Grant CE Eligibility to all ABS QE 2020 Candidates
The Issue
The General Surgery ABS QE 2020 Candidates were deeply affected by the colossal failure of this year’s qualifying exam. We spent thousands of dollars, months of our valuable free time away from families, altered our moving plans, and put off other projects in order to adequately prepare for the qualifying examination. These represent substantial financial costs and mental burdens as well as opportunity costs that can not be regained. Many of us are moving on to rigorous fellowships with new requirements that must be met, and the need to find employment shortly thereafter. Those of us taking on attending positions may experience impacts on compensation and future promotion as a result of delays in board certification. In addition, candidates in the military due for deployment depend on the scheduled timeline to serve. There is no foreseeable time to prepare for a new qualifying exam several months from now, in addition to taking time to prepare for the certifying exam.
The ABS places substantial value on the 2-step QE/CE examination process to be fully certified. While this standard has been successful in the past, unfortunately the ABS has failed to deliver the exam in a standardized and ethical format. This renders the 2-step process impractical and unethical if enforced. In addition, a baseline 95-97% QE pass rate does not justify the burden placed upon examinees if required to take it at a later date. On the contrary, the CE is the more rigorous test of competency which also more closely recapitulates real-life surgical practice. We are willing to take this exam in addition to our rigorous 5-8 years of training to show our patients and communities that we are worthy of their trust.
We propose the following solutions:
- Any graduate who was eligible to sit for the 2020 ABS Qualifying Exam may receive written verification from their program director that he/she has demonstrated appropriate clinical knowledge to sit for the certifying exam.
- This written verification would serve as the equivalent of passing the qualifying exam, thus allowing the graduates to move on to the certifying exam without delay - which would only cause further professional, financial, and psychological destruction.
- We will be granted our full board certification and privileges after completing the ABS Certifying Examination.
Petition Closed
The Issue
The General Surgery ABS QE 2020 Candidates were deeply affected by the colossal failure of this year’s qualifying exam. We spent thousands of dollars, months of our valuable free time away from families, altered our moving plans, and put off other projects in order to adequately prepare for the qualifying examination. These represent substantial financial costs and mental burdens as well as opportunity costs that can not be regained. Many of us are moving on to rigorous fellowships with new requirements that must be met, and the need to find employment shortly thereafter. Those of us taking on attending positions may experience impacts on compensation and future promotion as a result of delays in board certification. In addition, candidates in the military due for deployment depend on the scheduled timeline to serve. There is no foreseeable time to prepare for a new qualifying exam several months from now, in addition to taking time to prepare for the certifying exam.
The ABS places substantial value on the 2-step QE/CE examination process to be fully certified. While this standard has been successful in the past, unfortunately the ABS has failed to deliver the exam in a standardized and ethical format. This renders the 2-step process impractical and unethical if enforced. In addition, a baseline 95-97% QE pass rate does not justify the burden placed upon examinees if required to take it at a later date. On the contrary, the CE is the more rigorous test of competency which also more closely recapitulates real-life surgical practice. We are willing to take this exam in addition to our rigorous 5-8 years of training to show our patients and communities that we are worthy of their trust.
We propose the following solutions:
- Any graduate who was eligible to sit for the 2020 ABS Qualifying Exam may receive written verification from their program director that he/she has demonstrated appropriate clinical knowledge to sit for the certifying exam.
- This written verification would serve as the equivalent of passing the qualifying exam, thus allowing the graduates to move on to the certifying exam without delay - which would only cause further professional, financial, and psychological destruction.
- We will be granted our full board certification and privileges after completing the ABS Certifying Examination.
The Decision Makers
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Petition created on July 17, 2020