent any future embarrassment.

Thank you for your email, this is an important point! All these appointments are strictly confidential but I understand how that would be embarrassing. Firstly we all have to do GUM clinics and secondly we should all get ourselves checked out from time to time. However for

those who would be mortified should you be discovered by a fellow student whilst waiting for an appointment or who would be bothered by having to spend 3 hours with someone who has been privy to the contents of your undercrackers, I thought I would take this space to remind you of the existence of an alternative to Clinic 1A.

The Laurels is a NHS-run sexual health clinic hidden discretely away on Newmarket Road behind the Grafton Centre. It offers STI screens, GUM appointments and contraceptive advice. Plus the online booking system means you don’t even have to go through the trauma of picking up a phone to book an appointment—you can choose the time and place you would like online (www.sexualhealthcambs.nhs.uk).

Now come on, you know you’ve been meaning to get yourself checked out for the last few years. Stop hiding behind the excuse that you might be seen by someone you know.

Dear Courtney,My boyfriend is a medic and he has a thing for latex gloves....and? What’s the problem? You don’t have a latex allergy do you? There had to be some other reason on top of the tired ‘I want to help people’ to decide to do medicine.

Medical fetishes are, to say the least, fairly well established (and in retrospect not a wise thing to type into a Google search in the district hospital computer room whilst researching an article), and stretch far beyond sterile gloves and surgical masks!

Seriously though, if it’s making you feel uncomfortable, just tell the guy; I’m sure he’ll understand. Less seriously, try replacing his TV sittings of ‘House’ with ‘Embarrassing Bodies’ and see if that does the trick. Nothing like watching a Peyronie’s Disease correction to quell any budding medical fetishes…

EMQs for Medical Students Volume 1Price: £20.99

You know how they say to never judge a book by its cover? Well on this occasion it might be prudent to do so since the cover of ‘EMQs for Medical Students’ nicely encapsulates what you are to find inside.

The questions within the book are divided up into sections largely by specialty, covering everything from haematology to radiology. Although this ensures good breadth, it limits the number of questions per section, but not to worry, there are two more volumes available if the first leaves you craving more! Moreover, the layout means it’s easy to quickly test yourself on a particular topic in whatever time you have available.

The latter half of the book is dedicated to answers, providing a thorough explanation of the correct choice along with snippets of relevant background information. This is really what makes the book a valuable, adaptable resource enabling it to be used for learning as well as revision and assessment. The lack of chapter numbers on pages does mean that initially navigation of the book is more hit and miss than a game of blindfolded darts, but after a while you get to know your way around and finding the relevant answer becomes less of a hassle.

As long you don’t view this book as a way to thoroughly assess all your current knowledge but instead as an enjoyable way to quiz yourself, whilst acquiring some useful tidbits of information then you will not be disappointed. 4/5

The Intimate Issue

Medical Student Online - Six MonthsPrice: £35.00Medical Student Online is a subscription service from PasTest that offers an easy way to practise EMQs and MCQs for revision. The pass includes 6 months of access to a huge bank of questions that can be sorted by speciality, question type, difficulty and most usefully those that you have or haven’t tried before.

In the personal area you can revise in a fashion tailored to you – create personalised mock exams, cover key OSCE cases, timed tests, quick-fire random questions or simply browse at your leisure. MyPasTest tracks your performance so you can assess your progress. What's more, it not only scores you but also allows you to compare your performance with other subscribers. The questions are appropriate, with a range of difficulties and number in excess of 2200 to keep you going!

The multimedia section gives you access to eLectures, podcasts, videos and a fun spot diagnosis section. While the question section is very comprehensive, the multimedia section is still new and somewhat lacking. However the videos that are there are of good quality.

Other smaller features include learning goals, advice sections and a community forum to name a few, but the main attraction is the extensive question bank. 3.5/5

Reviewed by Cillian Forde, Ollie D'Arcy and Fern Adams

So you’ve probably heard of PasTest and seen some of the doctors carrying around their revision books for membership exams. PasTest also have a range of books and online resources produced specifically for medical students. Here we see how they fare.

ReviewLove Courtney x

COMPETITION our Facebook page for a chance to win one of three EMQ books! facebook.com/CambridgeTablet

Dhan Senaratne reports. The hottest April on record was a cause for celebration amongst cricket fans nationwide. Across Cambridge, the glorious sunshine drew out academics from all fields to take part in the world-renowned Cambridge University Inter-Departmental cricket league. Medical students, however reluctant, were no exception. The season so far has seen no less than 28 different players represent the Sharks in the Clinical School’s (dare I say it?) most important sport; from seasoned veterans, to bright-eyed novices, and even rowers (yes, rowers!).

The Sharks entered the first round of the Inter-Departmental Cup against The Sanger Institute at their compound south of Cambridge. Batting first in a geneticist’s paradise, the Sanger batsmen crumbled under the awesome power of some predatory Sharks bowling [R. Harper 3/3(3.1), M. Singh 3/17(4), J. Stewart 2/13(3), D. Senaratne 2/15(4)]. With such a small target, the result was never in doubt; the match won with 43 balls to spare [D. Senaratne 48*]. Result: Sanger Institute 76 all out (18.1 overs); Sharks 77-2 (12.5 overs). Sharks win by 8 wickets.

