ECFMG results by Carib. grads article

[azskeptic]

ACADEMIC MEDICINE - Abstract: Volume 81(10) October 2006 p S116-S119 A Comparison of the Characteristics and Examination Performances of U.S. and Non-U.S. Citizen International Medical Graduates who sought Educational Commission for Foreign Medical G (http://www.academicmedicine.org/pt/re/acmed/abstract.00001888-200610001-00029.htm;jsessionid=LvjWwvhn1PKnCnJjczR2QrLT0QCL0 FDjbhQTGHgTJBzY86FBlQ7T!-1052912739!181195629!8091!-1)

[azskeptic]

Academic Medicine October 2008, Volume 83, Issue 10 Supplement (Pages S33-S36)

Medical Education in the Caribbean: Variability in Medical School Programs and Performance of Students.
Evaluating Educational Programs
Academic Medicine. RIME: Proceedings of the Forty-Seventh Annual Conference November 2-November 5, 2008. 83(10) Supplement:S33-S36, October 2008.
van Zanten, Marta; Boulet, John R.
Abstract:
Background: The purpose of this study was to examine the structure of medical training programs in the Caribbean and the performance of the students.
Method: There are 56 medical schools in 16 countries currently recognized and open in the Caribbean. Almost 30,000 students from this region applied for exams leading to Educational Commission for Foreign Medical Graduates (ECFMG) certification between 1993 and 2007. The authors summarized school characteristics and pass rates on United States Medical Licensing Examinations, by country.
Results: The structure of medical education varies across the region, including existence of accrediting bodies and review processes. First-attempt pass rates by country ranged from 19.4% to 84.4% for Step 1, from 26.3% to 79.7% for the Step 2 Clinical Knowledge Examination, and from 60.6% to 97.2% for the Step 2 Clinical Skills Examination.
Conclusions: There is significant variability in undergraduate medical education and the performance of students of medical schools in Caribbean nations.

[Kronos]

wow thats all it takes to get published nowadays...

[Aviv Imanuel]

"Conclusions: There is significant variability in undergraduate medical education and the performance of students of medical schools in Caribbean nations. "

REALLY??? I didn't knew that, wow!!!:twisted:

[BrendaB_MD]

Data taken from the article:

USMLE first attempt pass rates for the period 1993-2007

Grenada (1 school)
Step 1 84.4% (n = 6379)
Step II 79.7% (5419)

Dominica (2 schools)
Step I 69.7 (6694)
Step II 70.6 (5398)

Cayman Islands (1 school)
Step I 33.4 (1378)
Step II 44.3 (562)

St. Kitts and Nevis (6 schools)
Step I 40.2 (975)
Step II 64.5 (465)

Netherlands Antilles (6 schools)
Step I 59.4 (4904)
Step II 67.7 (3722)

There are a couple of interesting things.

1) There is significant attrition between Step 1 and Step 2.

2) For the islands with one school (Grenada, Cayman) this gives one of the few reliable sources of data on pass rates -- which are much lower than commonly reported. The data can be criticized because it includes old irrelevant data; however, the schools have advertised pass rates around the 90% mark for a very long time.

3) The SMU data is, frankly, shocking.

[Scott1981]

its a shame that they didnt break it down by school.

[Aviv Imanuel]

Why you think the SMU data is shocking?



Data taken from the article:

USMLE first attempt pass rates for the period 1993-2007

Grenada (1 school)
Step 1 84.4% (n = 6379)
Step II 79.7% (5419)

Dominica (2 schools)
Step I 69.7 (6694)
Step II 70.6 (5398)

Cayman Islands (1 school)
Step I 33.4 (1378)
Step II 44.3 (562)

St. Kitts and Nevis (6 schools)
Step I 40.2 (975)
Step II 64.5 (465)

Netherlands Antilles (6 schools)
Step I 59.4 (4904)
Step II 67.7 (3722)

There are a couple of interesting things.

1) There is significant attrition between Step 1 and Step 2.

2) For the islands with one school (Grenada, Cayman) this gives one of the few reliable sources of data on pass rates -- which are much lower than commonly reported. The data can be criticized because it includes old irrelevant data; however, the schools have advertised pass rates around the 90% mark for a very long time.

3) The SMU data is, frankly, shocking.

[BrendaB_MD]

its a shame that they didnt break it down by school.

I agree. The data are useful for SGU and SMU because they are the only schools in those countries. The data is also useful for Ross -- it is by far the major school on Dominica so the data largely reflect Ross. It is impossible to estimate performance for the countries with 6 schools (St Kitts, Netherlands Antilles).

The ECFMG is the only organization that can provide reliable data on performance.

It is also a shame that they used such a long time frame. It would have been better if they had confined their analysis to more recent years. Old data are less are less relevant. I think their paper would have been better if they had confined their analysis to recent data (e.g. the last 3 years) or, alternatively, did a longitudinal analysis providing pass rate by year.

[BrendaB_MD]

Why you think the SMU data is shocking?

It is much lower than I would have guessed -- and I am surprised they have been able to grow and expand with that kind of performance. I suspect they have improved; however, recent class sizes are larger and, for that reason, the data are more representitive of recent performance than past performance.

[Jakobsens@jbu.edu]

Is there any way to access this article without paying the $35?

[BrendaB_MD]

Is there any way to access this article without paying the $35?

If you are a student, you library probably has access to e-journals, medline or some other electronic database. Just login to your library and download it from e-journals.

The ECFMG has published about 5 similar articles over the past few years on carib school USMLE stats, licensure stats, etc.