First Aid Q & A for the USMLE Step 1, 2nd Edition Doody's Expert Review Review Questionnaire ISBN: 9780071597944 ISBN-10: 0071597948 Copyright: 2009 Edition: 2nd Editors: Le, Tao, Bechis, Seth K., Doody's Expert Review    Score: 78 Doody's Star Rating™ and Doody's Expert Review provide by Doody Enterprises, Inc. Reviewer: Mary Rickard,  BS  (University of Iowa Carver College of Medicine) Description This is a complete book of questions and practice exams for those preparing for their USMLE Step 1 examinations. The book is divided into specialties and provides seven practice tests at the end of the book. Explanations are provided for each possible answer, which is very helpful. The first edition was published in 2008. Purpose The purpose is to provide students with a useful and up-to-date preparation guide for the USMLE Step 1. This is a good resource for a variety of questions and a way for students to test their knowledge. Audience It is intended for first year medical students. Features The book does a good job of asking questions that pertain to major topics covered in the exam: neurology, psychiatry, surgery, internal medicine, infectious diseases, nephrology, etc. What I most appreciate are the explanations for all possible answer choices. This feature provides additional information and explains why an answer may be wrong. Assessment I used this book to study for the USMLE Step 1 and found it to be very helpful. The questions are similar to the test and helped me to focus on the important topics. However, I would advise any student preparing for the exam to use additional resources and other sources for questions, since a variety of resources is the most helpful way to prepare. It is necessary to update these types of books in order to cover the most up-to-date material. Review Questionnaire Range Question Score 1-10 Are the author's objectives met? 8 1-10 Rate the worthiness of those objectives. 8 1-5 Is this written at an appropriate level? 5 1-5 Is there significant duplication? (1=significant, 5=insignificant) 3 1-5 Are there significant omissions? (1=significant, 5=insignificant) 4 1-5 Rate the authority of the authors. 5 1-5 Are there sufficient illustrations? 3 1-5 Rate the pedagogic value of the illustrations. N/A 1-5 Rate the print quality of the illustrations. 4 1-5 Are there sufficient references? 3 1-5 Rate the currency of the references. 4 1-5 Rate the pertinence of the references. 4 1-5 Rate the helpfulness of the index. 4 1-5 If important in this specialty, rate the physical appearance of the book N/A 1-10 Is this a worthwhile contribution to the field? 8 1-10 If this is a 2nd or later edition, is this new edition needed? 8 ©2010 Doody Enterprises, Inc.