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

At one end, it is only about the simple recall of basic facts. But this stretches to complex applications. These are more challenging to test but are also the most important. When it comes to your learning, make sure you are working up the levels. Secure your foundations, then build up.

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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

Thanks for reading. The skills of learning are critical for our personal growth and a key focus of my work here. Please consider following me here and my newsletter (link in bio) for more practical advice on these topics.

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

5. Concrete example Our learning ability was evolved for the real world, not textbooks and abstract theory. This is also why we should try and create clear examples of concepts that we are learning. We simply understand and remember things better if they are ‘real’ - clear examples help this.

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

4. Make it visual We have a visual preference, so adding this format to our learning material simply makes it more memorable. It is part of turning the abstract into something more concrete

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

3. Mixing it up Similarly, we like to block things together to maintain familiarity. This is, again, a false economy. Mixing up topics makes it harder for us, but makes real world application more effective. The real world problems won't be signposted.

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

2. Spacing We need some degree of repetition to learn something. We like to block things together to make this happen faster - but this is a false economy. Instead, we benefit from a gap, and a degree of forgetting, to make the information more durable. Allow time for the brain to change.

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

1. Testing Testing is not just to see what we know but is a powerful technique for improving retention. Actively retrieving information is hard work and makes our brain retain it better for future use. And it also has the benefit of highlighting when we don’t know something.

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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

If you want to learn more about evidenced based learning theory, follow me here, or sign up for my regular emails at striveseekfind.co.uk

striveseekfind.co.uk

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

Next, apply regular testing strategies that are the most effective method for consolidating this learning and making it durable. Finally, ensure you have a process for spiralling back through the learning, an essential step to deeply encode it for future use.

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

Start with curriculum mapping to better understand your learning goals and to start to build the scaffold for subsequent learning. Then learn actively, extracting the information from your learning resources in a manner that improves their retention.

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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

Well put. Save your energy for where it is needed

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

A habit has 4 components, and thus 4 stages steps that you can optimise: Cue - Make the trigger for the action obvious Craving - Find ways for it to be attractive for you Response - Minimise any friction for you to perform the task Reward - There should be a positive impact from completing the task

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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 · 04/10/2025

For more learning techniques, you can get my FREE flashcard guide here: striveseekfind.kit.com/cd20498490

striveseekfind.kit.com

Stop Wasting Time With Ineffective Flashcards!

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Dr Tom Heaton @drtomheaton.bsky.social · 04/10/2025

Difficulty (challenge) is one of the most controllable when planning your learning. Testing is one of the best ways to do this. Test yourself on everything that you are learning. Avoid passive activities: Reading Rereading Highlighting

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Dr Tom Heaton @drtomheaton.bsky.social · 04/10/2025

Medical Mastery Tip #1 Make your learning active! Learning activities need to activate your brain to cause the changes that are learning. Examples: Difficultly Interesting Emotive

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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

The prefilled syringes do make it much easier

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

Prefilled syringes definitely make if easier

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

Depends (I know, cop out answer). Depends on the likelihood of needing them and the consequences of delay. Metaraminol is an always for adults. Atropine, sux and extra prop for kids.

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

The Pareto Principle is grossly undertaught in medicine. It is everywhere

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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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