The NEXT 2 exam will assess the degree of preparedness of a fresh MBBS to handle and advice patients in reality. For the time being, we can be sure of the fact that the NEXT 2 will have nothing to do with the Medical PG whatsoever. It will essentially be a licentiate exam after clearing which one can start practicing medicine in India independently.
The account below is not based on any official announcement of NMC but it is not merely a speculation too. There is negligible probability that what we present here will not be.
NEXT 2 exam pattern
The purpose of the NEXT 2 exam indicates that the questions in the exam will test the clinical skills of a fresh MBBS. This generates a couple of possibilities.
There used to be a section in USMLE called the USMLE Step 2 CS that assessed the practical patient handling skills of a doctor. USMLE does not have that test anymore; however, the kind of questions Step 2 CS presented to its candidates is one way in which the questions in NEXT 2 may come to you.
Ideally, in such a set up, the doctor interacted with a real person who posed as a patient. The doctor examined the patient, noted his/her inferences, suggested a line of treatment and moved on. This pattern is time-taking and it shouldn’t come as a surprise if like USMLE, the NEXT 2 also spans over 8 hours.
With the manifestation of COVID, people are understandably cautious and interaction with real patients may not be feasible. An option that has some probability of adaptation is computer-simulated case study where a doctor meets a virtual patient and treats him/her.
NEXT 2 exam syllabus
It is irrelevant to discuss the syllabus for NEXT 2. Except that the questions will relate mostly to your clinical experience during your Internship. Needless to say, all the 19 subjects in MBBS can help you in solving the NEXT 2 exam questions. Naturally, in diagnosing and advising a patient, one needs knowledge of Pre-, Para-, and Clinical subjects. Hence, making an attempt to define the NEXT 2 exam syllabus would be futile.
NEXT 2 exam question pattern
Again it is too early to make statements regarding the quality of questions one may expect in the NEXT 2 exam. All the info regarding this doing rounds on the internet are dubious endeavors to generate traffic on the website. The best strategy would be to prepare and revise the MBBS subjects. Integrate & correlate the facts across subjects, and wait till the NMC announces everything.
NEXT 2 Exam preparations
Preparing for NEXT 2 will require one to build knowledge and skills during MBBS, especially the Internship. You start preparing for NEXT 2 from day one of your MBBS. It continues till the last day of your Internship. If you are sincere during your MBBS, it prepares you for this exam.
NEXT 2 Exam tips & suggestions
One shall appear in NEXT 2 after the internship. At that point in time, your MBBS is complete. You are a full-fledged physician waiting for your license to practice. NEXT 2 certifies that you are ready to practice independently in India.
Keep in mind:
Focus during internship
Indeed, this is the most important tip that we can give you for NEXT 2. During your internship, you must be eagerly attentive. Be ready to correlate the symptoms with the cumulative info pool that the 4.5 years of doing MBBS creates. Form bridges between your knowledge of clinical subjects along with the relevant section of the Pre- & Para-Clinical subjects.
Exercising your logic, you can achieve differential diagnosis utilizing various pathological investigation techniques. Subsequently, the knowledge of medicine and allied subjects will help you to write your prescription. You need to reach into your knowledge of Pharmacology too.
When you observe a patient during the internship, make sure you learn. You should always expand your knowledge in those sections of the related subjects that the case touches. For example, if the patient suffers from particular heart disease, you should study other heart diseases with similar symptoms. You should then review etiology, pathogenesis, diagnosis, and appropriate clinical advice for all the related conditions.
Revise
You should periodically and systematically revise the subjects in every year of MBBS. Revision is the only way to establish facts in your mind so that retrieving that info becomes effortless.
Discussions
Discussing a case with your fellow Physicians and seniors can be very helpful. You get tremendously useful knowledge and skills. Be attentive and keep your mind receptive and hungry for knowledge.
Make sure you keep visiting the NMC Official website for updates.
