FCICM Exam Courses

FCICM exam courses

Last updated 10 October 2011

Until I sat the FJFICM, I'd never been a big one for exam courses. Until recently there were no ICU courses for the UK DICM; and most of the UK anaesthetic courses are lecture-based, which is guaranteed to send me to sleep. But thanks to a combination of a generous study leave allowance, and an unexpectedly long run-up to the exam, I was able to attend no less than three preparatory courses for the FCICM, all of which I can thoroughly recommend. Since that time, Sydney - formerly conspicuously low-key in the ICU exam course market - has exploded onto the scene with a series of courses targetted at different aspects of the FCICM exam; and Canberra has introduced a one-day update course on hot topics in ICU.

Apart from giving you the opportunity to put your knowledge and skills to the test ahead of the exam, courses also provide a chance to see other candidates in action, pick up tips from them, and learn from their mistakes. Details of most of these courses, as well as other courses of interest to intensivists, can be found on the CICM website.

The Adelaide Courses

Also known as Tubs' Course, after its founder Lindsay 'Tubs' Worthley, the Adelaide course is now run by Nick Edwards under the auspices of the Australasian Academy of Critical Care Medicine (AACCM). It runs over three days in February/March each year. It is intensively exam-orientated, with practice Written Exams, Hot Cases, and Vivas all carried out under strict exam conditions, plus a few tutorial-type lectures. It is superbly well-organised; and apart from course hand-outs, we also received an answer booklet to the practice exams, and our individual 'mark sheets' from the practice vivas (though these were either more or less useful depending on the individual examiner). This course is deservedly popular and rapidly oversubscribed, so get your booking in early. Details of the 2011 course can be found here; or download the 2012 registration form directly here.

Adelaide has now also introduced a Basic Sciences revision course, aimed at those sitting the CICM Primary (or the ANZCA Primary). It runs in August of each year. More information here; or download the 2011 application form here.

The Brisbane Course

This is run by no less than the Chairman of the Court of Examiners, Bala Venkatesh, again under the auspices of the AACCM. It takes place in September each year, and the full course lasts four days, though you can sign up separately for one- or two-day modules. It is also aimed very specifically at exam candidates, with plenty of practice Vivas, Hot Cases and Data Interpretation. This course also fills up fast, though Bala tries to give preference to those imminently about to sit the exam. Further details can be found here, or from Joanne Gascoigne at the Princess Alexandra Hospital (07-3232 7931); you can download the 2011 application form here.

The Melbourne Courses

The long-running flagship ANZICS ICM course runs over four days in June/July each year, and is rather different from the others: although it caters heavily to FCICM candidates, it is more like a refresher course, and as such is also attended by qualified consultants. It is largely lecture-based; although there is an afternoon of practical stations, there are no mock exams of any type, and no hot-case practice. Nevertheless it was valuable preparation for the exam, with up-to-date summaries of various hot topics by some of the big names in Australian ICU, all glued together by the tremendously erudite and entertaining Ramesh Nagappan. Recent courses have been supplemented by a new interactive symposium on 'Clinical Challenges in Critical Care' (CCCC). You can download the 2011 programme here, and a registration form here. More information can be found here; or from Ramesh Nagappan at Box Hill Hospital (03-9387 1000).

New on the scene is the Melbourne Clinical Exam Course. As its name suggests, it is pitched firmly at the clinical exam, aimed at teaching the skills needed for the vivas, communication station and hot cases. It is being run for the first time on 8-9 September 2011, and the website states that there are only five places left as of 1st June - so hurry while stocks last! You can download a flyer here - application is online only.

Following the success of the first CICM Communication Skills course in April 2011 in Sydney, Melbourne hosts the second such course in September. This is a course which will eventually become standard for all CICM trainees. It's a topic that's impossible to learn from a book; difficult to learn on the unit as a registrar; and guaranteed to be tested in the exam - so this course should be a high priority! See the 2011 flyer here for more details.

The Sydney courses

The Sydney Short Course is another clinical-exam orientated course, focusing on the Hot Cases and Vivas. It is run over three days in June/July each year by the unflappable and omniscient Dr Priya Nair from St Vincent's Hospital. You can download the 2011 flyer and application form here.

The Sydney Written Course is a one-day workshop aimed at developing exam technique for the written paper; it nicely complements the other, more clinical courses, and I see they have now arranged for it to run in series with the Sydney Short Course. Although the registration fee has climbed sharply (from $50 in 2009 to $160 in 2011), it still sounds like a bargain! You can find more information here; or register using the same form as for the Sydney Short Course. For further details, contact Arvind Rajamani at Nepean Hospital (02-4734 2000).

The Sydney ICU Long Course is a different kettle of fish entirely, and probably only suitable for trainees in or near the Sydney area. It's a once-weekly get-together (usually on Wednesday afternoons) to go through practice hot cases and vivas, co-ordinated by Dr Hergen Buscher of St Vincent's. On the upside, it's free; though after you've passed the exam, you pay by helping as an instructor on the course! For more information, see the flyer here.

The Sydney ICU Equipment Course is a promising new course which, well, pretty much does what its name says. Two days of lectures and practical stations on ECMO, balloon pumps, pacemakers and the like - particularly ideal for those working in non-cardiothoracic units, who may have little experience of some of the more expensive toys! Here's the 2011 Course flyer; or for more details, contact Dr Charudatt Shirwadkar at Blacktown Hospital (02-9881 8000).

The Canberra Course

Canberra offers an intensively exam-focused 3-day course, including tutorials on exam technique, practice vivas, practice hot cases, a small-group psychologist-run session on exam preparation, and an invitation to further hot-case practice shortly before the exam. All this and food for just $900! They only accept 16 applicants, so 'hurry while stocks last' - see this link for more info, or download the November 2011 registration form here.

Now, try as you might, you can't go on all of these courses! I'd suggest that you try to attend one of the main exam-orientated courses (Adelaide, Brisbane, Canberra, or the Sydney Short/Written Course) a bit over a year before you aim to sit the exam, to get an idea of what the exam involves and the standard you're expected to achieve; then, try and get a place on one of the others shortly before you sit the exam, to fine-tune your now-practised skills and pick up on the few details that might have slipped through the net!

If anyone knows of any other useful courses, please let me know at austin@dicm.co.uk and I'll advertise them here.