1
A side menu for the lenses
B found the lens bar hard to use. One button now opens every lens.
What six Nigerian medical students hire to pass path and pharm
Dr Soala Reuben, Physician and pathology educator · 21 October 2026
patandfam teaches pathology and pharmacology in line with the West African medical curriculum, across specialties, so students are best prepared for their local exams.
During our beta, we watched six medical students use it and asked how they study, using Professor Clayton Christensen's Jobs to be Done framework.
- ADeepSeek → Grok
- BSlides and a textbook
- CAI first when stuck
- DNotebookLM
- EGranola → Claude
- FChatGPT
- 17 OctRound one: 3 students
- Same day12 changes
- 18 OctRound two: 3 students
In round two
- All three found their saved notes fast
- Nobody got stuck in a timed exam
- Nobody confused practice questions with the timed exam
The common job
When an exam is close and time is short, I want to know I've covered what will be asked, without hunting across sources, so I can pass with the time I have.
Our six students
Tools keyAIBooks and filesVideoPeople
Resit student who runs everything through AI
When I'm resitting path and pharm with broken-up study time, I want to turn my slides and notes into questions I can drill, and link each disease to its drug, so I can pass the resit even though I study inconsistently.
The only problem was just consistency.
What patandfam must do
- Drill questions that repeat until he passes
- Work in short sessions on a phone
- Load fast on mobile data
A's tools and forces
Tools
- To learn
- RobbinsSeniors' notesDeepSeek
- To practise
- iLovePDFDeepSeek
- For the viva
- Grok
Forces
Toward patandfam
Push
Failed both papers, and studies in short, irregular bursts.
Pull
The ability to connect subjects to subjects
Holding them back
Habit
Everything goes through DeepSeek first.
Background
A failed both pathology and pharmacology this month and is studying for the resit. He works to support himself in medical school, and volunteers too.
A's last switch: He found Grok because it was "all over X", then moved to DeepSeek when Grok kept timing out on uploads. He hears about tools on social media and switches fast when one fails.
Slide-first student who starts two weeks out
When an in-course date is announced about two weeks out, I want to cover exactly what my lecturers set, from their slides, in the least time, so I can pass without wasting effort.
That's a course that's very dependent on your slides.
What patandfam must do
- Work offline
- Let her write her own notes
- Match what her lecturers set
B's tools and forces
Tools
- To learn
- Lecture slidesShort textbook
- When stuck
- YouTube
- For the viva
- Her written answers
Forces
Toward patandfam
Push
Specialties are taught apart but questioned together in class.
Pull
Seeing a topic across specialties "could grow on" her.
Holding them back
Anxiety
Does not mean it's going to work for me.
Habit
I didn't go past my materials.
Background
B is in Year 4 under a new block system: six weeks of lectures, in-course tests in all four pathology courses, then the end-of-posting exam. She calls herself "not exactly like the serious, serious student".
B's last switch: A senior told her to drop Robbins for a shorter textbook, and she did. She only tries something new when someone she trusts has used it.
Student juggling too many sources
When I'm preparing for several pathology exams at once, I want to have my notes, the links across specialties and past questions in one place, so I can cover it all in time without the stress of juggling sources.
I don't have to leave what I'm doing, I just have to press on a button.
What patandfam must do
- Be an all-in-one tool, with past questions beside the teaching
- Have self-checks that show her what to reread
- Make Anki cards for her
C's tools and forces
Tools
- To learn
- Pathology PDFNinja Nerd
- When stuck
- AIYouTubeClassmates
- To practise
- Past questions
- For the viva
- Friends
Forces
Toward patandfam
Push
Juggling sources costs her time and causes stress.
Pull
This app will save you time.
Holding them back
Anxiety
I'm wasting my time. I should not get any results I want.
Habit
Keeps her lecture slides alongside anything new.
Background
C is in Year 4 and had just written the microbiology in-course. She didn't feel ready for questions that join specialties.
C's last switch: A senior recommended the pathology PDF, and she adopted it. Like B, she needs someone who's used a tool to vouch for it.
Student who learns from pictures
When I'm learning a topic for an in-course, I want to see it as pictures, diagrams and video, explained in simple words, so I can understand it without relying on textbook text.
