Relationships between the Comprehensive Osteopathic Medical Achievement Test (COMAT) subject examinations and the COMLEX-USA Level 2-Cognitive Evaluation.

Context: The relationship between the Comprehensive Osteopathic Medical Achievement Test (COMAT) series of subject examinations and the Comprehensive Osteopathic Medical Licensing Examination-USA Level 2-Cognitive Evaluation (COMLEX-USA Level 2-CE) has not been thoroughly examined.

Objective: To investigate the factors associated with performance on COMAT subject examinations and how COMAT scores correlate with COMLEX-USA Level 2-CE scores.

Methods: We examined scores of participants from 2 COMAT examination cycles in 2011 and 2012.

Relationship between COMLEX-USA scores and performance on the American Osteopathic Board of Emergency Medicine Part I certifying examination.

Context: Few studies have investigated how well scores from the Comprehensive Osteopathic Medical Licensing Examination-USA (COMLEX-USA) series predict resident outcomes, such as performance on board certification examinations.

Objectives: To determine how well COMLEX-USA predicts performance on the American Osteopathic Board of Emergency Medicine (AOBEM) Part I certification examination.

Methods: The target study population was first-time examinees who took AOBEM Part I in 2011 and 2012 with matched performances on COMLEX-USA Level 1, Level 2-Cognitive Evaluation (CE), and Level 3.

AOA's position against use of placebos for pain management in end-of-life care.

A number of organizations have advised against the use of placebo substitution, including the American Pain Society, Agency for Healthcare Policy and Research, World Health Organization, Healthcare Facilities Accreditation Program, Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations, Education for Physicians on End-of-Life Care Project (cosponsored by the American Medical Association and The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation), American Nursing Association, and the American Society of Pain Management Nurses. This white paper describes the literature and rationale in support of the American Osteopathic Association's (AOA's) position on the controversial subject of the use of placebos for pain management in terminally ill patients.

Selection criteria for applicants in primary care osteopathic graduate medical education.

Program directors of American Osteopathic Association (AOA)-approved primary care graduate training programs were surveyed concerning the relative importance of 12 academic and 10 nonacademic performance-based variables related to trainee selection. Programs holding both AOA and Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education approval were also compared to programs holding only AOA approval. Results were compared to a previous osteopathic survey and to similar surveys among allopathic programs.