A technical and cognitive skills evaluation of performance in interventional cardiology procedures using medical simulation.

Introduction: Interventional cardiology, with large numbers of complex procedures and potentially serious complications, stands out as an obvious discipline in which to apply simulation to help prevent medical errors. The objective of the study was to determine whether it is feasible to develop a valid and reliable evaluation approach using medical simulation to assess technical and cognitive skills of physicians performing coronary interventions.

Methods: Clinical case scenarios were developed by a committee of subject matter experts, who defined key decision nodes, such as stent positioning, and introduced unanticipated complications, such as coronary perforation.

Development and results of the first ABMS subspecialty Certification Examination in Sleep Medicine.

In November 2007, the first Certification Examination in Sleep Medicine was administered to 1,882 candidates under the cosponsorship of five member boards of the American Board of Medical Specialties (ABMS)--the American Board of Internal Medicine, the American Board of Family Medicine, the American Board of Otolaryngology, the American Board of Pediatrics, and the American Board of Psychiatry and Neurology. The pass rate was 73%. This paper chronicles the history of a certification examination in Sleep Medicine and the development of this new ABMS examination.