Dr. B. Harinikrishna MBBS., DO, completed MBBS in Government Vellore medical college, Vellore. She completed her Diploma in Ophthalmology from Aravind Eye Hospital and Post Graduate Institute, Madurai. She received Dr. Rema Mohan Gold Medal for securing the highest mark in Post Graduate Diploma in Ophthalmology in 2019 Tamilnadu Dr. MGR University examinations. She also received the Dr. G. Venkatasamy memorial award for proficiency from Aravind Eye Hospital, Madurai. She has presented posters and papers at national conferences. She has developed a keen interest in Neuro-Ophthalmology in which she would like to specialize in her career. On the personal front, she is a trained classical singer and a Bharatanatyam dancer. She has performed in multiple events and stages. She truly believes in giving back to the society and environment that has supported her and actively involved with NGOs in supporting the less privileged. Dr. B. Harinikrishna was kind enough to talk to eOphtha and share her experience during his post-graduation.

I believe Post Graduation is the period when my real learning began. Being razor-focused during this period not only helped me clear the exams but also get the right perspective to shape my career as I move forward.

Initial days of Post-graduation:

In the first three months of PG, I took the time to get adapted to the course and the surroundings. After which I made it a practice to see as many patients possible and immediately studying the theory about those cases in a standard textbook. I truly believe, what the mind knows, the eyes see. The more patients we see, the more knowledge we gain. I religiously spent a minimum of one hour every day in the library. I never skipped OPD or classes and maintained a good rapport with professors and seniors. I picked on their brains to learn as much as possible from them by asking questions and clearing up any doubts. This proved to be very beneficial for me.

The very high load of patients and daily classes in my alma mater, Aravind Eye Hospital - Madurai made me feel confident in both clinical knowledge and surgical skills. A well-stocked library with all standard textbooks and journals, it was literally my second home throughout my PG days.

Note Taking:

I feel taking notes is a very underrated practice. To me, it is always better to compile data from different books, make notes. This will save a lot of time while we prepare for exams. What I had done was to prepare notes, specialty wise and attached the printouts of DOS articles to the respective notes.I did this as a practice right from the first year and it helped me cover all the topics needed for exams. This will really come in handy in the future for teaching purposes too. Here are some of the books that I referred to in my preparation:

Importance of Clinics & Discussion with Seniors

As I entered the second year, I became very focused and started studying sincerely. Attending OPD / OT and constantly discussing with professors gave me immense confidence. I gradually started increasing my daily study hours. Since I had already developed the practice of going to the library from the first year, just increasing my study hours to 3 hours a day was all I needed to do as a preparatory step for exams. We usually skip studying Optics and refraction but understanding the subject and practicing ray diagrams made me face the exam without fear and draw effortlessly in the exam. Group studies were another tactic that helped as it was easier to cover more topics and more importantly keep the stress levels down. Reaching out to juniors and seniors to teach difficult topics helped save quite some time. My mantra was and is, be willing to teach others, by teaching others you only understand and remember better.

Online Resources

eyewiki.aao.org, willseyeonline.org has been my go-to for topics that I couldn’t find in textbooks and for newer advances.

Strategy for Revision

The early bird gets the worm. Here is what I did:

1. I created subject wise question banks which were most helpful
2. I had started preparations early and completed my portions much ahead of the exams
3. I combined basic sciences with clinical sciences while studying each specialty which not only saved time but enhanced my understanding better
4. I comfortably completed two revisions before the exams. We had 15 days of study leave, and I used it for only for revision and model tests
5. Model tests are mandatory. It gave me an idea how to manage time and equipped me to face the exams with confidence. I took15 model tests in my 15-day study leave. It played a very important role in my success

Theory and Practical Examinations

In the theory exam, I prepared myself to attend all the questions, keep answers crisp, and highlight important points. Having a structured pattern for every question made me write fast. Diagrams and flow charts being very important, I made them large, with color pens, labeled and with enough space so that it is not cramped within the writing space. I felt too many flow charts will spoil the presentation, hence I kept it to a few flowcharts, with good diagrams to make the answer presentable.

For practical, if you had attended the clinical postings regularly and sincerely, you will have no problem in appearing confidently for practical examinations. For me, a few things that helped me perform well in the practical exams:

1. The first and foremost is remembering the case format and then everything else will fall in place
2. It is important to be clear and audible to the examiner and answer questions to the point
3. It is okay to admit if you don’t know an answer
4. Never argue with the examiner. Try to substantiate your point, but never argue
5. Case discussions in daily classes, FAQs in ophthalmology by Dr.N. Venkatesh Prajna and Ophthalmology clinics for PGs by Dr.Namrata Sharma helped me prepare for practical examinations and viva

My Family’s Contribution

My parents, husband, sister, and in-laws have always been a pillar of support. My husband, an ophthalmologist himself guided me immensely by setting up model test question papers, correcting my answer sheets, and as a study partner& guide to learn difficult topics.

In A Nutshell

• Attending OPD and clinical postings sincerely are the foundation for doing well
• Studying from standard textbooks and preparing notes will help solidify our understanding of the subject
• Consistent preparation right from the beginning will reduce stress levels during exams
• Good rapport with professors, colleagues, seniors makes post-graduation much easier

Last, not the least, Believe in yourself. Hard work supersedes innate talent and can work wonders