AAMC FL#2 – CARS EXAM
The author implies which of the following about clinical practice?
A.Some physicians tend to give clinical experience undue preeminence over research
experience.
B.Even at its best, clinical experience is anarchic.
C.The role of clinical experience in the practice of medicine is overly complex.
D.Physicians embrace clinical experience primarily because it gives priority to their own
intuitions. - Answer- **I GOT THIS WRONG, I PUT C.
Answer: A
Foundations of Comprehension Question - Identify the author's position about a
passage topic (clinical medicine)
Author states: "Unfortunately, some physicians consider information derived from
clinical experience to be sacrosanct and above questioning"
B) It is NOT the author but "economists and other health experts" who "view...clinical
experience as... uncontrollable, chaotic, and obeying few rules."
C) overstatement - "overly complex." Author does not necessarily imply that clinical
experience is "overly" complex.
D) Not mentioned.
Which of the following is most illustrative of "the illusory correlation bias" (paragraph 3),
as it is described in the passage?
A.A flutist sometimes performs a difficult trill correctly, and sometimes does not, and is
unable to determine the cause of her inconsistency.
B.An athlete looks like she has mastered the pole vaulting technique, but since she
never actually clears the bar, her coach calls her mastery an illusion.
,C.A teacher measures his students' performance, praises them in hopes their
performance will improve, and then measures their performance again, to assess the
effect of the praise.
D.A dog trainer attributes a dog's correct response to "Lie down" to the dog's training,
but the trainer gives the command only at the end of a tiring walk. - Answer- Answer: D
Reasoning Beyond the Text question - apply concept from passage to a scenario not
discussed in passage
Author states "...we are unable to tell whether a treatment is responsible for a cure or if
the natural history of the disorder explains the results. This false attribution of the results
of therapy - called the illusory correlation bias - may make someone very resistant to
considering contradictory data from better info sources...."
Illusory correlation bias refers to falsely attributing results to therapy when it could have
been "the natural history of the disorder [that] explains the results"
Similarly, the trainer is falsely attributing the dog's lying down to training/obedience, but
it is likely just because the dog is tired (a natural result of a walk)
Why does the author most likely mention "the role of chance" (paragraph 4)?
A.As part of an explanation of why clinical impressions may be flawed
B.As a response to concerns about the small sample size clinicians may use
C.As a feature that makes clinical experience superior to evidence-based medicine
D. As part of an argument against the use of intuition in medical practice - Answer-
Answer: A
Reasoning within the Text question
Author states "The small sample size of clinical experiences and the low regard of
physicians for the role of chance can lead to errors in estimates of the probability of
benefit."
B) Incorrect - the sample size is given as another reason that the evidence gained from
clinical medicine may be misleading but it doesn't explain the "role of chance"
Why does the author most likely mention Norway?
A.To provide an exemplar of clinical practice
B. To provide an exemplar of evidence-based medicine
, C.To provide an example of accounting for economics
D.To provide an example of one drug being less effective than it seems - Answer-
Answer: C
Reasoning within the Text question
A & B: Author doesn't use Norway to provide an excellent model for clinical practice or
medicine. He is discussing Norway to exemplify the disregard for patient care and
ethical issues.
D: the author is not talking about drugs at all, so why would he use Norway as example
for an effective medication??
Author states "This approach does not, however, account for other aspects of patient
care, such as patient preferences, economics, and ethical issues. Norway, for instance,
is discouraging the use of the osteoporotic agent alendronate; although the drug
decreases hip fractures, ninety high-risk women would have to be treated with the drug
for three years to prevent one hip fracture at a cost that could bankrupt the country's
medical plan."
Suppose that rigorous scientific research demonstrated that physicians who use a
clinically-based model provide better care and have better patient outcomes than those
who use an evidence-based model. How would this finding affect passage claims?
A.It would undermine the views of those clinicians who see clinically-based experience
as sacrosanct.
B. It would support the suggestion that the approach taken in Norway is very unlikely to
be effective.
C.It would challenge the views of the economists and health experts, as represented in
the passage.
D. It would support the idea that music is an apt metaphor for medical practice. -
Answer- Answer: C
Reasoning beyond the Text question
A) sacrosanct = valuable, important. Thus, this would SUPPORT (not undermine) these
clinicians.
B) Incorrect...and irrelevant. Author uses Norway to discuss the lack of certain aspects
of patient care.
