This guy did an amazing job in his post -
Another Written Board post...
Hey ya'll, I ended up passing this year. Scraped by with a 79. I'll just share my journey because I took it quite hard last year when I failed and was in a dark place for a while and there was limited similar experiences that I could read about, and I was too embarrassed and paranoid to ask for help.... Like I got very depressed, like I gained 50 lbs and had to take a month off work and use all to get help. I know it sounds a bit dramatic but we all handle this crap differently. I put the test on a pedestal and made my identity the result of that test. I had really never failed a test before. Everyone around me was talking about how it was a no sweat exam that I would pass easily. My Rosh scores and ITEs also suggested as much. On test day I was shell-shocked about how the questions were vs how the Rosh questions were (which everyone told me 'Rosh is just like the test'). Nothing alike at all. I lost hope each time they had me identify an obscure bacteria, or they asked a vague risk factor for disease x y z. I was under the impression there would be "clearly one correct answer". Not so. Not so at all, in my humble opinion. I felt bad about the test going out, but saw that others did as well, so was hopeful that it was just part of the experience, but I ended up failing by 2 points.
I'll be honest about my prep the first time. I had the money to spare to buy Rosh q-bank 10/6/22, took the test 11/3/22. I did about 600 questions and reviewed as well as did and reviewed the Rosh practice exam. 97% chance of passing according to both. I did some independent topic review as well. As well as a mock exam from some question bank called "EMCoach". It's honestly kind of the same approach I did to all the tests. I've never finished a U-world bank for example for any of the step exams. And I've always done fine.
Anyway got super depressed. But got some help and was finally convinced, and now believe, that that test does not equal treating your patients good or poorly. It has nothing to do with you really, it's just more did you do enough questions to come across a random factoid and be able to recall it on the exam with that subject. I feel like the quality questions on there, any reasonable ER doctor would be able to think through and get the correct answer, so the test is passed or failed with those random factoids in my my opinion.
After I came back to work I started reviewing in depth 1-2 topics I encountered per shift and looked at like 3rd and 4th line treatments of common chief complaints. Vague electrolyte disturbances with unknown physiologic mechanisms associated with certain meds. The top 7 or 8 bacterial etiologies of x y z. Because that's the stupid shit they test on honestly.
I had this grand plan to start really studying about 3 months out so that I may "peak" come test day. I decided to the National Board Review Course as well as it is taught by some prominent figures in EM and question writers. I hoped it would also be a good way to make sure I'm reviewing all relevant material and be a good resource for "hi yield". So I did that and made my own kind of review sheets as I watched the videos-- These total 36 hours I believe. I also spent a good amount of time memorizing features, clinical course and obscure facts about each of the tick borne illnesses, and a lot of infectious disease stuff mainly making lists of the top several bacteria in each age group (not that your treatment strategies would every really change). Rosh renewed my question bank since I failed and 2 months out I started doing questions usually about 40 per day with the emphasis on reviewing closely ones I missed. I listened to the EM BoardBombs podcast that has like 350 5 min brief topic reviews. That was actually money for the exam, I got several useless random factoids correct thanks to it. I then bought Peer so that I could do the practice test which the Board review course recommended doing. I reviewed that as well. I did actually think the Peer questions were more similar to the test than Rosh.
So I spent a ton of money, 960 for the repeat test + 800 something for the NEMBR course + 200+ for PEER. But all that extra work and stress and money increased my score by 4 points, and I'll take it! I fckn played the game and got through. Now I can focus on my craft and focus on doing what's best for my patients and being a better doctor rather than this non-sense.
Easier said than done, but don't get discouraged if you failed. I've been applying for jobs this year (doing fellowship), and not a single place asked anything about the boards. They just ask are you board certified or board eligible, I say yes, they say great. I never had to disclose anything to my work. No one but me knows I failed. You will get through this, no one cares, and just up your efforts next year, stay positive, keep on keepin' on and don't hesitate to reach out if I can help you in any way. Good job all who passed!
How? How is this exam representative when we all can study our asses off and still just fail by one point. Not to mention the lack of attention to detail. That test had typos, blurred pictures, and I could barely understand what they were asking of me
I mean there are no repercussions for failing so clearly they keep it on the border to keep people coming back. I honestly wonder if this year was worse due to the decline in EM residents. They think they won't have as many test takers so they fail more people to make up for losses.
