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Program Factors Associated With Improved American Board of Surgery Examination Pass Rates.
1University of Nevada, Las Vegas, NV, USA.
The American Surgeon
|April 1, 2024
Summary
Program characteristics significantly impact general surgery board certification exam success. Factors like residency length, faculty size, and didactics correlate with higher pass rates, influencing surgeon certification outcomes.
Area of Science:
- Surgical Education
- Medical Board Certification
Background:
- The American Board of Surgery certifies surgeons upon passing Qualifying and Certifying Exams.
- Limited research exists on program-level factors influencing surgical board exam performance.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate program-specific factors associated with general surgery board certification examination performance.
- To identify key program characteristics that correlate with resident success on American Board of Surgery exams.
Main Methods:
- Compared American Board of Surgery pass rates (2019-2021) with program data from FREIDA.
- Analyzed correlations between program attributes and exam outcomes.
Main Results:
- Residency length, class size, and faculty numbers positively correlated with Certifying Exam performance.
- Increased weekly didactics positively correlated with Qualifying Exam performance.
- Higher proportions of US MD graduates and more established programs (>20 years) showed better performance.
Conclusions:
- Programmatic factors significantly influence surgeon board certification success.
- These findings can inform residency program development and improvement strategies.
