Jarrod Shapiro, DPM
Practice Perfect Editor
Assistant Professor,
Dept. of Podiatric Medicine,
Surgery & Biomechanics
College of Podiatric Medicine
Western University of
Health Sciences,
St. Pomona, CA

ABPS Board Exam Part 2:
A Marathon Weekend

This past weekend marked the 100th anniversary of the Tour De France, the well-known bicycle race. As anyone who watches the race knows, Le Tour is a 3 week long marathon torture fest of endurance for the world's best professional bike riders. A similarly, the ABPS Board Certification examination about a week ago felt like a small marathon weekend.

Last week was the first installation of my short series reporting on this year's ABPS Board Certification examination. In that Part 1 of this series, I warned those behind me in the process not to make the same mistakes I did and recommended some actions that might make life a bit easier. This week, I'd like to talk about the exam itself. Since I'm not a representative of the ABPS, I can't make any official statement about exam questions, and those pending the exam are directed to the ABPS website for specifics. Over time the exam itself has changed, and if the rumors are true, we should expect to see more change in the near future.

Preparation for the Exam

The first question that always comes up is how should one prepare for the exam? As I mentioned last week, I don't know if I passed the exam yet, so take my advice at face value. I studied for about one month prior, after work hours and whenever I could squeeze in some time. In some ways, though, as a professor at one of the podiatry colleges, I feel I've been studying for a longer period of time. Additionally, daily practice should prepare all of us for the more patient-encounter-oriented method of the ABPS exam. If you can work up a patient and demonstrate your thought process, you should be capable of taking the oral exam.

I spent the majority of my time studying those topics I don't see much in practice. For example, I'm not yet trained to perform ankle implant arthroplasties, and I don't see many clubfeet in practice, so I was sure to study these topics among others in detail. Additionally, I was warned by others who have already passed the exam that tumors (bone and soft tissue) as well as complications would be common questions.

Tonight's Premier Lecture is
Achilles Tendon Ruptures
Marie Williams, DPM

I used a variety of sources to study including old board review manuals like the Hershey manual, journal articles, and textbooks. I found the new edition of McGlamry's textbook to be very helpful, especially for specific topics, such as implant arthroplasty. In fact, the chapter on ankle implants by Dr Schuberth is an excellent and comprehensive review of the topic that is all one needs for the Board exam. Additionally, I reviewed the three online computer-based patient simulation samples several times, though I would have liked a larger number of cases to better understand the system. Take a look at the eThread started last week on the Board exam for more suggestions by our online community.

The Exam

As I mentioned above, taking the exam was a bit like a short marathon. Since I took both the foot and rearfoot reconstruction and ankle exams, I tested all weekend from Friday to late Sunday morning (the RRA exam is one day and the Foot exam 1½ days). The exam itself currently consists of the oral portion and a computer-based patient simulation (CBPS). The oral exam was what you might predict: sitting across from the examiner, answering questions about a case.

The CBPS, though, was an entirely different animal. Many of our 350+ cohort taking the exam seemed to be in consensus regarding their dislike of this part. The program had the examinee work through a patient simulation, with the intent to provide a diagnosis and treatment. A menu was provided for the physical exam, diagnostic imaging, diagnostic procedures, diagnosis, and treatment. The real challenge was finding the appropriate term in the menu in a rapid enough time to complete the entire simulation. This was made more difficult by redundancy of terms and some other organizational issues. Of the two portions of the exam, I found the oral portion to be a much more effective test of my knowledge. The CBPS tested a small amount of my knowledge and to a greater part, my ability to navigate a computer program.

The significance of this for future examinees becomes clear when you consider the exam will become purely computer-based in the next couple of years (the rumor is 2015). This may make the exam easier to schedule and administer (the logistics of the oral exam are very complicated) in addition to reducing the cost and travel burden for the candidates. Theoretically, it will also be easier to have more than one test per year. However, in my opinion, the exam itself will be much more difficult and possibly a less accurate test of our knowledge.

Regardless of how the future rolls out, it will be interesting to see how the board certification exam evolves. For those who have taken the exam, write in with your interpretations and opinions. Add to the current board certification discussion thread on eTalk. For those of you yet to take the exam in the next year or two be ready for the weekend marathon!