AAPM Newsletter | Sept/Oct 2019 Vo l u m e 4 4 , N o . 5
ONLINE LONGITUDINAL ASSESSMENT WILL START IN JANUARY 2020 ABR NEWS Jerry D. Allison, ABR Trustee n Kalpana M. Kanal, ABR Trustee n Matthew B. Podgorsak, ABR Trustee Robert A. Pooley, Incoming ABR Trustee n J. Anthony Seibert, ABR Governor
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LA is a progressive online assessment that will replace the previous proctored MOC exam required every 10 years. OLA is aligned with the other three parts of MOC that remain the same—Part 1: licensure or professional standing attestation; Part 2: CE and self-assessment; and Part 4: participation in practice quality improvement activities. When you read this the roll out of OLA for medical physics will only be a few months away. We, as trustees and governors, look forward to this. We also look forward to it because we are all enrolled in Maintenance of Certification (MOC) and we feel this will be a great improvement over the traditional decennial exam. It has been almost a year since the ABR implemented OLA for diagnostic radiologists. In the six months that followed the response has been overwhelmingly positive. Over 18,000 diagnostic radiologists have already begun their participation, which is 94 percent of those participating in MOC. So far, they have answered over 775,00 questions. This is one of the great strengths of OLA. The ten-year exam evaluated diplomates on approximately 120 questions every ten years and the questions themselves might have a small group of diplomates upon which to make the evaluation. In diagnostic medical physics we might have a group of 35 people each year; in therapy, a few hundred; but in nuclear it might be fewer than 10. In OLA each diplomate will have a minimum of 520 questions every 10 years and each question will be used for many more diplomates. Even in nuclear medical physics we will have more than 100 diplomates in the group.
J. Allison
K. Kanal
M. Podgorsak
R. Pooley
OLA Benefits Most diplomates view OLA positively because it eliminates the decennial exam. While the performance on the MOC exam was very good, most diplomates considered it highly stressful. This led some to lengthy study periods and taking the exam early “just to be sure.” The ten-year exam was not popular. Most medical physicists who have considered this believe in the following benefits provided by OLA: • • • • • • • •
J.A. Seibert
it eliminates the ten-year MOC exam it eliminates the need to go to a Pearson VUE center it does not require you to set aside time to study it offers immediate feedback with rationale and references questions answered incorrectly are followed up with a similar question in a few weeks it is more focused and relevant to your clinical practice it is designed to be an ongoing, learning, and non-stressful experience it is flexible – within broad guidelines you decide how often to engage with OLA
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