myEMCert vs Concert

This forum made possible through the generous support of SDN members, donors, and sponsors. Thank you.
Groove

Groove

Member
Lifetime Donor
Verified Member
Physician
20+ Year Member
Gold Donor
Joined
May 3, 2004
Messages
3,374
Reaction score
3,994
What does everyone plan on doing regarding recert in the future once myEMCert comes out? I'll barely be eligible for the exam before my cert runs out. I think I get credit for the money I've spent on LLSA exams to go toward myEMCert but I'm assuming I'd have to complete all 8 modules within a year to recert. Versus just taking Concert and finishing my remaining LLSA exams. I can't decide which is easier. Anybody plan on doing Concert once myEMCert comes out or do all of you plan on switching to myEMCert?

It's such a racket. $840 on LLSA exams alone to maintain "Participating in MOC" ....pfffft
Members don't see this ad.
 
I just recerted, so I'm going with the myEMCert track. I'd much rather take one test a year from the comfort of my own home than take one every year (LLSA) followed by having to go for an all day test every decade. I'm not sure how the myEMCert will work for people midway through their certification process, I'd assume they'd have to take all the tests, but I don't know. My thought would be to just continue the current certification path, take the concert, then switch to the yearly track after you recert.
 
Members don't see this ad :)
Yeah, I think there's a pilot myEMCert program this year but it doesn't get rolled out officially until next year.

I dunno, I'm tempted to just take the Concert this year and be done with it. If I didn't do well, I've got plenty of time to re-take and/or take myEMCert. I've already done most of my LLSAs. If I wait for myEMCert, I'll have to do the entire module set within a year and I'm not crazy about placing everything on the line for a brand new re-cert track on year one.

For those that did Concert recently, what prep did you use? Hippo? Rosh?
 
Yeah you can only do myEMCert if your certification expires in 2022 or later. Personally if I already did most of the LLSAs and I was in the 2022 group, I'd just do the Concert a year or two early and do myEMCert with the next cycle.

As for Concert prep, if taking it early, there is no risk other than loss of the fee to take the test. I'm an advocate for not even preparing for it, going in blind, and just taking it because there is virtually nothing at risk when taking it early other than the test fee. Even if you fail, you can take it again the next year if you took it early. And you won't fail, its pretty basic EM. But if you felt the need to prepare, then I'd just do Rosh.
 
Resurrecting for an update. I volunteered and got selected to take the myEMCert pilot this fall. It's 3 modules and I'm uncertain whether it will actually count for anything or not. I'll let you know how it goes. I have to complete them between Sept 14th and Nov 30th. I think I've decided to just stick with myEMCert since they are retiring Concert for good after 2022. Apparently, myEMCert will go live in spring of 2021.
 
@Groove I'm also a guinea pig. They didn't make it clear if it counted as one of our recert tests. I'm guessing it probably won't since ABEM won't get their fee.

I received an email that ABEM is moving to a 5-year recertification cycle when everyone expires. I just renewed last year so I'm good until 2029.
 
My ABEM certification expires at the end of 2025. I am considered taking Concert instead of MyEmCert so I could potentially be done for 10 years.

What is the last time I could take Concert? Fall 2022? Anyone else considering a 3 year early recert?
 
BAM! said:
My ABEM certification expires at the end of 2025. I am considered taking Concert instead of MyEmCert so I could potentially be done for 10 years.

What is the last time I could take Concert? Fall 2022? Anyone else considering a 3 year early recert?
Click to expand...
Nope. As of this year, Concert only gets you 5 yrs.
My BC expires 12/2021. I took concert in 2019 and have met all other requirements. When this year ends, my BC will renew for 5 years (through 2026)
If everything else was the same except my cert was set to expire in 12/2020, it would have renewed for 10 years
 
I just signed up for the Concert vs MyEMCert as mine expires in 2022 assuming that it would be good for 10 yrs and hopefully my last recert.

Is it really only for 5 years? If so, I might as well do the yearly MyEMCert track.
 
How do you select MyEMCert? I did the pilot tests (3 of them), which supposedly I get credit for. I don't see them listed on the ABEM website nor the option to choose MyEMCert. It lists my LLSA requirements and has my certification expiring 2029.
 
southerndoc said:
How do you select MyEMCert? I did the pilot tests (3 of them), which supposedly I get credit for. I don't see them listed on the ABEM website nor the option to choose MyEMCert. It lists my LLSA requirements and has my certification expiring 2029.
Click to expand...
I called them before taking the pilot, and they confirmed the MyEMCert should give credit. But yeah, I don't see it on the website as such, yet. I'm thinking maybe when it's formally released it'll show.
 
