Passed

[Guest guest]

Dear Kamini,

You are most welcome! I am so glad that you found the site useful

and helpful. Dora does a great job keeping the site going an

updating us all on various topics. She also keeps the topics on

track. I am blessed to have her. The Texperts are also on top of

things and keep the ball rolling. It takes much time to keep the

site active and purposeful. I am sure they appreciate your comments

as I do.

Thank YOU,

Jeanetta CPhT

F/O

Thanks Marie! I PASSED too! So excited! lol

> Good luck to everyone else!

> Lori , CPhT

>

>

>

[Guest guest]

Hello Larisa,

Congratulations,good luck.

If it is possible send your feed back and specially OSCES stations.

Thanks,

Samy

From: larisa_merlas <larisa_merlas@...>Subject: passed Date: Friday, October 8, 2010, 2:18 PM

Still can't believe I passed part 2. Thanks to everybody.Larisa

[Guest guest]

Hi Samy!

All of them were repeated from the past exams, just found a few confusing. For

instance it looks that the BP station was a pilot, together with the IV

cannulation one.

There was a bisphosphonate station (previous one was the same, just that the

patient has previously had radiotherapy or was going to have it in the future).

anyway, this lady had bone metastases after breast cancer and was on monthly iv

infusion of bisposphonates (can't remember which of them). They gave a picture

with a lower 6 RCTed and crowned, recurrent decay distally, the more I looked it

seemed that the decay was present in the furcation as well, and the root filling

was not ideal. Patient was only complaining of food impaction, so I offered to

just keep an eye on it, and return if pain/swelling develops (disadvantage that

she could get pain in the future and that the crown could snap off), remove the

crown and see what is happening underneath (disadvantage: there could be nothing

that can be done, and the tooth might need to come out), or just refer straight

away to have the tooth taken out in the hospital (explained the risks involved

because of her treatment). What I didn't do was asking how she felt about it, as

I realized after that her underlying condition was quite dire, and the

interventions that I was proposing were quite large (it looked like a probable

surgical extraction from the x-ray).

Next station I can think of that gave me a headache was the diet chart analysis,

in which we were given a 24 hours diet chart for a 9 year old boy. His mother

was present, and you had to explain to her what changes she should make to

improve things (boy had caries in temporary molars as well as 6s). brushed only

once a day, in te morning, with something that looked like a kids toothpaste

(low fluoride), mum was surprised, as she said she thought that if she uses

colgate, that must be good and that she used it as well some times. She said

they brushed together, which I encouraged. Boy only drank fruit juces/sweet

drinks, ate lots of sweets, snacked a lot (lots of so-called healthy/natural

stuff that people confuse for low sugar). It felt like there was not enough time

to explain all the changes that would have been necessary in line with the

guidelines, and I kept blaming myself for not doing the " safety netting " , i.e.

asking her to come back with the kid in a few weeks, to see how they are getting

on and introduce a few more changes. but it looks it was enough even if you

don't mention it all.

The lichen planus station was a lovely young lady that got injured while skying

and has been on Ibuprofen ever since, and it looked like her symptoms started

around that time. I explained what it looked like, and that it could be the

Ibuprofen causing it, but I just wanted to refer her for a biopsy to make sure

it is that and not something else (cancer) as it has been there for a while and

not healed. If confirmed, I told her I would like her to have a word with her

GP, maybe she can switch the Ibuprofen for something else (told her not to just

stop it, as she was likely to get back the pain if she did that). I also offered

to prescribe chlorhexidine in the meantime, to make it more comfortable.

And finally, the famous RPD station, which I think came as a pilot in july, same

frame on the lower cast, class I Kennedy, RPI on premolars (rests placed

distally instead of mesially, i-bars too close to the gums, that sort of

mistakes), lingual plate major connector, both premolars had survey lines on

them and there were lines on the gums as well that we were asked about. They

looked as if somebody was asking to either block those areas or something like

that. I asked someone that has done an Msc in prosthodontics, and they were just

as clueless as I was.