The author implies which of the following about clinical practice?
A.Some physicians tend to give clinical experience undue preeminence over research
experience.
B.Even at its best, clinical experience is anarchic.
C.The role of clinical experience in the practice of medicine is overly complex.
D.Physicians embrace clinical experience primarily because it gives priority to their own
intuitions. - Answer- **I GOT THIS WRONG, I PUT C.
Answer: A
Foundations of Comprehension Question - Identify the author's position about a
passage topic (clinical medicine)
Author states: "Unfortunately, some physicians consider information derived from
clinical experience to be sacrosanct and above questioning"
B) It is NOT the author but "economists and other health experts" who "view...clinical
experience as... uncontrollable, chaotic, and obeying few rules."
C) overstatement - "overly complex." Author does not necessarily imply that clinical
experience is "overly" complex.
D) Not mentioned.
Which of the following is most illustrative of "the illusory correlation bias" (paragraph 3),
as it is described in the passage?
A.A flutist sometimes performs a difficult trill correctly, and sometimes does not, and is
unable to determine the cause of her inconsistency.
B.An athlete looks like she has mastered the pole vaulting technique, but since she
never actually clears the bar, her coach calls her mastery an illusion.
,C.A teacher measures his students' performance, praises them in hopes their
performance will improve, and then measures their performance again, to assess the
effect of the praise.
D.A dog trainer attributes a dog's correct response to "Lie down" to the dog's training,
but the trainer gives the command only at the end of a tiring walk. - Answer- Answer: D
Reasoning Beyond the Text question - apply concept from passage to a scenario not
discussed in passage
Author states "...we are unable to tell whether a treatment is responsible for a cure or if
the natural history of the disorder explains the results. This false attribution of the results
of therapy - called the illusory correlation bias - may make someone very resistant to
considering contradictory data from better info sources...."
Illusory correlation bias refers to falsely attributing results to therapy when it could have
been "the natural history of the disorder [that] explains the results"
Similarly, the trainer is falsely attributing the dog's lying down to training/obedience, but
it is likely just because the dog is tired (a natural result of a walk)
Why does the author most likely mention "the role of chance" (paragraph 4)?
A.As part of an explanation of why clinical impressions may be flawed
B.As a response to concerns about the small sample size clinicians may use
C.As a feature that makes clinical experience superior to evidence-based medicine
D. As part of an argument against the use of intuition in medical practice - Answer-
Answer: A
Reasoning within the Text question
Author states "The small sample size of clinical experiences and the low regard of
physicians for the role of chance can lead to errors in estimates of the probability of
benefit."
B) Incorrect - the sample size is given as another reason that the evidence gained from
clinical medicine may be misleading but it doesn't explain the "role of chance"
Why does the author most likely mention Norway?
A.To provide an exemplar of clinical practice
B. To provide an exemplar of evidence-based medicine
, C.To provide an example of accounting for economics
D.To provide an example of one drug being less effective than it seems - Answer-
Answer: C
Reasoning within the Text question
A & B: Author doesn't use Norway to provide an excellent model for clinical practice or
medicine. He is discussing Norway to exemplify the disregard for patient care and
ethical issues.
D: the author is not talking about drugs at all, so why would he use Norway as example
for an effective medication??
Author states "This approach does not, however, account for other aspects of patient
care, such as patient preferences, economics, and ethical issues. Norway, for instance,
is discouraging the use of the osteoporotic agent alendronate; although the drug
decreases hip fractures, ninety high-risk women would have to be treated with the drug
for three years to prevent one hip fracture at a cost that could bankrupt the country's
medical plan."
Suppose that rigorous scientific research demonstrated that physicians who use a
clinically-based model provide better care and have better patient outcomes than those
who use an evidence-based model. How would this finding affect passage claims?
A.It would undermine the views of those clinicians who see clinically-based experience
as sacrosanct.
B. It would support the suggestion that the approach taken in Norway is very unlikely to
be effective.
C.It would challenge the views of the economists and health experts, as represented in
the passage.
D. It would support the idea that music is an apt metaphor for medical practice. -
Answer- Answer: C
Reasoning beyond the Text question
A) sacrosanct = valuable, important. Thus, this would SUPPORT (not undermine) these
clinicians.
B) Incorrect...and irrelevant. Author uses Norway to discuss the lack of certain aspects
of patient care.
