Tox Boards Round 2

[noshie]

Well, I guess I am going to be the first one to post about this since I couldn't locate any other threads about failing the medical toxicology boards...

I took the med tox boards in 2020, and I got a 70 on my test. Unfortunately, a 72 was passing. I will be retaking the exam in October 2022.

Last year, a new 2021 core content for the boards was released (Hendrickson et al, The 2021 core content of medical toxicology. J Med Toxicol). They have mentioned that they will remove very old historic chemicals and regulatory facts.

The passing score this time has not been determined yet, so this may also change. The ABEM site mentions that they will determine the passing score after the 2022 exams are over. This can either be a good thing, or a bad thing... Either the passing score will drop or it will increase making it harder to pass.

The first time I took the exam, I studied really hard. I had taken 2 ACMT board review courses (in fellowship and right before the exam), and I had a study group that virtually met to discuss chapters at least 1-2 times a week for 4 months. In the end though, the test was not what I felt I had studied for, and there was one Goldfranks chapter that I wished I could have gotten to before that test. A literal handful of questions stood between me and a passing score.

For the last 2 years, this exam failure has PLAGUED ME. Little things like... I have been hesitant to start a family for fear that getting pregnant would ruin my ability to study or to take the exam (Im almost 40, which is why this is a big deal for me). I have had so much anxiety about failing again, and as it gets closer to the exam, I realize that I need to make a plan. The problem is that I do not know what I could have done better last time. Other than one GF chapter that I identified as being possibly my downfall for the last exam, I am not sure how to tackle this upcoming test.

For those of you that do not know me or haven't seen the link in my signature at the bottom... I have a hard time with exams. I took the MCAT 5 times, and eventually overcame that. I have not had any other significant issues with tests since then (I know I need to study my a** off twice as hard as most). In order to overcome the MCAT, I had to go back to the basics and essentially start over. I just don't know how to start over for this exam.

If any of you have taken the med tox boards more than once, I would love to hear any advice or insight you have into how you changed things up the second time around or what your strategy was. Or any advice in general is welcome!

1/4 of people that take this exam fail (pass rate 76%), so I know there are more of you out there! Please help and give me hope!

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[DeadCactus]

Hopefully someone chimes. For what it's worth, my observation has been that people who struggle with similar multiple choice exams make the mistake of trying to learn medicine (and often do know the actual medicine extremely well). The problem is that these exams are closer to a game than anything else and studying a textbook or the literature or the actual day-to-day practice doesn't prepare you to play the game. It's like learning to play the guitar to be tested on Guitar Hero.

What does that mean on a practical level? Don't touch a textbook when studying for a standardized test. You're not trying to learn about everything they could ask you; the questions are not evenly distributed throughout the textbook material. Your goal is to master the large chunk of the test made up by the topics constantly reiterated and explored in more depth in review courses and practice questions. The topics most likely to be asked about. The goal is to know that subset of topics by muscle memory: to see the prompt and immediately recognize what they are trying to test, what to look for in the stem, and what the answer is. That get's you a right answer on a large chunk of the test. The rest of the test you can narrow down answer choices, guess, and get enough right to cross the passing threshold. But you can't afford to miss predictable give-me questions because you tried to prepare for every esoteric question about a table or a footnote in the textbook.

 

[southerndoc]

A good friend of mine had to take it twice, and he is incredibly intelligent. He definitely knows his tox stuff. Sometimes it's just the luck of the draw. Certainly don't beat yourself up for it.