Members don't see this ad :)
CRAP, just read on ABEM that Concert is good for 5 years. So disappointing that I have to do it atleast two more times.

Maybe I will just go and do the MyEmcert then.
 
Anyone know the status on MyEMCert? My ABEM portal doesn't mention it anymore and only has an option for ConCert for recertification.
 
Backpack234 said:
Anyone know the status on MyEMCert? My ABEM portal doesn't mention it anymore and only has an option for ConCert for recertification.
Click to expand...

Log in, look to the upper right, click on "Account". It's a link at the bottom called "MyEMCert (Spring 2021)"

www.abem.org

ABEM | Emergency Medicine | MyEMCert

We’ve introduced a new way to stay certified, designed with the uniqueness of Emergency Medicine in mind, and informed by the preferences of ABEM-certified physicians. Core elements of MyEMCert include: Topic-specific modules that incorporate the “bread and butter” issues of Emergency Medicine...
www.abem.org www.abem.org

I'm up for Concert recertification but will make it in time for MyEMCert and plan on doing the latter once it opens in the Spring. The "ABEM Reqs" link implies that Concert would only renew me for 5 years. It's discontinued after 2022. I don't really see any point in doing Concert for those of us up for recertification right now as it's obvious that MyEMCert will be the primary method of recertification in the future with no support for Concert. The only thing that would tempt me would be a guarantee of 10 year certification with passing of the Concert exam but that seems dubious from the wording on the website.

Did anybody take the MyEMCert pilot and want to comment on content/difficulty? I was invited to participate in the pilot exam but picked up a bunch of shifts at work that month and missed the deadline.
 
Last edited:
Just tried my first, trauma and bleeding. Too many problematic questions w no one best answer. Have to play guess what I'm thinking. And I am someone who typically does very well on tests like these. Failed three times! Now I have to move on to a different module. Disappointing.
 
welp I passed on my second attempt. But ABEM gave me a $400 credit in my account, which used for the first module. can use $50 towards the next, which means $1k out of my pocket to complete 4 modules
 
My certification is up end-of-year

Let’s see, I need to do 4 modules this year, at $350/each.
ABEM says I have a $705 credit.
So I’ll be paying $695 for 5 year’s certification.

It looks like the other option I had (maybe still have?) is the $1400 CONCERT which used to give 10 years but now would only give me 5.

BUT, the fun news is ABEM is, like so many businesses, moving to an annual fee model. Going forward, we all pay $280/yr, and you get your LLSA/MyEMCert tests included for that low low price... I assume I’ll ALSO have to pay my $280/yr going forward including this year...

My understanding is the credit is because I paid for a bunch of LLSA I no longer need (I was all ready with my 10 year requirements), and because a I need to take 4 modules this year AND pay the annual fee...

Anyway they have a big FAQ here: https://www.abem.org/public/docs/de...le-and-annual-fee-faqs.pdf?sfvrsn=1588c2f4_10

And it sounds like the module I shouldn’t start with is this trauma one 🙂
 
I'm confused with the way my requirement is set up. It says I need 4 LLSA tests by 2024 and 4 MyEMCert tests by 2029. I thought the whole process was shifting to MyEMCert? Not sure if my EMS certification is causing the LLSA requirement (I satisfy EMS certification with EM certification).
 
southerndoc said:
I'm confused with the way my requirement is set up. It says I need 4 LLSA tests by 2024 and 4 MyEMCert tests by 2029. I thought the whole process was shifting to MyEMCert? Not sure if my EMS certification is causing the LLSA requirement (I satisfy EMS certification with EM certification).
Click to expand...
I think if you re-certified in 2019 you were the last group able to have a 10 year certification, so you aren’t up until 2029... you’ll need to pay the annual fee, but yeah you won’t need to do your 4 MyEMCert modules until 2029...

The LLSA are separate, I believe 4 every 5 years?
 
southerndoc said:
So there is still an LLSA requirement in addition to the MyEMCert tests?
Click to expand...
I believe it is JUST for people early in their 10years, those transitional people who have have 6-9 year of certification left. They need to do the LLSA requirement for the first half of their 10 year period, then the MyEMCert takes over thereafter.