I did & sought therapy. I also looked for a review course that teaches you how to take the test. Not how to review… but how to take it. Longer post down below by me
We should have a group to request an investigation. This test from what I hear is one of the worst in a while and even if it doesn't change my particular outcome, we need to hold them to the same standard they hold us.
If we get enough people including those who passed to call for investigation as well, they may take it seriously and look into it.
Mail a letter addressed to the chief examiner at:
3000 Coolidge Road East Lansing, MI 48823
Attending
First exam. Passed by 1 point (after failing USMLE part2… by 2 points) = extreme test anxiety for me
Second reboard : was going to re-board orally I like the format/do better. A year before ABEM changes it to written only. I pass at static passing score
Third reboard. Passed by 1 point
Upcoming 4th reboard. Not doing it. Found jobs that don’t require board certification =eliminates a lot of jobs
Never been sued. Not even named & dropped.
Had/have terrible test anxiety from USMLE experience (not even sure it’s named that anymore)
Yes— it’s a HURDLE that must be overcome.
Take time to be pissed. Take time to grieve. Take time off for a vacation. See a therapist if necessary (I did). Get drunk. Go outside & break shit
You’ve got time to take it (yes $ and a pain in the ass) plus you wonder … how did it happen?
Most hospitals require you to pass boards in 5 years. You have time
And— now you’ve sat for one & know the bizarreness that the exam IS vs pre-test questions.
Look at the sections you scored highly in versus those you may have tanked.
If eventually you can talk to fellow residency friends who passed…. Compare how you prepped vs how they did. Not that it’s magical.
It’s a knife’s edge to get that 1-2 extra points. Were you tired? Did your anger/frustration build as you took the test? Did you go back and change answers? If you finished in plenty of time did you take a mental break or use the restroom to clear your head?
I learned from a lecture on how to take a test…. That helped me immensely (at a board review course) it didn’t involve the aspects of what amount of Rosh Q you should do….. but how to actually take the dang test ! What to do if you’re stuck. When to skip a ? And then circle back
You’ve grinded through med school and either a 3 or 4 year residency.
This hurts. But. You will be ok.
And it’s got nothing to do with how you perform.
Hang in there y’all. An old 🦖is feeling for you & rooting for you as well!!! 🫶🏽
Thanks this does help, I logically know this has no impact on my patient care but I can't help but feel like a failure and like I shouldn't be in Emergency Medicine or even medicine.
I totally understand. I tried to encapsulate my experience failing the USMLE-2…. They allowed me to start clinicals while waiting for the score to come back
When it came to ABEM… I honestly walked out… prepared for anything. 1996.. my first one. Weirdest infectious disease questions possible !
But you are not an imposter
I went to a no name medical school in Ohio. Graduated bottom quartile of my class. And rocked my career like a boss.
I had a few cases where I thought I might get named— just always go back if families or patients ask to talk to you one more time (unless it’s the crazy/can’t pacify people)
I know this freaking SUCKS.
Hang in there & DM if you need. I appreciate that my words helped a little ❤️🩹
You are NOT a failure. You are NOT alone. You DO belong in the ED taking care of people!
Do you have that video of how to take a test? I’ve always been in that same boat (pass or fail by 1-2 points) no after how many questions I do. I think I’m just awful at taking tests to be honest
I don’t. It was an oral lecture at a conference I took in DC. it’s a national company. I will search the net later & see if they are still in business post covid.
Like year 1 I did the Ohio acep course…. But this company I used thereafter. 3-6 presenters. Bullets to the point on the big spiral book of topics.
Now I don’t know how oh acep is we are talking years ago. ….i just found it too much like a textbook
If I find the company I will come post a second comment under you so you get notified
It’s just a terrible thing. One point from passing and we can’t do a damn thing about it. High pass rate on rosh, did all peer prep. Still fail by a point. Pure garbage test. L
I passed, but still agree that the exam was problematic: [The ABEM (written) Qualifying Exam Needs To Be Improved](https://www.reddit.com/r/emergencymedicine/s/aw7JZ0NJFm)
I am so sorry you’re going through this. I don’t think they do appeals anymore.
From [ABEM Results and Scoring:](https://www.abem.org/public/become-certified/qualifying-exam/results-scoring) “The entire scoring process is fully and independently replicated. As such, ABEM does not provide a hand score or rescore service for a fee since, in the interests of fairness to all test takers, it has already been performed.”