All other stations were just as was expecting them form the forum.

The prescription form that they use in the exam is not the NHS one, so it took

me longer to figure out where and how to write the name of the patient, but it

shouldn't be a problem, as there is quite enough time for this. Just bare in

mind that in our case they took the prescription form and the sheet for the RPD

straight after we were exiting those stations for marking.

Hope this helps and good luck to everyone still studying.

Regards,

Larisa

>

>

> From: larisa_merlas <larisa_merlas@...>

> Subject: passed

>

> Date: Friday, October 8, 2010, 2:18 PM

>

>

>  

>

>

>

> Still can't believe I passed part 2. Thanks to everybody.

>

> Larisa

>

[Guest guest]

Hi, May I knwo when did u sit for part 2 and what was it contains ..manikin and dpt and osce's?? please

cheers,

Charlot

From: larisa_merlas <larisa_merlas@...> Sent: Sat, October 9, 2010 12:18:11 AMSubject: passed

Still can't believe I passed part 2. Thanks to everybody.Larisa

[Guest guest]

Hello Larisa!Thanks for your message. I havent pass part 1 but I think its great when people share their experience so we can know what to expect.Cheers!------------------From: "larisa_merlas" <larisa_merlas@...>Sender: Date: Sun, 10 Oct 2010 12:03:01 -0000< >Reply Subject: Re: passed Hi Samy!All of them were repeated from the past exams, just found a few confusing. For instance it looks that the BP station was a pilot, together with the IV cannulation one.There was a bisphosphonate station (previous one was the same, just that the patient has previously had radiotherapy or was going to have it in the future). anyway, this lady had bone metastases after breast cancer and was on monthly iv infusion of bisposphonates (can't remember which of them). They gave a picture with a lower 6 RCTed and crowned, recurrent decay distally, the more I looked it seemed that the decay was present in the furcation as well, and the root filling was not ideal. Patient was only complaining of food impaction, so I offered to just keep an eye on it, and return if pain/swelling develops (disadvantage that she could get pain in the future and that the crown could snap off), remove the crown and see what is happening underneath (disadvantage: there could be nothing that can be done, and the tooth might need to come out), or just refer straight away to have the tooth taken out in the hospital (explained the risks involved because of her treatment). What I didn't do was asking how she felt about it, as I realized after that her underlying condition was quite dire, and the interventions that I was proposing were quite large (it looked like a probable surgical extraction from the x-ray).Next station I can think of that gave me a headache was the diet chart analysis, in which we were given a 24 hours diet chart for a 9 year old boy. His mother was present, and you had to explain to her what changes she should make to improve things (boy had caries in temporary molars as well as 6s). brushed only once a day, in te morning, with something that looked like a kids toothpaste (low fluoride), mum was surprised, as she said she thought that if she uses colgate, that must be good and that she used it as well some times. She said they brushed together, which I encouraged. Boy only drank fruit juces/sweet drinks, ate lots of sweets, snacked a lot (lots of so-called healthy/natural stuff that people confuse for low sugar). It felt like there was not enough time to explain all the changes that would have been necessary in line with the guidelines, and I kept blaming myself for not doing the " safety netting " , i.e. asking her to come back with the kid in a few weeks, to see how they are getting on and introduce a few more changes. but it looks it was enough even if you don't mention it all.The lichen planus station was a lovely young lady that got injured while skying and has been on Ibuprofen ever since, and it looked like her symptoms started around that time. I explained what it looked like, and that it could be the Ibuprofen causing it, but I just wanted to refer her for a biopsy to make sure it is that and not something else (cancer) as it has been there for a while and not healed. If confirmed, I told her I would like her to have a word with her GP, maybe she can switch the Ibuprofen for something else (told her not to just stop it, as she was likely to get back the pain if she did that). I also offered to prescribe chlorhexidine in the meantime, to make it more comfortable.And finally, the famous RPD station, which I think came as a pilot in july, same frame on the lower cast, class I Kennedy, RPI on premolars (rests placed distally instead of mesially, i-bars too close to the gums, that sort of mistakes), lingual plate major connector, both premolars had survey lines on them and there were lines on the gums as well that we were asked about. They looked as if somebody was asking to either block those areas or something like that. I asked someone that has done an Msc in prosthodontics, and they were just as clueless as I was.All other stations were just as was expecting them form the forum.The prescription form that they use in the exam is not the NHS one, so it took me longer to figure out where and how to write the name of the patient, but it shouldn't be a problem, as there is quite enough time for this. Just bare in mind that in our case they took the prescription form and the sheet for the RPD straight after we were exiting those stations for marking.Hope this helps and good luck to everyone still studying.Regards,Larisa> > > From: larisa_merlas <larisa_merlas@...>> Subject: passed> > Date: Friday, October 8, 2010, 2:18 PM> > >   > > > > Still can't believe I passed part 2. Thanks to everybody.> > Larisa>

