iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

Dr Tom Heaton @drtomheaton.bsky.social · 09/10/2026

Hi everyone, I've started a new newsletter on the skills of effective learning and performance in medicine. I'd love to have you join me. Have a look here: medicalmastery.substack.com

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Dr Tom Heaton @drtomheaton.bsky.social · 26/06/2026

The testing effect is one of the most effective learning tools we have. Testing is all about simulating the ultimate use of the learning - it is about making sure that we can do it when it counts. This is on a spectrum.

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Reposted by Dr Tom Heaton

Royal College of Anaesthetists @rcoanews.bsky.social · 26/06/2026

Professor John Moore has been awarded a Gold medal for his sustained work for the College🙌 Please join us in congratulating him on this remarkable achievement 👏 Read more 👉 ow.ly/pMGm50ZghCR #Ansky #Medsky

Professor John Moore awarded College Gold Medal

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Dr Tom Heaton @drtomheaton.bsky.social · 26/06/2026

Our learning strategies are usually very poor. We mistake our comfort with the learning with a sign of their effectiveness. Instead, we often have to provoke a degree of discomfort to properly learn something. Here are some of the most effective techniques:🧵

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Dr Tom Heaton @drtomheaton.bsky.social · 18/06/2026

I'm really excite to be able to announce the release of Synapsis. It is the learning tool that I wish that I had when I started medical school. I'll be telling you more about it over the coming days, but you can check it out here: synapsislearn.com

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Dr Tom Heaton @drtomheaton.bsky.social · 18/06/2026

If your studying feels comfortable, you’re probably not learning. Your brain is lazy by design - it conserves energy. If you don’t force it to work hard, it won’t bother encoding anything. Comfort is the enemy of retention.

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Dr Tom Heaton @drtomheaton.bsky.social · 18/06/2026

A brain dump is not a memory test. It’s a construction test. You’re not just recalling facts - you’re rebuilding how they fit together. The connections. The hierarchy. The structure. That’s where real clinical thinking lives.

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Dr Tom Heaton @drtomheaton.bsky.social · 17/06/2026

Using someone else’s flashcard deck is like wearing someone else’s glasses. They were made for a different brain. The act of CREATING flashcards is half the learning. Don’t skip it. Make your own. Always.

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Dr Tom Heaton @drtomheaton.bsky.social · 17/06/2026

Bad flashcard: “Describe the anatomy of the cardiovascular system.” Good flashcard: “Which valve separates the left atrium and left ventricle?” Keep answers short. Keep them objective. Make them impossible to half-answer. That’s the art.

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Dr Tom Heaton @drtomheaton.bsky.social · 16/06/2026

Cramming works. For about 48 hours. If your goal is to pass tomorrow’s quiz and forget it all by next week, go ahead. If your goal is to be a competent doctor, space your learning. You need to be much more secure than cramming can offer.

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Dr Tom Heaton @drtomheaton.bsky.social · 16/06/2026

The forgetting curve doesn’t care how hard you studied. Within days, most of what you crammed is gone. But here’s the trick: each time you revisit the material (with a gap), the decay rate drops. Space your learning. Same amount of effort - better results.

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Dr Tom Heaton @drtomheaton.bsky.social · 15/06/2026

Passive reading is like tiptoeing through a forest - you barely leave a mark. Retrieval practice is like taking a machete through the undergrowth. It’s harder, messier, and far more effective. Your brain literally remodels itself from the effort.

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Dr Tom Heaton @drtomheaton.bsky.social · 15/06/2026

Testing isn’t the enemy of learning. It IS learning. Every time you force your brain to re‐trieve an answer, you strengthen the neural pathway that stores it. Stop saving tests for exam day. Start testing yourself from day one.

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Dr Tom Heaton @drtomheaton.bsky.social · 14/06/2026

I've started writing about some of the aspects of medicine that I find most interesting. Please consider having a look. open.substack.com/pub/drtomhea...

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Dr Tom Heaton @drtomheaton.bsky.social · 25/04/2026

A better system for your learning. The CATS model brings together a number of evidence based learning techniques to improve your learning effectiveness.

