Monday, July 31, 2006

Psychiatry Board Exam Recertification

I take my Psychiatry Board recertification exam tomorrow. I was in the second year of people who had to recertify every 10 years, to prove that you keep up to date, rather than coasting on your laurels for the rest of your life.

The initial exam is a nerve-racking affair, consisting of two parts, about a year apart. Part I is a written (now computerized) exam, 6 hours of delightful multiple choice and K-questions, #2 pencils and monitored bathroom breaks (you know how a watched pot never boils? ... well... you know).

Part II is where at least a third of examinees fall down, succumbing to anxiety-stricken paralysis or fumbling mental status exams as you examine a real live patient in front of two real live psychiatrists for precisely 30 minutes, then spend another 30 minutes getting grilled and probed to determine if you know what you should know. A colleague of mine had a patient who peed in the corner of the room, then just stared, not uttering one word for half an hour. (He passed, with a measure of sympathy thrown in, no doubt.)

The recertification exam is a 5 or 6 hour computer-based test. I haven't studied one iota, lazily figuring that it should test me on real-world knowledge. At $2100, it's a bit of a gamble to not study... but as long as I don't pee in the corner of the room, I figure I should be okay.

8 comments:

Dr. A said...

I have to recertify in 2-3 years and not looking forward to it.

There is a new rule for 2006: You can pee in the corner of the room and still pass. You just have to guess which corner. HA!

Dinah said...

Good luck, you're gonna do great!

NeoNurseChic said...
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Sarebear said...

Better to get pissed off, than pissed on . . .

hee.

Sounds like an expensive pain. Urgh.

Dinah said...

Carrie: CME's (or CEU's) provide a tax deductible excuse to go to other cities and eat in nice restaurants.

Foo: I think he sits in front of a computer screen that doesn't care what he's wearing. Also, after paying $2100 to take the test, he can't afford a new suit. Finally, despite all my teasing about how Roy is a slob (prompted by the shocking state of his office), he always looks sharp-- nothing to be gained by a new suit.

Roy, just don't pee on anything and you'll do great.

NeoNurseChic said...
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ClinkShrink said...

I found out last weekend why it costs so much. If you pass they send you this beautiful matted certificate in a cherry frame with gold edging.

That I can't hang up because I don't have an office and they don't let you bring glass into the prison.

But it's quite pretty.

I understand the test developers also eat well when they get together to discuss test questions...

Steve & Barb said...

Aarrgh! I couldn't stand it anymore. This morning I dusted off my Adams & Victor to look up syringomyelia and Brown-Sequard syndrome.