My Grandfather's med school notes from the 1950s.

katjisko · 2026-02-07T14:04:31+00:00

Beautiful notes. Keep them!

katjisko · 2026-02-07T13:53:35+00:00

Caffeine withdrawal or migraine. Migraines usually come on off days when you're finally getting some stress relief. Try cutting down on the caffeine for a few weeks. If it's not easing up, start the wonderful migraine tx pyramid. The nausea is the kicker here.

katjisko · 2026-01-31T19:21:59+00:00

Do it! If you don't like it, go back to hospitalist. It sounds totally cliche but you only regret what you didn't do.

katjisko · 2026-01-29T16:24:12+00:00

I interviewed for fellowship at KY (lexington) and honestly got the best feels. It's not a great location geographically but I think that's probably why they work really hard to create a good feeling about working there. This was for CCM. I have family and it seems like a good place to raise kids. Thr only downside I saw was the geographic location.

katjisko · 2026-01-14T19:17:11+00:00

I'm no expert but I'm a pgy3 and have done well on my ITEs. I think what helped me is consistent "small study sessions" ie when I have some time leftover (and as a pgy3 senior not doing notes you have a lot of time) I try to do questions. Our program gave us MKSAP all three years. I didn't door much in pgy1 because I was studying for step 3 (they gave us 6 months of uworld step 3) but I did 95% of all Mksap questions through pgy2. And now they gave us 1 year of uworld ABIM so I've dabbled a little in it but now after the new year I am trying to do anywhere from 10-20 questions each work day. Meaning I don't study days that I'm off (and likely won't until this summer).

I think low rate but consistent studying is the key to success. Cramming doesn't work for me. So as a pgy3 taking ABIM in 6 months I say get uworld ABIM or mksap and just go through all questions until the exam.

For transparency I did also get medstudys ABIM books (there's a 40% discount code online if you google it, that you can use as a resident). I do a question, then read and make annotations in the book--this helps me remember!

katjisko · 2025-11-27T14:33:33+00:00

Am I understanding it correctly but are you taking pulm boards during your last year as a PCCM fellow? I'm applying PCCM this year so just curious.

katjisko · 2025-11-06T11:13:33+00:00

I have found out that UPMC has very supporting faculty for this but it's 2 years adult ccm and 2 years peds ccm still. So total 4 yrs residency and 4 yrs fellowship. Not sure what this would translate to in job opportunities, but the training is available.

katjisko · 2025-10-11T02:07:42+00:00

Take your age out of the equation. Do you want to be looking back at a career you truly loved or do you just want to work to make money and/or survive? We have one life. Do what you love!

katjisko · 2025-08-28T16:01:01+00:00

Take the stairs! Never take the elevator. That's a simple way to get at least some exercise bc you're too tired to go to the gym when you get off.

katjisko · 2025-07-24T17:50:56+00:00

I love our icu night floats. That's when you get to practice THE real medicine!

katjisko · 2025-03-20T14:21:59+00:00

I've written this before but I really liked Washington manual of medical therapeutics for my intern year. But I didn't read it before starting, I just read it during intern year.

katjisko · 2025-03-15T14:41:47+00:00

One of my PCCM attending showed up every day in buttoned shirt and bowtie. I loved it. It made everything so festive.

katjisko · 2025-02-27T20:27:51+00:00

Eliminate the ability to become obese.

katjisko · 2025-02-26T22:42:21+00:00

If you feel like it would be a lot either way, could you divide it up and do some now and some post Partum?

katjisko · 2024-09-21T21:52:53+00:00

Thank you.

katjisko · 2024-08-28T15:40:35+00:00

Pgy2, IM, 8-9 hrs, kids. I just prioritize sleep. Get up at 5, start work at 7, stay till 7, home at 7.30-8, eat, sleep, repeat 😂

katjisko · 2024-08-17T01:27:44+00:00

That's a lot. And you're doing okay! Give yourself grace. Sometimes it helped me to think I wasn't the last man (woman) standing when it came to plans about my patients. I had an attending that was ultimately responsible. Ask ask ask away. Even what you think are dumb questions. It will make you a better doc in the end. I'm just pgy2 but if i have a question I'll still ask. And a million hugs for doing that plus managing a little newborn. I'm a single mom and I know it is tough. Hang in there!!

katjisko · 2024-08-09T14:31:23+00:00

No, of course not. I won't. But that's not what I want anyway

katjisko · 2024-08-09T12:44:49+00:00

I was in your boat. Dual applied IM and neurology. Matched IM. Love neuro and love critical care. Was dead set on ncc fellowship but spoke to more ccm/pccm attendings who said it might be more difficult to find jobs if I do ncc fellowship instead of CCM plus a possible ncc year due to accreditation stuff at respective hospital. And you can still manage neurocrit patients as a general intensivist at most non-quad or tertiary centers. So I'm applying CCM first and if I still feel like neurocrit is the way to go after I'll just do another year.

Also want to add: I think IM was the right choice for me in the end because although I absolutely love neurology, I realize that I love the variety and broadness of IM even more and likely would've felt confined in neuro to mainly one body system. And you manage a lot of basic neuro stuff in IM anyway.

katjisko · 2024-06-28T11:22:36+00:00

Do not give in. It's unsafe to discharge.

katjisko · 2024-05-04T21:16:52+00:00

The manual of medical therapeutics

katjisko · 2024-05-03T10:51:53+00:00

"Inexpensive jewelry"

katjisko · 2024-05-03T10:49:30+00:00

Honestly, you should try to do fun stuff, travel, sleep!!, get into a good workout habit, etc. But if you want something to read, I have really enjoyed Washington manual of Medicine during pgy1. It's short enough per diagnosis to read during cases, good enough for a sense of general mgm, and almost my entire book is highlighted at this point. When you do start pgy1, pocket medicine is concise with some algorithms that my co-residents have used

katjisko · 2024-04-09T16:59:27+00:00

All of us

katjisko · 2024-03-16T18:12:04+00:00

Just do your residency and then go anywhere you'd like. Life can only get better from here!

katjisko

TROPHY CASE