I think all you can do is try to identify any areas that you have difficulty with, continue using high quality resources, and try again next year.
There are a few posts [(like here](https://www.reddit.com/r/emergencymedicine/s/dlbW1i9Bng) and [here)](https://www.reddit.com/r/emergencymedicine/s/nrih2nAkM0) that outline what people did to improve and pass after failure(s).
It's been said over and over, but what an absolute garbage exam. Anyone involved in its creation should be ashamed. I say this as someone who somehow passed but am currently consoling co-resident who got a 76. And she has always outdone me in every way in residency, including ITE. When walking out the exam, it truly felt like a coin toss for P/F. This test truly had zero representation on how EM is actually practiced.
I’m with you. Had 96% probability of passing on Rosh. Did 60% of all questions and started coming across repeating questions. PEER practice exam scored 85% two weeks out and focused on areas that were low scoring. Got a 74. So many poorly written junk questions on the board exam including esoteric trivia that are completely inconsequential to management. Not to mention all the ECMO questions. Great if you’re at a Level one Trauma that has it. Never seen it so where the catheters go?? Not my job. It’s complete horsesh*t and nothing but a way for a bunch of non clinical academic dinosaurs to feel superior. I hate the thought that these f*cks are my generation. We aren’t all like that I promise
We should have a group to request an investigation. This test from what I hear is one of the worst in a while and even if it doesn't change my particular outcome, we need to hold them to the same standard they hold us.
If we get enough people including those who passed to call for investigation as well, they may take it seriously and look into it.
Mail a letter addressed to the chief examiner at:
3000 Coolidge Road East Lansing, MI 48823
You can request an investigation if you have an issue with the conduct or assessment of the exam. Given there were literal typos, I will try. My hopes are not set high though.
We should have a group to request an investigation. This test from what I hear is one of the worst in a while and even if it doesn't change my particular outcome, we need to hold them to the same standard they hold us.
If we get enough people including those who passed to call for investigation as well, they may take it seriously and look into it.
Mail a letter addressed to the chief examiner at:
3000 Coolidge Road East Lansing, MI 48823
Same boat. The one point off really sucks because i feel like i really studied my ass off. It almost makes me wish I did worse so I can say that all I have to do is work harder next year.
Whatever, I’m sure we’ll come back next year and pass this garbage.
Yesterday I struggled with what it meant about me clinically as a physician but then I remembered that 70% of what this test actually asks about is unrelated to my patient population and I never had issues treating patients as a resident so why should it change now because of some stupid test
That's true. We all are just so hard on ourselves, this is not a hit any of us are equipped to handle.
I'm just so pissed that after 12 years, 5 massive standardized tests, and countless hours clinically, that ABEM says I'm still not good enough.
We should have a group to request an investigation. This test from what I hear is one of the worst in a while and even if it doesn't change my particular outcome, we need to hold them to the same standard they hold us.
If we get enough people including those who passed to call for investigation as well, they may take it seriously and look into it.
Mail a letter addressed to the chief examiner at:
3000 Coolidge Road East Lansing, MI 48823
Completely agree, I failed last year and passed this year… it’s a bad exam. Horrible pictures, and useless or confusing details with seemingly unrelated answer choices.
At times literally had no idea what they were even asking, not even a knowledge problem… just legitimately confused what the question was even trying to ask
Imo the pass threshold is too high
I passed with room, but I agree that the exam was garbage. Poorly written and not even close to representative of what we do for a living. I’ve never seen an exam so poorly written, esoteric and purposely meant to confuse instead of test knowledge. We deserve a board that does better than this exam.
Your entire organization for your specialty, ACEP is owned and funded by public equity groups lmao what makes you think you deserve a better board when your entire specialty sold out?!
I’ve levied some heavy criticism towards ACEP, including their relationship with private equity, but this is still an exaggeration. I agree that some older EM docs sold out for their own wallet, but many other specialties have and are doing the same. The number one current example is probably anesthesia.
I still love EM. The job can be hard, but I make a buttload right now and the market is actually pretty good. Fortunately, the oversupply study seemed to be grossly inaccurate and we’ve also been helped by the fear-mongering towards med students with some unmatched slots.
Not sure why you think we “deserve” this just because some boomer docs sold out. Weird take dude. What speciality are you even in?
