GI & Nutrition

The Gastroenterology and Nutrition Block was a front-loaded course. In the first three weeks, you will learn about diseases and pathologies of various abdominal organs, including the esophagus, stomach, liver, pancreas, large and small intestine, among others. The last week is very light, giving you much time to review or catch up on material from the first three weeks.

Each lecture started with 15 minutes of Turning Point review questions. It is recommended that you participate in these review sessions as the content is high-yield and similar questions may show up on quizzes.

This course has daily hybrid in-person/Zoom lectures followed by small groups. The small group sessions are clinically oriented, and you will be responsible for walking your group through two or three cases. It is important that you prep these cases ahead of time with your partner and that you are active in the group sessions. The core resources (Boards & Beyond, Pathoma, Sketchy, and First Aid) are helpful to solidify understanding of lecture material.

You will take three ungraded quizzes. Each quiz is roughly 20 questions and most of the class felt that these questions were detailed nit-picky questions from lecture content and not necessarily board-style. There were also a few questions on material we had not gotten to yet, so don't feel too bad if you get those questions wrong. Thus, it is important that you pay attention to lecture content if you wish to do well on the quizzes. The final exam is an in-house, NBME-style exam, with several quiz/lecture-style questions.

It is recommended that you review all your quizzes, turning point sessions, and small group cases before the final exam as there may be some repeat questions.

• Small Groups: Each small group session will cover clinical cases from prior lectures. Come prepared to discuss with your peers and/or lead the case if you are assigned that day. Some small group sessions do take longer than others, so expect some variation.

• Lecture: The first three weeks of the course are packed with lectures, and this can feel overwhelming especially since GI encompasses such a large organ system. Try to stay caught up with the material but do not stress if you get behind a day or two as the last week of the block is pretty much just self-study time. It is also worthwhile to participate in the Turning Point question sessions as the questions/content can show up on quizzes and the exam.

• Quizzes: There were only three ungraded quizzes (once a week) and most students felt that the questions could be very specific from lecture content and not high-yield points from First Aid or Boards & Beyond. Thus, it is recommended to review prior lectures right before taking the quiz.

• Final Exam: The final was a Brightspace exam that students felt was generally easier than the quizzes as the questions were higher-yield and board style. This is when using those third-party resources (First Aid, B&B, and Pathoma) really came in handy!

• Boards and Beyond: Focus on the GI Physiology and Clinical Gastroenterology videos. You will most likely have a solid grasp on much of the anatomy content from lecture and prior courses. 

• Bootcamp: An alternative to Boards and Beyond is Bootcamp, which has more condensed videos and practice quizzes.

• First Aid & Anki: First Aid is an excellent resource for quickly reviewing the various pathologies you cover in class. Anki Cards can be unsuspended based on the Boards and Beyond tags or the First Aid tags. GI Embryology can also be learned from First Aid.

• Pathoma: Has some really good videos on the various pathologies you cover in class, but not absolutely necessary to do well in the course.

• Sketchy Pharm: There are not too many drugs you have to learn in gastroenterology. Really, to do well in the course you only need to watch the first chapter of GI Sketchy Pharm that covers Antiemetics, H2 receptor blockers, PPIs, and laxatives. The other content you will be better off watching during your endocrine block.

• Amboss and Uworld: Some students did a few practice questions each day to solidify their knowledge, but this is not necessary if you don't have a subscription.

• Student-made resources

  • Joocer's 3rd Party Schedule