Use this to check your specific need—

ABEM | Stay Certified

ABEM’s Emergency Medicine Continuing Certification Process Starting in 2021, all new and renewing EM ABEM-certified physicians were moved to a 5-year certification cycle and annual fee. This structure allows for more continuous learning to help you and your practice stay up-to-date in the field...
www.abem.org www.abem.org

for ME, I’m recertifying this year (2021), did like 8 or 9 LLSA, but going forward I’ll have to recert by end of 2026, and I’ll need to do the following:
(1) pay the annual fee
(2) one practice improvement project
(3) pass 4 MyEMCert Modules

[this is AFTER I pass 4 modules and pay for them individually this year, in place of concert...]
 
Oh and I am curious, do we get CME credit for MyEMCert? Do we have to pay extra for that? I did enjoy the hours I got from the LLSAs...
 
My certification expires in 2029. I emailed ABEM today and got a response within an hour (impressive!). The first 5 years of my cycle fall under the older guidelines (LLSA), but the last half fall under the MyEMCert. After mine expires in 2029, I will fall into a 5-year cycle and will exclusively recert by MyEMCert.
 
southerndoc said:
My certification expires in 2029. I emailed ABEM today and got a response within an hour (impressive!). The first 5 years of my cycle fall under the older guidelines (LLSA), but the last half fall under the MyEMCert. After mine expires in 2029, I will fall into a 5-year cycle and will exclusively recert by MyEMCert.
Click to expand...
And here I am, thinking that, by 2029, you would just be ready to cash it all in and get out of the pit!
 
I don't plan on re-certifying again (just did it in 2019). I don't think in 2029 that ABEM certification will mean anything, as there won't be jobs worth working. Maybe just go back to DNP school?
 
So there are 3 modules available now for EMCERT, each costing $355. I failed the first (that is, I failed all 3 attempts). Many questions were bad, kind of guess what I am thinking. Almost all of the questions I got wrong, I would not have gotten correct with more studying or preparation.

You can only get 6 questions wrong out of 50. Seems reasonable except there are many borderline questions w no easy single right answer on many questions. The second i passed on the second attempt after being EXTREMELY careful. The third module I am now on the verge of failing (I failed first 2 attempts and now can not afford to get any more questions wrong or I will fail). I feel like I am on "Do you want to be a Millionaire?" w no more lifelines.

Do I just suck it up and keep taking more modules later? I need to pass FOUR! And that is to just recert for the cycle ending this year. Starting next year, I have to finish another 4 within the next 5 years (assuming I actually pass this year). At this rate, it will cost me a lot of money to recert. I am not sure it is worth it since I practice something else now and have an inactive board status. Mind you, I am a great test taker and usually do very well on written exams. Maybe CONCERT has better questions ??

Please someone who has taken the modules, comment on the difficulty. Am I just stupid or ignorant or are there too many bad questions??

Also are there other forums for EM physicians I can post on ? I would like to get more feedback on what others who have taken the EMCERT already feel about the fairness of the exam.
 
Last edited:
Im taking the plunge and just doing the CONCERT even if it is 5 yrs. Its open book, guarantee pass.

Maybe I will be out of the game in 5 yrs
 
Gz768 said:
So there are 3 modules available now for EMCERT, each costing $355. I failed the first (that is, I failed all 3 attempts). Many questions were bad, kind of guess what I am thinking. Almost all of the questions I got wrong, I would not have gotten correct with more studying or preparation.

You can only get 6 questions wrong out of 5. Seems reasonable except there are many borderline questions w no easy single right answer on many questions. The second i passed on the second attempt after being EXTREMELY careful. The third module I am now on the verge of failing (I failed first 2 attempts and now can not afford to get any more questions wrong or I will fail). I feel like I am on "Do you want to be a Millionaire?" w no more lifelines.

Do I just suck it up and keep taking more modules later? I need to pass FOUR! And that is to just recert for the cycle ending this year. Starting next year, I have to finish another 4 within the next 5 years (assuming I actually pass this year). At this rate, it will cost me a lot of money to recert. I am not sure it is worth it since I practice something else now and have an inactive board status. Mind you, I am a great test taker and usually do very well on written exams. Maybe CONCERT has better questions ??

Please someone who has taken the modules, comment on the difficulty. Am I just stupid or ignorant or are there too many bad questions??

Also are there other forums for EM physicians I can post on ? I would like to get more feedback on what others who have taken the EMCERT already feel about the fairness of the exam.
Click to expand...
To clarify: the threshold they set for each module is different. I had thought I had failed one module because of the many questions I had answered incorrectly (by many I mean a handful or two, 6-8 questions out of 50) but it turned out I passed! So don't give up if you get many questions wrong.