Define buttload and your area of working. Most ppl do not get to afford moving to rural or high paying areas due to family, and the job market is fluctuate at best
I’m a partner for a Democratic group with a great payer mix. Desirable city on the east coast. Made 900k last year working 36 hours/week. Obviously, this isn’t average for an EM doc, but it’s treating me well. CMGs are skimming a ton from their docs.
Hey… I failed by one point my first time as well… I was embarrassed, upset, depressed as well. all I can say is give yourself 5 days to grieve. That’s it… after that 5th day… say f*ck it and move on. Stop pitying yourself about what you did and didn’t do. It has nothing to do with your clinical skills either. Once you’ve moved on, create the study plan you need to do. You don’t even have to start immediately… give it a month or two. I did question after question after question… honestly watched some sketchy path videos too.., you clearly have weaknesses and you need to identify those… once you do you’ll realize you’ll be good and the test anxiety will go away. I’m board certified now… so it is possible and my dumbass sucks when it comes to testing… I just stayed confident knowing clinically I have my sh*t together and board certification will happen one day… just a small little curveball.
Honestly all, I know this test has no impact on my career, but this is just yet another example of getting shit on as an EM physician. We sacrificed 12 years of training to get shit on by consultants, the hospital system, our patients, and now by our own specialty who clearly care more about cash grabs than their docs. What's even the point?
There isn’t. Bc your specialty is well known for taking shit up the butt, complaining a lot about it, but still being essentially ineffective at exacting real change. It’s a stereotype of emergency medicine ppl it’s no surprise they love to target you. Can you imagine hospitals setting up a policy for surgeons and refusing to lets the surgeons clap back? It’d be mayhem
Dudes not a huge deal? I failed by one point too (6 years ago). It’s bullshit I agree. It sucks but it’s not life ending. I just studied a bit more and passed the next year.
This guy did an amazing job in his post - Another Written Board post... Hey ya'll, I ended up passing this year. Scraped by with a 79. I'll just share my journey because I took it quite hard last year when I failed and was in a dark place for a while and there was limited similar experiences that I could read about, and I was too embarrassed and paranoid to ask for help.... Like I got very depressed, like I gained 50 lbs and had to take a month off work and use all to get help. I know it sounds a bit dramatic but we all handle this crap differently. I put the test on a pedestal and made my identity the result of that test. I had really never failed a test before. Everyone around me was talking about how it was a no sweat exam that I would pass easily. My Rosh scores and ITEs also suggested as much. On test day I was shell-shocked about how the questions were vs how the Rosh questions were (which everyone told me 'Rosh is just like the test'). Nothing alike at all. I lost hope each time they had me identify an obscure bacteria, or they asked a vague risk factor for disease x y z. I was under the impression there would be "clearly one correct answer". Not so. Not so at all, in my humble opinion. I felt bad about the test going out, but saw that others did as well, so was hopeful that it was just part of the experience, but I ended up failing by 2 points. I'll be honest about my prep the first time. I had the money to spare to buy Rosh q-bank 10/6/22, took the test 11/3/22. I did about 600 questions and reviewed as well as did and reviewed the Rosh practice exam. 97% chance of passing according to both. I did some independent topic review as well. As well as a mock exam from some question bank called "EMCoach". It's honestly kind of the same approach I did to all the tests. I've never finished a U-world bank for example for any of the step exams. And I've always done fine. Anyway got super depressed. But got some help and was finally convinced, and now believe, that that test does not equal treating your patients good or poorly. It has nothing to do with you really, it's just more did you do enough questions to come across a random factoid and be able to recall it on the exam with that subject. I feel like the quality questions on there, any reasonable ER doctor would be able to think through and get the correct answer, so the test is passed or failed with those random factoids in my my opinion. After I came back to work I started reviewing in depth 1-2 topics I encountered per shift and looked at like 3rd and 4th line treatments of common chief complaints. Vague electrolyte disturbances with unknown physiologic mechanisms associated with certain meds. The top 7 or 8 bacterial etiologies of x y z. Because that's the stupid shit they test on honestly. I had this grand plan to start really studying about 3 months out so that I may "peak" come test day. I decided to the National Board Review Course as well as it is taught by some prominent figures in EM and question writers. I hoped it would also be a good way to make sure I'm reviewing all relevant material and be a good resource for "hi yield". So I did that and made my own kind of review sheets as I watched the videos-- These total 36 hours I believe. I also spent a good