Up next in the league was a joint team fielded by the departments of Zoology & Metallurgy. Bowling first, the Sharks restricted the opposition to just 90-8 and made light of the task at hand. R. Nadarajah, and D. Nicholson-Thomas both scored 24 apiece to ensure victory. Result: Zoology/Metallurgy 90-8 (20 overs); Sharks 91-3 (15.2 overs). Sharks win by 7 wickets.

Last year’s fixture against The Perse Teachers went down to the wire—this year’s match was similarly tight. Despite the steady loss of wickets, the Sharks managed to reach a respectable 119-7, thanks to some cautious batting at the start by skipper D. Senaratne (38) and some powerful hitting at the end by V. Sankaran (18). On home territory the Perse Teachers batted confidently and wickets were scarce. Then some inspirational wicket-keeping from M. Bigwood combined with wily bowling from M. Singh [3/31(4)] saw the pair take three stumpings in quick succession. Unfortunately the Sharks were unable to prevent the Teachers obtaining the 8 runs required from the last over, losing narrowly with 2 balls to spare. Result: Sharks 119-7 (20 overs); Perse Teachers 121-3 (19.4 overs). The Perse Teachers win by 7 wickets.

Still reeling from the previous result, the Sharks faced up to the Examinations department in their next league match. Opting to bowl first on a boggy pitch up at Hills Road the Sharks struggled to contain the runs, despite back-to-back maidens from C. Tong [1/21(5)], useful bowling from R. Harper [2-23(5)] and another M. Singh/M. Bigwood combo. The Examiners struck big and struck hard, reaching 124-5. In reply the Sharks shot to 30-0 from 4 overs, but the second batting collapse in succession saw the Sharks bowled out for a woeful 58. Result: Examinations Department 124-5 (20 overs); Sharks 58 all out (13 overs). The Examinations Department win by 66 runs.

Trivialities such as electives and graduation saw the Sharks squad numbers dropped by two thirds. In addition, monsoon-like weather meant that the crucial Inter-Departmental cup quarter-final against the Biochemistry department was abandoned after only 9 overs. The result was decided on a coin toss with the Sharks calling correctly. Molecular Biology await in the semi-final. Result: Sharks win on a coin toss.

With numbers low on the ground (despite the unfaltering dedication of key Shark M. Bigwood), this wasn’t the best time to face up to the titans of the departmental cricket scene. The Engineers, opting to bat first, amassed a massive 180, with occasional wickets barely stemming the flow of runs [D. Senaratne 2/26(5)]. In response, the Sharks did well to reach 118, thanks to some classy batting from A. Badcock (48), supported by D. Senaratne (26). Indeed, the Sharks did well to survive 20 overs, thanks in no small part to some determined tailend batting by C. Drummond. Result: Engineering Department 180-5 (20 overs); Sharks 118-8 (20 overs). The Engineers win by 62 runs.

All are welcome. And with the prospect of the annual Sharks vs. Consultants match to come, there is plenty more excitement yet!

Sport

Addies rowing makes welcome return 8

Addies women show their strength, despite some disappointing performances

Tasha Aikman reports. After a brief hiatus, welcome back Addies rowing! The river is again home to our proud mix of lycra and ability. It’s been a constant challenge, rotating a squad of 50 members and yet still always ending up one short for each outing, but in the end we managed to get two “crews” out each of the last three terms. What we lack in skill, experience and equipment we make up for in occasional enthusiasm, unpredictability and the willingness to fit into any shoes available.

Fairbairns was cancelled, so Lent Bumps was our chance to test the waters (men down one, women down three), leading up to our spectacular effort in May Bumps, where we managed to produce… exactly the same result. A beautiful picture of our finest ladies graced the Page 3 spread (of Cambridge News, hold the wolf-whistles) with the tag ‘one crew made it an operation to win’. It’s a nice idea, but winning isn’t really our style. We are more the ‘let’s make this as least embarrassing as possible, and draw attention away from our technique by wearing bright green scrub tops’ kind of crew. In the end, we ended up having some really good rows, and managed to pleasantly surprise ourselves.

And of course, what would a boat club be without a Boat Club Dinner? This term we taxied up to wreak havoc on Girton, where the atmosphere was great even though there was an awkward moment when Girtonians realised that there was a member of Downing present, the college who denied Girton M1 blades. Luckily,

she escaped with only a few minor insults, and the rest of the night went very smoothly. Even Mark ‘backseat cox’ McKelvie’s speech went down well.

The whole squad should be very proud of everything that they have contributed, and we have a great talent base to start on next term. Thank you to everyone involved—seniors and novices—and I hope to see a lot of new faces on the river soon. Thanks also go to Drs Jumbo Jenner and Diana Wood for supporting us throughout the year and providing us with a platform to expand and improve the club.

May Bumps StatsWomen: down 3 (LLLK)Men: down 1 (K/KJ ?*#!)Boats used: 4 Boats broken: 4Fines for crew member waving during racing: 1

Sharks cricket suffers stuttering season