[Guest guest]

Hi Charlot,

I gave the exam on the 16-19th sep 2010

For manikin we got

Full gold crown on 26

DO on 24

class 4 composite restoration with rubber dam on 21

For DTP we got a Pt who's chief complaint was loose denture that he had been wearing for past 9yrs,he also complained of wobbly tooth on lower right side , and a lost filling from lower tooth(didn't know which one)

Had finished radiotherapy for prostrate carcinoma few months back, was now fit and healthy.No other medical history findings

Said his wife had told him that he used to grind his teeth at night but not anymore

Findings

it was a metal overdenture( tooth present was 13) , 26 had a clasp on it, the rest of the teeth in the upper arch were missing

13 the post has been de-cemented and 26 had RCT which was over extended.

Occlusal vertical dimension was reduced

BPE was 212/411 I think

46 had localised periodontitis with significant bone loss, grade 3 mobility

43 had a filling that was lost, pulp was exposed but asymptomatic

pt had a conventional bridge on the lower left side , one of the abtment teeth had a radiolucency

The lower anterior teeth had attrition and most of them had RCT

This is what i can remember, I may be wrong in some details as there was no time and honestly i have forgotten some stuff, hopefully other people can add/correct to the case.

Good Luck

Koyal

From: charlotvam@...Date: Sun, 10 Oct 2010 05:21:02 -0700Subject: Re: passed

Hi, May I knwo when did u sit for part 2 and what was it contains ..manikin and dpt and osce's?? please

cheers,

Charlot

From: larisa_merlas <larisa_merlas@...> Sent: Sat, October 9, 2010 12:18:11 AMSubject: passed

Still can't believe I passed part 2. Thanks to everybody.Larisa

[Guest guest]

hi Larisa..Congrates...we were together for Freds course!PradnyaOn Sat, Oct 9, 2010 at 1:48 AM, larisa_merlas <larisa_merlas@...> wrote:

 

Still can't believe I passed part 2. Thanks to everybody.

Larisa

[Guest guest]

hi larisa, may i know when did u sit for part 2?Sent from my HTCFrom: Pradnya Thakur <drpradnya.thakur@...>Sent: 12 اكتوبر 2010 02:11 م Subject: Re: passed hi Larisa..Congrates...we were together for Freds course!PradnyaOn Sat, Oct 9, 2010 at 1:48 AM, larisa_merlas <larisa_merlas@...> wrote: Still can't believe I passed part 2. Thanks to everybody. LarisaReply to sender | Reply to group | [The entire original message is not included]

[Guest guest]

Hi, Koyal,

I sent u earlier for verification abt. yr answerrs in the DPT in sep. and some osce stations but I am not sure that u recieve my email as I had poor connection that time.