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Dr Tom Heaton @drtomheaton.bsky.social · 24/04/2026

Flashcards are a really useful learning tool, but are often misunderstood. I've created a short email course to help students understand the most important features to remember. Check it out here: striveseekfind.kit.com/0ea973d24d

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Dr Tom Heaton @drtomheaton.bsky.social · 24/04/2026

You are your habits! You need to learn to master them. With your learning techniques, you want to minimise the amount of willpower you need to deploy. Turning them into habits is a great way to achieve this.

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Dr Tom Heaton @drtomheaton.bsky.social · 04/09/2025

We want our learning to be difficult. Not too easy (we don't learn) but not too hard (we can't do it). We want it to challenge us.

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Dr Tom Heaton @drtomheaton.bsky.social · 30/08/2025

Expertise boils down to effective mental representations. How well can you internalize, organize, and recall vast amounts of information instantly? How are you actively improving your mental models?

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Dr Tom Heaton @drtomheaton.bsky.social · 30/08/2025

Don't confuse "doing" with "getting better." Naive practice often leads to plateaus, not progress. Are you truly practicing, or just going through the motions?

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Dr Tom Heaton @drtomheaton.bsky.social · 28/08/2025

Flashcards are one of the core tools for learning. Here, I look at some of the nuances for getting the most out of them. drtomheaton.substack.com/p/the-scienc...

drtomheaton.substack.com

The Science and Art of Flashcards

How to study smarter, not harder

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Dr Tom Heaton @drtomheaton.bsky.social · 27/08/2025

Are you making this common mistake? Cramming for an exam feels effective because you can pass a test the next day. But skills and knowledge learned this way decay faster and are less flexible for future use. Avoid the cram session; embrace the spaced-out study.

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Dr Tom Heaton @drtomheaton.bsky.social · 18/07/2025

"We have to accept human behaviour the way it is, Not the way we would wish it to be." -Don Norman

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Reposted by Dr Tom Heaton

Anaesthesia @anaesjournal.bsky.social · 17/07/2025

Come and join the Anaesthesia Reports editorial team! Applications are due 10 August 2025. #AnSky anaesthetists.org/Home/About-u...

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Reposted by Dr Tom Heaton

Anaesthesia @anaesjournal.bsky.social · 17/07/2025

Are you familiar with the 7 core values of ‘trustworthiness’ of research ENhancing TRUSTworthiness in Pain Evidence (ENTRUST-PE) is a comprehensive framework for building trustworthy pain research. #AnSky #PainSky doi.org/10.1111/anae...

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Dr Tom Heaton @drtomheaton.bsky.social · 16/07/2025

I'm doing some more of my writing on Substack. It'd be great to have you join me there, too. substack.com/@drtomheaton

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Dr Tom Heaton @drtomheaton.bsky.social · 08/07/2025

I'm trying to get back into making some educational material. Here's my latest approach at videos, this time describing the testing effect. I'd love your feedback. youtube.com/playlist?lis...

youtube.com

Learning to Learn - YouTube

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Dr Tom Heaton @drtomheaton.bsky.social · 07/07/2025

Learning is all about repetition. The trick is to make that repetition fun and engaging. This maximises engagement and progress.

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Dr Tom Heaton @drtomheaton.bsky.social · 04/07/2025

Hi #medsky, I'm close to finishing my course on medical mastery. It looks at the learning skills needed for thriving in this specialty. I'd love to get some initial feedback, especially from medical students. Please send me a message if interested

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Dr Tom Heaton @drtomheaton.bsky.social · 04/07/2025

Learning needs a purpose. Our brains function almost entirely around "why?" Why am I expending effort to know this? Why do I need to remember this? Being clear in our purpose - and creating the learning environment to simulate this - makes the learning stick.

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Dr Tom Heaton @drtomheaton.bsky.social · 02/07/2025

Hi #medsky, an education question What are the things you wished that you knew about learning when starting med school?