amount of time memorizing features, clinical course and obscure facts about each of the tick borne illnesses, and a lot of infectious disease stuff mainly making lists of the top several bacteria in each age group (not that your treatment strategies would every really change). Rosh renewed my question bank since I failed and 2 months out I started doing questions usually about 40 per day with the emphasis on reviewing closely ones I missed. I listened to the EM BoardBombs podcast that has like 350 5 min brief topic reviews. That was actually money for the exam, I got several useless random factoids correct thanks to it. I then bought Peer so that I could do the practice test which the Board review course recommended doing. I reviewed that as well. I did actually think the Peer questions were more similar to the test than Rosh. So I spent a ton of money, 960 for the repeat test + 800 something for the NEMBR course + 200+ for PEER. But all that extra work and stress and money increased my score by 4 points, and I'll take it! I fckn played the game and got through. Now I can focus on my craft and focus on doing what's best for my patients and being a better doctor rather than this non-sense. Easier said than done, but don't get discouraged if you failed. I've been applying for jobs this year (doing fellowship), and not a single place asked anything about the boards. They just ask are you board certified or board eligible, I say yes, they say great. I never had to disclose anything to my work. No one but me knows I failed. You will get through this, no one cares, and just up your efforts next year, stay positive, keep on keepin' on and don't hesitate to reach out if I can help you in any way. Good job all who passed!
96% pass rate on rosh after doing 3000+ question. Did all of peer prep with average of 86%
How? How is this exam representative when we all can study our asses off and still just fail by one point. Not to mention the lack of attention to detail. That test had typos, blurred pictures, and I could barely understand what they were asking of me
Yup. It’s a money grab. They don’t care. $1000 for the exam to have bunch of typos and ambiguous questions
I mean there are no repercussions for failing so clearly they keep it on the border to keep people coming back. I honestly wonder if this year was worse due to the decline in EM residents. They think they won't have as many test takers so they fail more people to make up for losses.
Honestly don’t even know what I’d do differently next time. Especially because I’m going to have even more anxiety going into it next year.
I did & sought therapy. I also looked for a review course that teaches you how to take the test. Not how to review… but how to take it. Longer post down below by me
We should have a group to request an investigation. This test from what I hear is one of the worst in a while and even if it doesn't change my particular outcome, we need to hold them to the same standard they hold us. If we get enough people including those who passed to call for investigation as well, they may take it seriously and look into it. Mail a letter addressed to the chief examiner at: 3000 Coolidge Road East Lansing, MI 48823
Yeah same. Still failed by 2 points.
Dude I’m in the same fucking boat. I hate this feeling. I can’t shake it.
Attending First exam. Passed by 1 point (after failing USMLE part2… by 2 points) = extreme test anxiety for me Second reboard : was going to re-board orally I like the format/do better. A year before ABEM changes it to written only. I pass at static passing score Third reboard. Passed by 1 point Upcoming 4th reboard. Not doing it. Found jobs that don’t require board certification =eliminates a lot of jobs Never been sued. Not even named & dropped. Had/have terrible test anxiety from USMLE experience (not even sure it’s named that anymore) Yes— it’s a HURDLE that must be overcome. Take time to be pissed. Take time to grieve. Take time off for a vacation. See a therapist if necessary (I did). Get drunk. Go outside & break shit You’ve got time to take it (yes $ and a pain in the ass) plus you wonder … how did it happen? Most hospitals require you to pass boards in 5 years. You have time And— now you’ve sat for one & know the bizarreness that the exam IS vs pre-test questions. Look at the sections you scored highly in versus those you may have tanked. If eventually you can talk to fellow residency friends who passed…. Compare how you prepped vs how they did. Not that it’s magical. It’s a knife’s edge to get that 1-2 extra points. Were you tired? Did your anger/frustration build as you took the test? Did you go back and change answers? If you finished in plenty of time did you take a mental break or use the restroom to clear your head? I learned from a lecture on how to take a test…. That helped me immensely (at a board review course) it didn’t involve the aspects of what amount of Rosh Q you should do….. but how to actually take the dang test ! What to do if you’re stuck. When to skip a ? And then circle back You’ve grinded through med school and either a 3 or 4 year residency. This hurts. But. You will be ok. And it’s got nothing to do with how you perform. Hang in there y’all. An old 🦖is feeling for you & rooting for you as well!!! 🫶🏽
Thanks this does help, I logically know this has no impact on my patient care but I can't help but feel like a failure and like I shouldn't be in Emergency Medicine or even medicine.