I appreciate if u explain how u manage the DPt case u got and how u deal with the pt. who is taking bisphosphonate in the osce stations???

cheers,

charlot

From: koyal sarin <koyal_sarin@...> Sent: Mon, October 11, 2010 1:02:56 AMSubject: RE: passed

Hi Charlot,I gave the exam on the 16-19th sep 2010 For manikin we gotFull gold crown on 26DO on 24class 4 composite restoration with rubber dam on 21 For DTP we got a Pt who's chief complaint was loose denture that he had been wearing for past 9yrs,he also complained of wobbly tooth on lower right side , and a lost filling from lower tooth(didn't know which one)Had finished radiotherapy for prostrate carcinoma few months back, was now fit and healthy.No other medical history findingsSaid his wife had told him that he used to grind his teeth at night but not anymore Findings it was a metal overdenture( tooth present was 13) , 26 had a clasp on it, the rest of the teeth in the upper arch were missing13 the post has been de-cemented and 26 had RCT which was over extended.Occlusal vertical dimension was reducedBPE was 212/411 I think46 had localised

periodontitis with significant bone loss, grade 3 mobility43 had a filling that was lost, pulp was exposed but asymptomaticpt had a conventional bridge on the lower left side , one of the abtment teeth had a radiolucencyThe lower anterior teeth had attrition and most of them had RCT This is what i can remember, I may be wrong in some details as there was no time and honestly i have forgotten some stuff, hopefully other people can add/correct to the case. Good LuckKoyal

From: charlotvam@...Date: Sun, 10 Oct 2010 05:21:02 -0700Subject: Re: passed

Hi, May I knwo when did u sit for part 2 and what was it contains ..manikin and dpt and osce's?? please

cheers,

Charlot

From: larisa_merlas <larisa_merlas@...> Sent: Sat, October 9, 2010 12:18:11 AMSubject: passed

Still can't believe I passed part 2. Thanks to everybody.Larisa

[Guest guest]

I passed recently. Some observations:

1. I received my " Auth. to Test " within 20 seconds of registering with PTCB. I

had openings at the local Pearson Vue the next day.

I mention that because post-test survey questions ask if you were able to test

at your preferred location on your preferred date. I get the impression some

areas are booked solid. That creates a dilemma considering PTCB's 90-day limit.

You might start the clock early, and then waste 30-45 days studying. Or, you

might wait until you're ready to test, and find yourself waiting 30 days for an

opening (losing the freshness of what you learned).

It's too bad you can't view test schedules before registering for the

" authorization to test. " I would recommend calling your Pearson Vue to see if

they can give you an idea of lead times.

2. I recommend viewing the following to take the edge off the experience:

- Pearson Professional Centers Tour: http://www.pearsonvue.com/ppc/

- Exam CBT tutorial: http://www.pearsonvue.com/athena/

3. Different study materials say 90 questions, 100, 120 (in 100 minutes, 120, or

3 hours). It's 90 in about 100 minutes. They say it's 120 minutes, but they take

some off for the tutorial at the start, and survey questions at the end.

If you familiarize yourself with the tutorial linked above, you can just blow

past the 5-7 screens at the start of the exam. (That's what I meant about taking

the edge off. You can save yourself the stress of that learning experience,

feeling stressed for time, by orienting yourself to how the computer exam

interface works.).

4. They offer ear plugs. I would take them. You should also take practice exams

with ear plugs and some light background distractions.

5. My test seemed to have more math than I expected (compared practice exams).

6. I was pretty rattled during the first 20-30 questions. A combination of new

environment, hard math questions, questions about things that weren't in study

books.

7. I marked all math questions for review. I finished with 25 minutes remaining.

After recalculating all math, I had about 12 minutes left. I started reviewing

from Q1 forward to Q20-30. I called it quits with 4 minutes remaining.

Impressions:

============

1. I don't believe it requires much preparation to pass (at 650). Maybe learn

the math only. I have a feeling if you get all the math right, you could miss

almost everything else and pass.

My reason for saying that: I took the two PTCB $29 practice exams. I got 765,

and 835 (after studying another 3 weeks). I don't know my official score yet.

But, from those two practice exams, it doesn't seem like a passing 650 requires

much.