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Dr Tom Heaton @drtomheaton.bsky.social · 18/06/2025

Hey #medsky, Can you recommend me some examples of great online education course/websites

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Dr Tom Heaton @drtomheaton.bsky.social · 12/06/2025

What were people's favourite strategies for post graduate exams? Did you have a clear set of techniques and strategies that you used?

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Dr Tom Heaton @drtomheaton.bsky.social · 14/05/2025

What are some of the best resources for the management of major incidents? #medsky

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Dr Tom Heaton @drtomheaton.bsky.social · 13/05/2025

Do people feel that they have a clear model/strategy for approaching postgraduate exams? I don't think I did until quite late.

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Dr Tom Heaton @drtomheaton.bsky.social · 08/05/2025

If you have an interest in human factors, I'm enjoying this series breaking down the different types. There are a number of different ways that we can look at our interaction with complex environments, each with different pros and cons. humanisticsystems.com/2017/08/12/f...

humanisticsystems.com

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Reposted by Dr Tom Heaton

Royal College of Anaesthetists @rcoanews.bsky.social · 07/05/2025

The College, alongside the Safe Anaesthesia Liaison Group (SALG), the @facultypainmed.bsky.social and cpoc.bsky.social would like to ensure that anaesthetists are aware that prolonged release opioids are no longer licensed for the treatment of post operative pain. ow.ly/nV2E50VOCz5

ow.ly

Modified release opioid medication

The Safe Anaesthesia Liaison Group (SALG) would like to ensure that anaesthetists are aware that prolonged release opioids are no longer licensed for the treatment of post operative pain.

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Dr Tom Heaton @drtomheaton.bsky.social · 07/05/2025

My latest newsletter reflects on "human error". There is an increasing focus on how this is one of the more relevant factors in effective healthcare. Read it here: open.substack.com/pub/drtomhea...

open.substack.com

#2 - Human Error

Hi everyone,

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Dr Tom Heaton @drtomheaton.bsky.social · 05/05/2025

What are some of the best "human factors" courses that people have done? Can be virtual or in person.

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Dr Tom Heaton @drtomheaton.bsky.social · 05/05/2025

Anaesthetic and critical care emergencies can be difficult to manage. Using effective non technical skills can help you apply your skills and knowledge more effectively. Some key ones: - Shared mental models - Pre task rehearsal - Box breathing - Sterile cockpit

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Dr Tom Heaton @drtomheaton.bsky.social · 02/05/2025

I'm excited to be restarting my medical writing project. It's been quite some time since I've done it regularly. You can find my new Substack newsletter at the link below. Please consider checking it out. drtomheaton.substack.com?r=534h6&utm_...

drtomheaton.substack.com

Tom Heaton | Substack

A dive into the less commonly explored aspects of anaesthesia, critical care, human factors, and education. Click to read Tom Heaton, a Substack publication. Launched 11 minutes ago.

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Dr Tom Heaton @drtomheaton.bsky.social · 19/04/2025

Do people routinely use models for feedback during their clinical teaching activities?

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Dr Tom Heaton @drtomheaton.bsky.social · 18/03/2025

Hi #medsky, Can you share any good feedback models that you use with teaching residents. Thanks

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Reposted by Dr Tom Heaton

GasGasGas - The FRCA Primary Exam Podcast @gasgasgaspodcast.bsky.social · 05/02/2025

GasGasGas is the latest #foamed podcast, It is Content for the FRCA Primary Exams. The most popular episode is an extravagant jaunt into Volatile Anaesthetic Agent Kinetics splitting it into several compartments, Re-Post if you can! #ansky #drGas#medsky #resussky #foamed #anaesthesia

gasgasgas.uk

Compartmentalised Volatiles and Sevoflurane for the FRCA Primary

How the compartments in a breathing circuit and patient interplay to achieve depth / maintain anaesthetic depth and emerge from anaesthesia.

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Dr Tom Heaton @drtomheaton.bsky.social · 05/02/2025

It is fascinating to recognise how important effective systems are healthcare. The complexity makes it near impossible for individual decision-making alone to work.

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Dr Tom Heaton @drtomheaton.bsky.social · 24/01/2025

Hi #medsky. Please can you direct me towards your favourite resources on #humanfactors ? TIA

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