Nearly 600 clinically active physicians volunteered their services to ABEM this year, a force that is essential to ABEM’s success. Hundreds of examiners attended each administration of the virtual Oral Exam. Forty-five item writers produce new questions for multiple choice tests each year for Emergency Medicine certification, continuing certification, and subspecialty exams. Additional ABEM activities supported by volunteers include the following:
- Standard-setting panels review each multiple choice question or Oral Exam case, rate its difficulty, and assess its importance to the certification of emergency physicians
- Bias and fairness panels evaluate whether different outcomes (among different demographic groups) on test questions or cases are due to reasons not relevant to the practice of EM
- Job analysis panels identify the tasks, skills, and responsibilities necessary in the practice of EM, the results of which are the basis for what is measured in an examination
- Other task forces and advisory groups, such as the LLSA CME reading group and the Stimulus Collection and Review Panel, assist in the certification and recertification processes
- Resident Ambassador Panel members provide the perspectives of residents with certain ABEM activities, such as communication about the In-training Examination, applying for certification, the Residency Visitation Program, and the ABEM website.
Each of these volunteer physicians donate their time and effort to help assure that anyone certified in EM or any of its subspecialties meets the high standards expected of our specialty.
We thank each of them for the generosity of their time and their commitment to ABEM.
>> Learn more about Becoming an ABEM Volunteer and view a complete list of ABEM volunteers.