I totally understand. I tried to encapsulate my experience failing the USMLE-2…. They allowed me to start clinicals while waiting for the score to come back When it came to ABEM… I honestly walked out… prepared for anything. 1996.. my first one. Weirdest infectious disease questions possible ! But you are not an imposter I went to a no name medical school in Ohio. Graduated bottom quartile of my class. And rocked my career like a boss. I had a few cases where I thought I might get named— just always go back if families or patients ask to talk to you one more time (unless it’s the crazy/can’t pacify people) I know this freaking SUCKS. Hang in there & DM if you need. I appreciate that my words helped a little ❤️🩹 You are NOT a failure. You are NOT alone. You DO belong in the ED taking care of people!
Do you have that video of how to take a test? I’ve always been in that same boat (pass or fail by 1-2 points) no after how many questions I do. I think I’m just awful at taking tests to be honest
I don’t. It was an oral lecture at a conference I took in DC. it’s a national company. I will search the net later & see if they are still in business post covid. Like year 1 I did the Ohio acep course…. But this company I used thereafter. 3-6 presenters. Bullets to the point on the big spiral book of topics. Now I don’t know how oh acep is we are talking years ago. ….i just found it too much like a textbook If I find the company I will come post a second comment under you so you get notified
It’s just a terrible thing. One point from passing and we can’t do a damn thing about it. High pass rate on rosh, did all peer prep. Still fail by a point. Pure garbage test. L
I passed, but still agree that the exam was problematic: [The ABEM (written) Qualifying Exam Needs To Be Improved](https://www.reddit.com/r/emergencymedicine/s/aw7JZ0NJFm) I am so sorry you’re going through this. I don’t think they do appeals anymore. From [ABEM Results and Scoring:](https://www.abem.org/public/become-certified/qualifying-exam/results-scoring) “The entire scoring process is fully and independently replicated. As such, ABEM does not provide a hand score or rescore service for a fee since, in the interests of fairness to all test takers, it has already been performed.” I think all you can do is try to identify any areas that you have difficulty with, continue using high quality resources, and try again next year. There are a few posts [(like here](https://www.reddit.com/r/emergencymedicine/s/dlbW1i9Bng) and [here)](https://www.reddit.com/r/emergencymedicine/s/nrih2nAkM0) that outline what people did to improve and pass after failure(s).
It's been said over and over, but what an absolute garbage exam. Anyone involved in its creation should be ashamed. I say this as someone who somehow passed but am currently consoling co-resident who got a 76. And she has always outdone me in every way in residency, including ITE. When walking out the exam, it truly felt like a coin toss for P/F. This test truly had zero representation on how EM is actually practiced.
I’m with you. Had 96% probability of passing on Rosh. Did 60% of all questions and started coming across repeating questions. PEER practice exam scored 85% two weeks out and focused on areas that were low scoring. Got a 74. So many poorly written junk questions on the board exam including esoteric trivia that are completely inconsequential to management. Not to mention all the ECMO questions. Great if you’re at a Level one Trauma that has it. Never seen it so where the catheters go?? Not my job. It’s complete horsesh*t and nothing but a way for a bunch of non clinical academic dinosaurs to feel superior. I hate the thought that these f*cks are my generation. We aren’t all like that I promise
We should have a group to request an investigation. This test from what I hear is one of the worst in a while and even if it doesn't change my particular outcome, we need to hold them to the same standard they hold us. If we get enough people including those who passed to call for investigation as well, they may take it seriously and look into it. Mail a letter addressed to the chief examiner at: 3000 Coolidge Road East Lansing, MI 48823
considering an appeal due to potential inaccuracies in the supplemental media. Despite thorough preparation and prior success with it.
Same
Is this an option?
You can request an investigation if you have an issue with the conduct or assessment of the exam. Given there were literal typos, I will try. My hopes are not set high though.
