Prior to course:
- Based on your past experience with this rotation/course, reflect in writing on what scenarios might arise and how those should be treated/managed.
- Review and discuss outcomes/procedures of the course with faculty member(s) prior to beginning the clinical.
- Indicate areas of perceived difficulty with your faculty member and tell her/him how you hope to strategically approach those areas.
- Request feedback on your strategies.
During the course:
- Follow through with a request for clarification during rotations/class when need arises. When encountering a complex question or one that requires substantive response, begin with very brief restatement of the question or summary of your understanding to give you time to think and prepare a more thorough response.
- Use a single, highly effective method for making notes to yourself while on the floor.
- During clinical rotations, at regular intervals (maybe every 2 to 3 hours), review your to-do list/case list. Prioritize tasks and reminders at that time, each time.
- At the end of each day, review notes/materials and summarize themes for yourself. This reflective piece can be very for developing strategies/approaches for the next day/rotation.
- Review the reflection piece at the beginning of the next rotation/day to develop or reinforce strategies/approaches.
- Consider whether audio notes to yourself are valuable. (Most note-taking apps allow for this.) This will allow you to hear yourself thinking through cases and processes. The key is in the review of the notes.
Another helpful site that can be adapted to veterinary medicine: https://meded.ucsd.edu/clinicalmed/inpatient.htm.