In my mind, the answer to the question to this question is a resounding NO! Have you heard that joke?
“What do they call the guy who graduates at the bottom of his medschool class?”
DOCTOR!
But what if you fail the pediatric boards? Our profession is filled with high stress situations, but at the end of the journey there is supposed to be a reward. Happiness. Fulfillment. A sense of accomplishment.
While I'm guessing that more than 95% of your fellow interns made it through residency, did you know that the ABP initial certification exam has been DESIGNED to fail up to 25% of pediatricians? I was shocked to find this out and wish I had a clue prior to taking the boards for the first time.
Why? Well, I failed the pediatric board by about 9 questions the first time I took it. Fortunately, I was able to turn everything around and blow away the boards the second time around. I am NOT a bad pediatrician, and I KNOW that passing (or failing) a board certification exam does not dictate your level of skill a a clinician.
In fact, the two are so “unrelated” that the best Medical Board Review Exam Coach isn't even IN the medical field, and I was able to increase my score on the second time around by over 130 points!
About PBR's Coach, you won't believe it either. She could be your grandmother… but she's helped HUNDREDS of physicians finally pass medical board exam and attain that feeling of liberation after failing multiple times.
And she's been doing it for DECADES.
I'm doing everything I can to put together a program for a handful of PBR members finally get over this crazy exam and move on with their lives. The course usually sells out by March for the entire year, so if you're interested in learning more, click here to learn more and see if the PBR Coaching course is right for you:
PBR COACHING is now fully digital and a purely online based program.
Also, if you're wondering about the implications of a failed pediatric board exam, consider reading the PBR article titled, “Could Your State REQUIRE Pediatric Board Certification To Practice?” While your livelihood may not be dictated by board certification just yet, the article will give you an idea as to where the country is headed. If you haven't become a board-certified pediatrician yet, the article is a must read.
To conclude, I firmly believe that there is a lot more that goes into being a “good pediatrician” than board certification. Unfortunately, for many institutions board certification has become a must, and is therefore necessary for most pediatricians. That's what the Pediatrics Board Review is here for, and I hope you take full advantage of all the resources that PBR has to offer.
There's a core study guide, a Q&A book, an online version of each, iPad and iPhone compatibility for the core study guide, a Roadmap to Success, tons of great articles on the site, and even a Discord community specifically for PBR members.
Have questions? Just hit the contact button above and fire away.
– Ashish
P.S.In 2011, PBR Coaching worked with TEN pediatricians who failed their initial board certification exam. Some of them failed MULTIPLE times. Guess how many passed after working with us? NINE!
I can't believe I'm releasing the entire Table of Contents, the actual PBR Roadmap To Success, and the Memory Aids Creation section. This is a deep view into the PBR content and system.
* To get the ENTIRE Table of Contents just a click away…
Pediatrics In Review is a journal created by the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP). It's also sometimes called Peds In Review. The primary purpose of the journal is to provide monthly articles to pediatricians. Pediatricians can then request Continuing Medical Education (CME) credit after completing the self-assessment. It is part of the PREP curriculum. Some of the articles in the Pediatrics In Review journal include:
Back to Basics: About basic sciences
Consultation with the Specialist: Discussions with pediatric subspecialists)
What's New: Up and coming in the world of pediatrics
Index of Suspicion: Unusual presentations of diseases are presented and you are given an opportunity to come up with the diagnosis
Visual Diagnosis: Articles and images are presented for you to review and come up with a diagnosis
Should I Use Pediatrics In Review for Board Studying?
I love the American Academy of Pediatrics PREP series of questions for PRACTICING test-taking skills, but NOT as a substitution for studying for the boards from a board-focused study guide.
The difference can be confusing! That is why it's IMPERATIVE that you understand my thoughts on why PREP questions are NOT the best study questions before you read the rest of this article. The gist is that it's almost impossible for any question bank out there to give you a comprehensive, board-focused review of what you need to know for the pediatric boards. Therefore, you should focus on one, primary study resource for the CONTENT, and then use question banks for PRACTICE of board-style questions.
THE REAL VALUE OF AAP PREP QUESTIONS – PRACTICE
Where does the real value lie in PREP questions as they relate to your preparation for the American Board of Pediatrics initial certification exam or MOC exam? Is it true, or a misperception, that you “must” go through PREP questions to pass the boards?
While I do feel that they are the BEST pediatric board review questions to simulate the boards, I also believe that ANY pediatric board review question bank will help you PRACTICE your test-taking techniques.
I also believe that you SHOULD use other question banks to practice your skills as a test-taker so that you can gain exposure to a VARIETY of question styles and question writers. The ABP's questions were not developed by one person. They have been slowly created over decades by MANY question-writers, including myself.
Dr. Robin Scott, a PBR Alum, summed it up VERY WELL in her message below.
“I did not look at PREP at all. I passed the 2013 exam after multiple prior attempts by reading PBR, taking the [Test-Taking Strategies] course, and practicing hundreds of questions (from Board Vitals). I used questions just for practice, not for content. I asked Ashish about using other sources outside of PBR; I wanted to study/memorize all of MedStudy pediatrics. He dissuaded me. I was skeptical, but I had nothing to lose so I did what he recommended. That's my story, and I'm here to say it worked!”
– Dr. Robin Scott
PRACTICE
Again, PRACTICE is the absolute best reason to use any board-style prep questions. You must NOT confuse practicing test questions with building knowledge, but since we all have the desire to review the answers (discussed more in detail below), this particular series of questions is probably the BEST pediatric question bank you could use. The AAP's questions have likely been vetted to the nth degree, and you can usually be sure that the correct answer is correct. They also seem to be a good mix of short and long questions.
PRACTICE TIMING: Since the questions are often LONG, they are perfect for allowing you to work on your TIMING. Give yourself the same amount of time you'll give yourself on the exam. About 1 minute and 15 seconds per question. Once you have broken down and “processed the question” to the best of your abilities if you still can't narrow down your search to a single answer then GUESS, MARK IT, and GO on to the next question!
PRACTICE DISCIPLINE: It takes a great deal of discipline to move through questions at a regular pace. The more often you do it, the more likely this will become a habit for you. You must get comfortable with the idea of processing questions systematically so that you always have an endpoint to the question in front of you. Getting to that realization is CRITICAL in allowing you calmly move on to the next question without frustration and anxiety.
About PBR's Coach, you won't believe it either. She could be your grandmother… but she's helped HUNDREDS of physicians finally pass medical board exam and attain that feeling of liberation after failing multiple times.