That is not to say that the test is a fair assessment of knowledge. There are many questionable questions. So far my feeling is just one of DISGUST.

ABEM needs to rectify this and have some way to allow test takers to provide immediate feedback on the questions they feel are poor.
 
Last edited:
They're difficult. I failed 2 of them on the first attempt, but passed on the second. There are only 3 modules available right now. If you're expiring this year or next, I think you can still use LLSA to qualify but check with ABEM.

There are only 3 MyEMCert tests available. Wonder how long before the others become available?

On another note, I think you can take more than 3 times but you have to purchase it again. Maybe I'm wrong.
 
southerndoc said:
They're difficult. I failed 2 of them on the first attempt, but passed on the second. There are only 3 modules available right now. If you're expiring this year or next, I think you can still use LLSA to qualify but check with ABEM.

There are only 3 MyEMCert tests available. Wonder how long before the others become available?

On another note, I think you can take more than 3 times but you have to purchase it again. Maybe I'm wrong.
Click to expand...
LLSA's are necessary but not sufficient for recert. You still have to pass either CONCERT or 4 EMCERT modules.

There will be 3-4 more in the summer. You can not retake the same module/topic until the following year (at additional cost). For me, there is no next year since I am at the end of my 10 year cycle. If I do not pass 4 modules total this year, I will lose certification.

When calculating the cost of recertification, you should factor in the likelihood you may fail a few of the modules (and therefore have to cough up more money).

There should be a way each exam question can be rated for quality. The ABR does this and then, I assume, throws out the questions which are rated poorly.
 
Last edited:
I did the exams during the pilot. Ultimately passed all 3, but failed twice on one, once on one, and zero on one before passing them all (thank god). The crappy part is that they must draw from a large question bank randomly for each retake, so I think a lot of your success depends on whether you're lucky to get reasonable questions or not. Sad to hear that they didn't improve them for the official roll out. The most frustrating part to me were the questions in which all the answers are correct, but they asked you to choose the "first intervention" or "best intervention," when in reality you'd do all of them. The experience definitely didn't inspire confidence on the upcoming exams I'll have to do.
 
I just did two of the modules tonight. I found one very straight forward, the other had a handful of questions I felt had... very ambiguously or poorly worded answers/options. Still passed, but I had to go into the mind of the test writer, and think about what they wanted me to answer, if you know what I mean. I did have a handful of repeat questions, which is interesting considering they are drawing from a question bank.

I honestly found the LLSA tests/articles MORE helpful, as they actually forced me to learn and at least read the summaries of a dozen articles of note per year. I typically took something actually useful from them each year. I don’t think the 100 questions I took tonight taught me more than 2 new minor factoids of limited utility in my practice.
 
I noticed that some MyEMCert review sites are starting to pop up. myemcertreview.com and roshreview.com also started a myemcert section. I bought the roshreview one and it's a few hundred questions at the moment. The trauma and bleeding module only has 100 questions. I'm going through them and will let you know how easy or difficult that module felt after reviewing these....I'll prob take it in the next few days.
 
Did the third module. Again, I found about 10% of questions were somewhat odd or ambiguous or I disagreed with but knew what they wanted me to answer. The rest I found rather quick/straight forward. I wouldn’t worry at all about the time limit. Reasonable to identify questions you are unsure about and spend 5-10 minutes to research them online, read about the topic, and make yourself SURE of an answer since you can’t miss that many and still pass. I did seem to get many repeated questions on the same topics throughout the modules (seems they want to beat a couple basic points into my skull...), but who knows how true that is for everyone, versus what the databases pulled for myspecific version of the test.

I think this is... OK for an online module test. If I had to take 1/yr it would be OK. But I think LLSA was a superior product with regards to learning and distributing information to all board certified physicians...

Also it should be cheaper 🙂
 
Janders said:
Did the third module. Again, I found about 10% of questions were somewhat odd or ambiguous or I disagreed with but knew what they wanted me to answer. The rest I found rather quick/straight forward. I wouldn’t worry at all about the time limit. Reasonable to identify questions you are unsure about and spend 5-10 minutes to research them online, read about the topic, and make yourself SURE of an answer since you can’t miss that many and still pass. I did seem to get many repeated questions on the same topics throughout the modules (seems they want to beat a couple basic points into my skull...), but who knows how true that is for everyone, versus what the databases pulled for myspecific version of the test.

