The In-Training Examination in Internal Medicine: An Analysis of Resident Performance over Time

Abstract

The IM-ITE scores generally improve with year of training time spent in internal medicine training before the examination and time permitted to complete the examination. These observations provide evidence that the IM-ITE is a valid measure of knowledge acquired during internal medicine training.

Factors Associated with Medical Knowledge Acquisition During Internal Medicine Residency

“…3 The better performance by IMGs has been speculated to reflect higher board scores which may become the focus for residency selection committees who have fewer variables of comparison on which to make decisions. However, our study adjusted for USMLE-1 scores in all IMGs in our cohort, suggesting that better IM-ITE performance observed in IMGs is not due to previous board scores or test-taking ability.…”

“…This national standardized exam developed jointly by the American College of Physicians, Association of Professors of Medicine, and the Association of Program Directors of Internal Medicine 2 is administered each October to over 18,000 internal medicine residents. 3 This validated exam is predictive of performance on the American Board of Internal Medicine Certification Examination (ABIM-CE). [4][5][6][7] While some studies have attempted to assess the impact of specific learning habits on medical knowledge acquisition, they have demonstrated either no association or very small associations with ITE performance.…”

Approche par objectifs ou approche par compétences ? Repères conceptuels et implications pour les activités d’enseignement, d’apprentissage et d’évaluation au cours de la formation clinique

“…L'influence conjointe de l'approche par objectifs et de la perspective docimologique a pour sa part apporté une incontestable rigueur à la démarche évaluative. Depuis une cinquantaine d'années, les examens sommatifs à enjeux importants 22 , tels que les examens de certification, ont ainsi bénéficié de développe-ments successifs leur conférant, moyennant un effort important de standardisation, un niveau de fidélité et de validité élevé [23][24][25] 29,30 , avec une prépondé-rance de facto de l'évaluation de la maîtrise des faits, des règles, des lois et des principes. Les mêmes raisons et, à nouveau, bien que cela ne soit pas strictement inhérent à l'approche par objectifs en tant que telle, ont conduit à privilégier l'évaluation des produits plutôt que des processus.…”

Association of Volume of Patient Encounters with Residents’ In-Training Examination Performance

“…Recent changes to duty hour requirements 1 have the potential effect of reducing patient clinical encounters, yet the effect of the volume of clinical encounters on resident education is not known. The In-Training Examination (ITE) is a standardized test that is used to assess resident knowledge, 2 and has been shown to correlate with American Board of Internal Medicine (ABIM) 3 and American Board of Pediatrics General Pediatrics 4 certification examination success. Previous research has correlated independent reading and conference attendance to ITE score.…”