2. I don't think you can get above 850 without working experience in a pharmacy.

The test contains a few questions that aren't so standard you'd find them in

study books.

My real point: you'll reach a point of diminishing returns when you study. For

those who just want to pass, much of what I wrote won't apply to them. I think

they can coast through with little concern.

But, for those who want to get a high score (for personal satisfaction?),

there's a certain point where it's simply not feasible to continue studying to

find the additional nuggets of specialized knowledge necessary for those handful

of questions that are based upon *experience*.

If you memorize the top 224 drugs used during 2005-2009. Plus another 75 popular

drugs. And, the common info found in 3-4 study books. And, take 7-12 practice

exams (noting/researching all info that's new to you), that ought to get a

person into the 810 to 850 range.

I think practice exams are pretty useful. They prompt you to learn things you

might gloss over in a book.

My goal was to get above 800. Ideally, close to 850. My guess is that I got

820-840.

But, it's hard to say because the mind plays tricks, making you think you did

worse than you did. Or, the way PTCB weights exams by difficulty. (I.e., if my

exam was harder, maybe the correct answers counted for more.). Also, about 15

questions are surveys to determine whether to include them in future tests.

(I.e., maybe the ones I felt unprepared for are future questions and weren't

graded.).

Finally,

1. I'm really surprised how the commonly-available study materials have *so

many* errors. There seems to be a prevalent attitude among authors/publishers

that " it's good enough to pass, it's just a pharmacy technician job... nobody

takes it seriously anyway. "

I was really surprised by this low standard among people who profess a high

standard (and to be involved in education to promote a higher standard). I spoke

to three authors/publishers and the apathy was discouraging.

2. The downside to buying many practice exams is that they seem to " borrow "

heavily from each other. PTCB's practice exams, while not worth $30 each, start

to be worth more just because they don't have the similar tone which many sets

of questions seem to share.

It's a tough deal because you don't know how original/fresh a practice exam is

until you buy it. You can end up wasting money/time on exams that seem to have a

common heritage.

Again, not bad if your goal is to just pass. Maybe that's what motivates most

techs, and you can't fault people for supplying that demand. But, if you want to

get 800+ without spending a lot on formal education, it's a challenge to

negotiate the self-study materials for sale.

[Guest guest]

Thank you for sharing your experiences and points of view.

Jeanetta Mastron CPhT BS

Founder/Owner

>

> I passed recently. Some observations:

>

> 1. I received my " Auth. to Test " within 20 seconds of registering with PTCB. I

had openings at the local Pearson Vue the next day.

>

> I mention that because post-test survey questions ask if you were able to test

at your preferred location on your preferred date. I get the impression some

areas are booked solid. That creates a dilemma considering PTCB's 90-day limit.

You might start the clock early, and then waste 30-45 days studying. Or, you

might wait until you're ready to test, and find yourself waiting 30 days for an

opening (losing the freshness of what you learned).

>

> It's too bad you can't view test schedules before registering for the

" authorization to test. " I would recommend calling your Pearson Vue to see if

they can give you an idea of lead times.

>

> 2. I recommend viewing the following to take the edge off the experience:

>

> - Pearson Professional Centers Tour: http://www.pearsonvue.com/ppc/

>

> - Exam CBT tutorial: http://www.pearsonvue.com/athena/

>

> 3. Different study materials say 90 questions, 100, 120 (in 100 minutes, 120,

or 3 hours). It's 90 in about 100 minutes. They say it's 120 minutes, but they

take some off for the tutorial at the start, and survey questions at the end.

>

> If you familiarize yourself with the tutorial linked above, you can just blow

past the 5-7 screens at the start of the exam. (That's what I meant about taking

the edge off. You can save yourself the stress of that learning experience,

feeling stressed for time, by orienting yourself to how the computer exam

interface works.).

>

> 4. They offer ear plugs. I would take them. You should also take practice

exams with ear plugs and some light background distractions.

>

> 5. My test seemed to have more math than I expected (compared practice exams).