For the histology part too, that was actually beautiful.
What patandfam must do
- Teach through pictures, diagrams and video
- Use plain words
- Go easy on mobile data
D's tools and forces
Tools
- To learn
- Microbiology bookDr Najeeb's videosAI chatbot
- When stuck
- Google Images
- To practise
- NotebookLMPast questions
Forces
Toward patandfam
Push
I don't really have videos or, like, good sources for pharmacology
Pull
Visuals, videos, pictures… You're not using big words
Holding them back
Anxiety
If I noticed that it's using too much data
Habit
Dr Najeeb's videos are their last stop.
Background
D's microbiology in-course went well, and pharmacology is next. D started reading six weeks before, prefers video to text and doesn't read textbooks much.
D's last switch: NotebookLM. When postings began, someone came to D's room and showed them how to use AI on their slides.
Student still looking for a system
When I can't follow a lecture or a dense topic, I want to find one place that explains it and tests me, so I can learn faster and remember more.
If it has everything I need, that would probably be my material.
What patandfam must do
- Cover the whole syllabus
- Have a big question bank
- Show good pathology images
E's tools and forces
Tools
- To learn
- GranolaClaudeLippincottChatGPT
- When stuck
- ChatGPT or ClaudeGoogle Images
Forces
Toward patandfam
Push
I know I have not discovered the best way to study
Pull
A comprehensive question bank
Holding them back
Anxiety
This doesn't work better than what I've been doing before
Habit
Weak: no tool they wouldn't give up.
Background
In the microbiology in-course, E "was able to cover all the materials, but I forgot things". E struggles most with haematology and chemical pathology, and records lectures because they find them hard to follow in class.
E's last switch: Granola, seen on a resident's YouTube channel. It's "always like an addition", not their main material.
Student who trusts past questions and seniors
When a test is coming, I want to practise with questions under timed, exam-like conditions, so I can pass without changing a study method that already works.
One of the parts that captured me was the steeplechase aspect of it.
What patandfam must do
- Give timed, exam-style practice
- Include practical stations to rehearse
- Fit around how they already study
F's tools and forces
Tools
- To learn
- Notes and slidesTelegram videos
- When stuck
- ChatGPTSeniorsYouTube
- To practise
- Past questions
- For the viva
- Classmates
Forces
Toward patandfam
Push
Some classmates struggle to connect the dots across specialties.
Pull
If it helps me to understand better than how I used to, I would go for it
Holding them back
Anxiety
I'm kind of scared of actually adapting to a new way of studies
Habit
I don't really push efforts to changing my method of study
Background
F's scores have been improving since early tests went badly. This year F started taking notes while reading, which "helped me with recalling".
F's last switch: A Telegram channel of video lessons that seniors recommended, because reading alone is "a whole lot" when you miss a class.
What we changed
2Worked in round two
Search under every heading
All three needed help to find one fact. Search now sits under every lens heading.
3Worked in round two
A page for every note
C couldn't find a note she'd made. Every note and highlight now lives on one page.
4
Links to other specialties
Nobody found a link on their own. Each section now opens with them.
5
One close button, smaller pop-ups
Three kinds of close button became one, and short pop-ups slide up from the bottom.
6Worked in round two
Timed exams first
All three picked untimed practice over the timed exam. Timed exams now come first.
7Worked in round two
A Leave button in timed exams
B thought she had to finish a practical before she could leave.
8
Help when you go blank
C went blank. The viva now tells students to say what they can.
9
Next steps after each lens
Each lens now ends with the next lens, Test yourself and My notes.
10
Pharmacology in the headline
Testers thought patandfam was for pathology only.
11Worked in round two
Works offline
B's network dropped twice during our call. The module now opens with no connection.
12
An examiner that coaches
A expected the examiner to tell him what he got wrong. Now it does, aloud.
What we learned
- Passing beats depthThey hire a study tool to pass the next exam, and value depth only when it saves them time.
- AI is the competitionTheir real alternative is a kit they build from AI tools, so patandfam has to do each job better than a chatbot fed their slides.
- The exam date is the triggerThat's also when switching feels riskiest, so a new tool has to prove itself in minutes.
- Trust is borrowedThey try what a senior, a roommate or a resident has already used.