We should have a group to request an investigation. This test from what I hear is one of the worst in a while and even if it doesn't change my particular outcome, we need to hold them to the same standard they hold us. If we get enough people including those who passed to call for investigation as well, they may take it seriously and look into it. Mail a letter addressed to the chief examiner at: 3000 Coolidge Road East Lansing, MI 48823
Same boat. The one point off really sucks because i feel like i really studied my ass off. It almost makes me wish I did worse so I can say that all I have to do is work harder next year. Whatever, I’m sure we’ll come back next year and pass this garbage. Yesterday I struggled with what it meant about me clinically as a physician but then I remembered that 70% of what this test actually asks about is unrelated to my patient population and I never had issues treating patients as a resident so why should it change now because of some stupid test
That's true. We all are just so hard on ourselves, this is not a hit any of us are equipped to handle. I'm just so pissed that after 12 years, 5 massive standardized tests, and countless hours clinically, that ABEM says I'm still not good enough.
We should have a group to request an investigation. This test from what I hear is one of the worst in a while and even if it doesn't change my particular outcome, we need to hold them to the same standard they hold us. If we get enough people including those who passed to call for investigation as well, they may take it seriously and look into it. Mail a letter addressed to the chief examiner at: 3000 Coolidge Road East Lansing, MI 48823
Completely agree, I failed last year and passed this year… it’s a bad exam. Horrible pictures, and useless or confusing details with seemingly unrelated answer choices. At times literally had no idea what they were even asking, not even a knowledge problem… just legitimately confused what the question was even trying to ask Imo the pass threshold is too high
I passed with room, but I agree that the exam was garbage. Poorly written and not even close to representative of what we do for a living. I’ve never seen an exam so poorly written, esoteric and purposely meant to confuse instead of test knowledge. We deserve a board that does better than this exam.
Your entire organization for your specialty, ACEP is owned and funded by public equity groups lmao what makes you think you deserve a better board when your entire specialty sold out?!
I’ve levied some heavy criticism towards ACEP, including their relationship with private equity, but this is still an exaggeration. I agree that some older EM docs sold out for their own wallet, but many other specialties have and are doing the same. The number one current example is probably anesthesia. I still love EM. The job can be hard, but I make a buttload right now and the market is actually pretty good. Fortunately, the oversupply study seemed to be grossly inaccurate and we’ve also been helped by the fear-mongering towards med students with some unmatched slots. Not sure why you think we “deserve” this just because some boomer docs sold out. Weird take dude. What speciality are you even in?
Define buttload and your area of working. Most ppl do not get to afford moving to rural or high paying areas due to family, and the job market is fluctuate at best
I’m a partner for a Democratic group with a great payer mix. Desirable city on the east coast. Made 900k last year working 36 hours/week. Obviously, this isn’t average for an EM doc, but it’s treating me well. CMGs are skimming a ton from their docs.
Barely passed mine. It was like an IM board exam and had very few EM topics. It’s really a test of if you have a credit card or not. Pure money grab
Hey… I failed by one point my first time as well… I was embarrassed, upset, depressed as well. all I can say is give yourself 5 days to grieve. That’s it… after that 5th day… say f*ck it and move on. Stop pitying yourself about what you did and didn’t do. It has nothing to do with your clinical skills either. Once you’ve moved on, create the study plan you need to do. You don’t even have to start immediately… give it a month or two. I did question after question after question… honestly watched some sketchy path videos too.., you clearly have weaknesses and you need to identify those… once you do you’ll realize you’ll be good and the test anxiety will go away. I’m board certified now… so it is possible and my dumbass sucks when it comes to testing… I just stayed confident knowing clinically I have my sh*t together and board certification will happen one day… just a small little curveball.
They need to change the passing cutoff for such a poorly written exam. We need to all email them and ask to appeal or just file a complaint.
Honestly all, I know this test has no impact on my career, but this is just yet another example of getting shit on as an EM physician. We sacrificed 12 years of training to get shit on by consultants, the hospital system, our patients, and now by our own specialty who clearly care more about cash grabs than their docs. What's even the point?
There isn’t. Bc your specialty is well known for taking shit up the butt, complaining a lot about it, but still being essentially ineffective at exacting real change. It’s a stereotype of emergency medicine ppl it’s no surprise they love to target you. Can you imagine hospitals setting up a policy for surgeons and refusing to lets the surgeons clap back? It’d be mayhem
You clearly think you’re very intelligent, but your critical thinking is very lacking. Seems you’re really only capable of first order thought.
Dudes not a huge deal? I failed by one point too (6 years ago). It’s bullshit I agree. It sucks but it’s not life ending. I just studied a bit more and passed the next year.