I think this is... OK for an online module test. If I had to take 1/yr it would be OK. But I think LLSA was a superior product with regards to learning and distributing information to all board certified physicians...

Also it should be cheaper 🙂
Click to expand...
But then they'd have to vacation in Idaho instead of Hawaii....
 
Janders said:
Did the third module. Again, I found about 10% of questions were somewhat odd or ambiguous or I disagreed with but knew what they wanted me to answer. The rest I found rather quick/straight forward. I wouldn’t worry at all about the time limit. Reasonable to identify questions you are unsure about and spend 5-10 minutes to research them online, read about the topic, and make yourself SURE of an answer since you can’t miss that many and still pass. I did seem to get many repeated questions on the same topics throughout the modules (seems they want to beat a couple basic points into my skull...), but who knows how true that is for everyone, versus what the databases pulled for myspecific version of the test.

I think this is... OK for an online module test. If I had to take 1/yr it would be OK. But I think LLSA was a superior product with regards to learning and distributing information to all board certified physicians...

Also it should be cheaper 🙂
Click to expand...
how long do the modules take?
 
EctopicFetus said:
how long do the modules take?
Click to expand...
Each is 50q, they give you 4 hours. I took 30 minutes for each (or less), while multitasking a bit. A solid number of the questions are buzzword-click-answer, so I can’t imagine anyone using the 4hr.

You CAN pause in the middle, but the way to do it is a bit tricky.

If there is an open question you haven’t answered, and you log off to return and complete it another day... it scores that as WRONG and you can’t go back and do it.

AFTER you answer a question, you immediately get a screen with the correct answer and explanation... if you are going to leave/pause/logout you need to do it from THIS screen, since there isn’t a new open unanswered question open, you don’t lose a point...
 
Yes, that is how exactly I had one of my questions marked wrong!
 
OK – I finally got around to doing a couple of these for my 2022 expiration. I mean, let's be realistic, I'm not going to let my ABEM expire, and doing a high-stakes ConCert every 5 years is way more stressful and less-convenient than whipping through these from the comfort of my own home.

50% of questions are so easy you'd have to be incompetent to miss them.
30% are decent tests of medical knowledge worth looking up to refresh.
20% are potentially wrong/misleading/ambiguous or emphasize the wrong aspect of acute emergency care.

And ... my last ten questions of two different modules, "Key Advances Questions" ... were 1) mostly not related to either topic, and 2) identical. The public should be reassured I'm maintaining my board-certification by answering the same set of questions twice in a row.

The idea of having MOC via these sorts of modules is fine – the implementation is neither educational for the participants nor particularly supportive of the safety of the public.
 
Okay. I got over my "oppositional defiance" with regard to this.
What do I gotta do? My ABEM certification expires in 2023.

Looks like "four" of these modules.
How many are "available" now?
 
There are 6 available currently. I’ve done and passed 4.

As expected @xaelia describes their nature in more elegant prose than I might.

Mostly they are immediately easy. Occasionally you’ll look up a question. More troublesome, some questions and answers have a certain degree of ambiguity where you may be torn by the “right” answer and what you think they want you to say.

Still, you should pass no issue, IMO. I am honestly very good at multiple-choice-tests, and have a pretty easy time understanding “what they want me to answer”, which has served me well throughout life. Even without that skill, with a pinch of double checking on google you’ll be fine.

And yes, I had a few repeat questions and certainly some repeated (HAMMERED INTO MY SKULL) topics. It’s the nature of the qbank and the way they pull from it.

I keep saying I think its a fine way to do MOC and keep people vaguely up-to-date, and a valid alternative to a once-a-decade big old test, but I honestly liked the LLSA articles and test MORE if the goal was to get all US ED Docs reading the same 10-20 core pieces of literature each year…
 
Four of these a year? Or four altogether and I'm done and then ABEM can eff off for another ten years?
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Similar threads

Groove
MyEMCert Experience
Replies
1
Views
1K
JacobMcCandles
J
RustedFox
DUMB MyEMcert nonsense.
Replies
11
Views
2K
TooMuchResearch
T
RustedFox
AAEM vs
Replies
5
Views
2K
EctopicFetus
EctopicFetus
L
Updated review question bank for MyEMCert?
Replies
4
Views
4K
joeG
J
Angry Birds
Chest tube vs pig tail catheter
2
Replies
52
Views
5K
The Knife & Gun Club
The Knife & Gun Club
Top