Chapter 48-Beginnings and Ends

Nov-Dec 1996

I'm back in campus after a short one week hiatus at home. My Univs are in 2 weeks and it's time to get going. This is the final stretch and instead of looking forward to the end of exams, I have mixed feelings.

In some ways, the MBBS course is a tale of two parts. Or maybe three. The first part is the drama and trauma of First Year with Anatomy and the many exam related casualties it can, and does produce. Few things can match up with the craziness of First Year, with ragging, mountains of books, tough exams and homesickness.
The second part is the period from 1st MBBS Sr till now where there is plenty of studying and tests, of course, but since one is now used to it, it's not that bad.
Then there is Final Year. I've been hearing about it since the day I joined. Who failed, why they failed, why they actually deserved to pass, why the ones who passed should have failed, who to make an impression on, who is a fair examiner and who is not and so on. All talk is exam and study centric and that has resulted in a sense of impending doom.
Final Year is when boys become men, when one can realize how "failure is the key to success".

I still have the Final Year Part 1 exams to get through though and it seems more like a pain than any source of tension. ENT and Ophthal are small enough to finish in one day and because of that, I put them off to the last possible day.
The PSM book is called "Park" after the authors. It's one of the better books in the course, because it's full of core information and is considered mighty important when reading for PG Entrance Exams. I struggle with it, from the initial chapters on statistics and epidemiology to infectious disease control and prevention of chronic diseases. Then there are the fascinating chapters on toilets, followed by the National Programmes and finally Occupational Hazards.
I have to finish all of this in one night since I have spectacularly wasted my study leave planning and plotting a study plan. That is now compressed into a few hours.

The theory papers start. Our first question in PSM is this:
"Write a newspaper advert advising the public on preventive measures for TB".

I draw a box and write "Dont cough, Cover mouth etc" in bold capitals. Crazy question. But PSM can be very unpredictable. One question is on Japanese Encepahlitis and some birds that can spread it. The answer is "Ardeid Birds", and as I look up and to my left, I see an invigilator walking down the aisle a few feet away and mouthing "A-R-D-E-I-D Birds"......
A little help is always appreciated.
ENT and Ophthal are standard papers. No problems there.

The Clinics go off well also. In ENT, the nose is examined with an instrument called a Thudhicum's speculum. There is a specific way to hold this when examining noses and some of my viva is spent trying to hold it properly in front of two amused at first, later a bit upset examiners. I am asked about lymphocytosis in tonsillitis and I can't recall Infectious Moonucleosis off hand. Apart from these minor issues, I think I have done enough to pass.
Ophthal is also OK. A cataract here, some instruments there, an OK viva and I'm through.

In the PSM Viva, I go first and manage fairly well. When it's Vinay's turn, he is asked to name a "Recent Event important from a heath perspective". This is supposed to be an Encephalitis outbreak somewhere close by but he doesn't know that so he says,
"Sir, there was a plane crash a few days ago in North India."
To their credit, the examiners didn't miss a beat and the viva went on about the "Occupational Hazards in Aviation".
(For details from the horse's mouth, please read the comment below)

That ends this set of exams. I should be happy but there is an underlying sense of doom and gloom. The party is over.
Final Year is here.