>

> 6. I was pretty rattled during the first 20-30 questions. A combination of new

environment, hard math questions, questions about things that weren't in study

books.

>

> 7. I marked all math questions for review. I finished with 25 minutes

remaining. After recalculating all math, I had about 12 minutes left. I started

reviewing from Q1 forward to Q20-30. I called it quits with 4 minutes remaining.

>

> Impressions:

> ============

>

> 1. I don't believe it requires much preparation to pass (at 650). Maybe learn

the math only. I have a feeling if you get all the math right, you could miss

almost everything else and pass.

>

> My reason for saying that: I took the two PTCB $29 practice exams. I got 765,

and 835 (after studying another 3 weeks). I don't know my official score yet.

But, from those two practice exams, it doesn't seem like a passing 650 requires

much.

>

> 2. I don't think you can get above 850 without working experience in a

pharmacy. The test contains a few questions that aren't so standard you'd find

them in study books.

>

> My real point: you'll reach a point of diminishing returns when you study. For

those who just want to pass, much of what I wrote won't apply to them. I think

they can coast through with little concern.

>

> But, for those who want to get a high score (for personal satisfaction?),

there's a certain point where it's simply not feasible to continue studying to

find the additional nuggets of specialized knowledge necessary for those handful

of questions that are based upon *experience*.

>

> If you memorize the top 224 drugs used during 2005-2009. Plus another 75

popular drugs. And, the common info found in 3-4 study books. And, take 7-12

practice exams (noting/researching all info that's new to you), that ought to

get a person into the 810 to 850 range.

>

> I think practice exams are pretty useful. They prompt you to learn things you

might gloss over in a book.

>

> My goal was to get above 800. Ideally, close to 850. My guess is that I got

820-840.

>

> But, it's hard to say because the mind plays tricks, making you think you did

worse than you did. Or, the way PTCB weights exams by difficulty. (I.e., if my

exam was harder, maybe the correct answers counted for more.). Also, about 15

questions are surveys to determine whether to include them in future tests.

(I.e., maybe the ones I felt unprepared for are future questions and weren't

graded.).

>

> Finally,

>

> 1. I'm really surprised how the commonly-available study materials have *so

many* errors. There seems to be a prevalent attitude among authors/publishers

that " it's good enough to pass, it's just a pharmacy technician job... nobody

takes it seriously anyway. "

>

> I was really surprised by this low standard among people who profess a high

standard (and to be involved in education to promote a higher standard). I spoke

to three authors/publishers and the apathy was discouraging.

>

> 2. The downside to buying many practice exams is that they seem to " borrow "

heavily from each other. PTCB's practice exams, while not worth $30 each, start

to be worth more just because they don't have the similar tone which many sets

of questions seem to share.

>

> It's a tough deal because you don't know how original/fresh a practice exam is

until you buy it. You can end up wasting money/time on exams that seem to have a

common heritage.

>

> Again, not bad if your goal is to just pass. Maybe that's what motivates most

techs, and you can't fault people for supplying that demand. But, if you want to

get 800+ without spending a lot on formal education, it's a challenge to

negotiate the self-study materials for sale.

>

[Guest guest]

Hi All,

Congratulations to all who passed this time.

For others please do not lose hope, keep up the hard work, good luck.

Regards

Rashmi

From: Kaykay <cynthia_kaykay@...>" " < >Sent: Friday, 23 September 2011 6:43 PMSubject: Re: Passed

Hi Jasleen,

Congrats on your success,i intend to write the exam next april,how did you do it?need all the tips you can give cos at the moment i am quite clueless.

Thank you.

From: "doctorjasleen@..." <doctorjasleen@...>Ore walk <walkingthroughore@...>; Oremutual < >Sent: Friday, September 23, 2011 6:26 PMSubject: PassedYupppyyyyyy i passed!!!! What a relief....thanks to everyone in the forum...u all have been a greaaatttttt help....thanks guys!!!Sent from my BlackBerry Torch® wireless

device------------------------------------