Also, I am getting messages from people who passed Step 1 wh

[tommyk]

That again is against my philosophy. A few people e-mailed me on my personal mailbox and directly said they did really bad on Step 1 and they had a hard time getting residency and are upset that they did not have access to my questions and instruction before they took the test. They complained directly to me, I am serious, that I should NOT help the current test takers because they should go through what they (previous takers) went through. They said that their low scores hurt them and it is not fair that I am helping out the current pool of test takers. They told me that they walked into the test, not knowing what to expect, wasting time and eating up their tutorial minutes, etc. etc. They were completely UNPREPARED and that is not their fault. But why should others following suffer the same. MY goal is aimed at a few who are struggling to PASS and practice medicine and help other people, not to help them study less.

I do not agree with this philosophy of dog-eat-dog world. I think some people are missing my message. I am spending hundreds of hours without asking for anything except that people understand, learn and become better people and better doctors. Some of my friends again have failed Step 1 and they would be good doctors but are bad specifically at taking Step 1. They deserve to know why they keep failing Step 1 and I am trying to show them how to learn and understand the material so they can answer the questions correctly.

I am not very happy that I am getting messages from people who have passed Step 1 and are saying I should not help anyone reading my posts. Some of the people who wrote me are saying that the kind words coming to me from the board and my mailbox are insincere and fake. I don't think this to be true, but it does bug me.

Again, I am not trying to produce questions that are going to make it so people don't have to study. There is no way to cover all the material. But I am trying to provide an educational question bank that I believe is effective and didactic. I am not trying to sidestep or go against the NBME. I really think I am trying to HELP them in a way. I am not revealing AGAIN exact questions but METHODS OF THINKING.

A perfect example is the concept of anastomoses in gross anatomy. If I remember a question that I of some of my fellow USMLE teacher recall word or word, there are four big anastomes I can ask about that will educate without violation.

The VISUAL FIELD CONCEPT is another example. I got a post saying that it is a violation of NBME to write that question. But, if you recall there are so many defects I can address without revealing the content that I recall, I can ask about a hemorrhage that hits the optic chism, the calcarine fissure, lateral geniculate body, etc, like hundred of questions that address the same concept. So this is not a violation of NBME even though the subject is part of NBME.

I am not happy now because even though I am received like 20 really nice posts, for every 20 posts I am getting I am getting a couple that are basically saying I should not be helping or that they are offering a proposal for me to make money doing these questions but charging a fee on a secure website.

Again, I do not like this. Education should be free and knowledge should grow. If someone wants to brag about themselves and have a fancy car then they should pay for it with money. But if someone wants to LEARN information that WILL HELP others like medicine, then I think it should be free. So don't ask me to sell my questions and please don't sell them.

I will continue to write questions that are NOTHING DIFFERENT from BSS or KAPLAN except I feel they are BETTER QUESTIONS. Again, BSS is TOO DIFFICULT and KAPLAN's Bank of questions are not visual enough and are not wide enough. The real test has more easy questions AND more difficult questions.

The USMLE CD as everyone is saying is both not enough and not quite representative.

Again, I will continue to write original questions that will enable someone to master the concepts the the United States of America wants of the IMGs coming in. I will write the questions so that if I recall a question on my test or a fellow teacher's test about a lesion of CN 1, I will ask about a lesion to CN XI (he will lose the ability to turn his head).

NO VIOLATIONS WILL BE MADE. NO COPYRIGHTS WILL BE VIOLATED. NO LAWS BROKEN.

I really am sad at some of the messages saying "Look, why are you helping these people, you and I did not get the same help." "Why don't you charge for this?" That really bothers me.

We should all learn to love and help one another. Don't you guys think so?

[Anonymous]

that is the most selfish thing I have ever heard! Because they failed or did poorly, everyone else should do poorly as well?? These people should be ashamed of themselves. If they idn't know what to expect when they went in, then that is their own fault.

[Anonymous]

With that logic, maybe we shouldn't use modern medicine to treat our patients since people didn't always have that available??? Should today's patients suffer because of lack of medical knowledge yesterday?

Don't worry about the negative messages. First they wanted to scare you with the NBME crap, which we all know doesn't apply to your questions. But their real motives are beginning to show. They want money and want others to suffer like they did. What kind of doctors will these people become? You're doing a good thing and some people just can't comprehend that, so they will try to stop you.

In my mind, the only opinion that should matter is God's. Do you believe that you're doing the right thing in God's eyes? If your answer is yes, don't worry about the people who will try to alter your path.

I've seen too many people trying to take advantage of desperate students by selling pirated stuff on the web for $$ (not on this site because it's not allowed here). I've also seen some people, mostly the ones on this forum, who will share and help others expecting nothing in return. Which one would you rather be? Which ones do you think are advising you one way or the other? Which ones do you think would be more pleasing to God?

If you can honestly answer these questions, I think you'll find the answer you seek. So please, continue to do the right thing and don't be influenced by the hatred of a few. God bless.

[tommyk]

When I receive occasional thank yous and stuff, I really feel humbed and I feel I am serving God. Sorry to act up, but I get hurt very easily.

[tommyk]

I apologize if I seem like I am over reacting. I really am a passionate person and I believe in ideals and the notion that we are ALL IN THIS TOGETHER. So I guess that is why I react (maybe overly so) to negative comments..

[Anonymous]

There is always going to be critics out there. If there were more people like you then more people would want to learn and not just give up after repeated tries. You give them hope. You are helping more people then you are hurting and that is what is important. Your questions are great and I know we all appreciate this. By the way did you get your scores yet? did you pass?

[tommyk]

As I said I passed but I would have done SO MUCH BETTER if had the information that I am trying to pass to you. I was totally unprepared from the standpoint of how the breaktimes worked, how they would present the material, etc.

[dr77]

HI TOMMY,

I am not insincere or fake, when i say ur questions r really helping me..As an IMG one's score in step 1 means even more than the American Graduates...as their whole life depends on it..You are directly helping people like me who feel overwhelmed and confused when preparing for step 1 and are not used to the NBME demanded retention and application of HY facts...Please go on........all our hopes,goodwill and blessings are with you.. aS a hindu.........i believe in karma.......and i think what good you are doing now will come back to you ten-fold.Helping others in need, is good karma and will bring you the doer, the greater good in unseen forms....take care and God bless..


sincerely,

v

[dr77]

HI TOMMY,

I am not insincere or fake, when i say ur questions r really helping me..As an IMG one's score in step 1 means even more than the American Graduates...as their whole life depends on it..You are directly helping people like me who feel overwhelmed and confused when preparing for step 1 and are not used to the NBME demanded retention and application of HY facts...Please go on........all our hopes,goodwill and blessings are with you.. aS a hindu.........i believe in karma.......and i think what good you are doing now will come back to you ten-fold.Helping others in need, is good karma and will bring you the doer, the greater good in unseen forms....take care and God bless..


sincerely,

v

[wcb22]

how can anyone doubt your sincerity? the number of hours going into making all these questions is obvious. and i haven't seen a tommyk collection fund of $50 for every person using your info, though you could easily collect $$$ for the help you're giving.
-we know you're sincere, and a blessing to us.