GraduateMedicine - The Twilight Zone What to do between the KFP and AKT Exams

Hi, Dr. Tom Rolley here for Graduate Medicine.

I'm just finishing up my week and I've been sitting here completing a bunch of paperwork - one of the joys of general practice!

Nonetheless, today, was the KFP exam.

I want to talk about one of the challenges that previously hasn't been in the exams, which is what to do between the KFP and the AKT.

Previously, they were either on the same day, or people consciously choose to split them by six months.

So , there wasn't this semi-twilight zone, 18 hours between finishing the KFP and then taking the AKT tomorrow.

What I want to talk about is the potential for whatever happened for you in the KFP is done, and you can't go in and alter those results.

You don't know what those results are.

But the risk is that it affects your confidence for tomorrow's exam.

What I wanted to look at is the possibility for how do you still maintain your focus and calmness through this period.

Because there's is still work to do tomorrow.

You've still got another three and a half, four hours, perhaps, to get through this AKT.

Here's a couple of tips for dealing with the AKT twilight zone.

Number one, it's worthwhile to examine carefully any thoughts that come in and talk to you about your performance in the KFP.

You do not know your results.

You don't know what happened.

Particularly in the KFP, it's sometimes very hard to tell what's results you are actually going to get.

When I went through a lot of people walked out of the KFP and went, "Whoa, I don't know."

But, even that thought of "I don't know," can at some level, affect your confidence.

So, instead, I would invite you to let go of the KFP.

The KFP is done. It is over.

Now bring focus to AKT, in this twilight zone, this gap.

One of the things that might be beneficial, and you'll need to check in with yourself around what might work for you.

Number one, could be some light revision.

And the only danger about light revision, is going through, and if you find answers to questions that were in the KFP, and then you start beating yourself up about that.

So, it's like, "Okay, look You did your best in that exam this morning, and you couldn't remember that piece of information, that's okay."

If it shows up again tomorrow in the AKT, BOOM! You'll have it.

Again, that's probably the most dangerous part of this gap, is to go through revision, and see answers that you could have had for the KFP.

But, instead of beating yourself up, I would invite you to know and learn that information.

Say to yourself...  "Great, if it shows up again, tomorrow, I'm on it."

It's just a little shift away from decreasing confidence to supporting yourself with increasing confidence.

Next tip would be some time for meditation, or prayer practice

Where you are dropping down, centring, becoming focused, becoming more relaxed, more present in the moment

And hopefully, if you have had a meditation practice, or a prayer practice through this exam period, then it should be very second nature to drop in and do 10 or 15 minutes practice.

The last thing I've got for you is tonight to get a good night's sleep.

I don't know how you slept last night, but if it wasn't that well, then you may well be tired.

Allow increased time for  a little bit more sleep, so that you can recover and be fully focused in the AKT.

It's going to help eliminate silly errors, misreading errors and misreading questions.

One of the analogy that I give, usually for that AKT is, like it's a marathon.

There's a lot of information to process.

There's the reading of the question, there's the reading of all of the answers.

So, a lack of sleep may well bring through a significant impairment in your capacity to interpret those questions, interpret the answers that are given, and select your correct answers.

So, if you take nothing from this video other than what could make the biggest difference, I'm going to  suggest to you that it is your sleep tonight that you would most benefit from.

So, I wish you the very best of luck for your exam.

If you are sitting the AKT tomorrow, I hope it goes really well, and you get through a nail all of those questions.

I know that you probably put in a lot of work up to this point.

I would very much love for you to come through and get the results that you deserve from all of that work.

Thanks for joining me on this training.

I hope you found it beneficial, and look forward to serving you again on future training topics with myself and GraduateMedicine.com.

If you liked this training, then I invite you to click here to sign up for a free guide on how to maximise your FRACGP exam study.