At its last meeting, NCCPA’s board of directors made decisions that will make certification maintenance eaiser for physician assistants to manage: extending the certificate expiration date, doubling PAs’ chances to pass the recertification exam and broadening re-entry mechanisms for those who have lost their certification.

First, beginning in 2001 in conjunction with the introduction of a Fall administration of the recertification exam, you’ll be able to take the recertification exam in the fifth and/or sixth years of the certification maintenance cycle up to two times per year, for a total of four attempts.

"This change will give PAs several opportunities to pass the recertification exam while their certification is still current," says NCCPA board member and committee chair Katherine A. Adamson, PA-C, MMS.

"It also eliminates the need to issue one-year certificates to PAs who fail their first attempt at the exam, which strengthens the credential for everyone."

Adds NCCPA Associate Executive Director Janet Lathrop, "Even though fewer than 1 percent of PAs don’t pass the recertification exam within two attempts, this new policy should help PAs breathe a bit easier about recertification."

Second, beginning with certificates issued in 2000 for expiration in 2002, the certificate expiration date will be extended from June 1 to Dec. 31 of the expiration year. The additional six months of certification will afford PAs more time to submit CME logging forms and reregistration paperwork, as well as extra time to pass the recertification exam, before certificates expire.

However, to encourage PAs to reregister and log CME early in the certificate expiration year and to try to decrease the number of PAs who procrastinate themselves out of their certification, we’re also instituting an incremental deadline and fee structure.

Beginning this year, the deadline for reregistration and CME logging is July 31 (two months later than under the current June 1 expiration date system). PAs who miss that deadline will have to pay late processing fees:

So plan ahead, meet the July 30 deadline, and avoid those additional fees!

Finally, beginning in 2001, PAs who fail to maintain their certification because they don’t pass the recertification exam by the end of the sixth year, fail to earn or log the required CME or don’t submit reregistration materials before Dec. 31, will be allowed to regain certification by passing the Physician Assistant National Certification Exam (PANCE), PANRE or Pathway II, provided that they meet other eligibility requirements.

This more flexible policy should be a welcome refinement to experienced PAs who have objected to taking PANCE, the initial certification exam, to regain certification late in their careers.

"The certification process for a profession must be evolutionary. While our primary goal is consumer protection, we’re also committed to listening and responding to the concerns of the PAs we certify," says NCCPA Executive Director Kate Hill.

"By offering the recertification exam in year five, extending certification to the end of the sixth year and broadening the channels for regaining certification, we’re advancing the interests of the public and PAs."

Watch for more information as you receive reregistration or recertification information in the mail. Or visit NCCPA Connect at www.nccpa.net.

NCCPA is making some changes to the content blueprint—the outline of the exam content areas—for the certification and recertification exams. Effective next year, the changes are being made to bring the exams’ content in closer alignment with the practical realities of physician assistants’ day-to-day activities.

Though relatively minor, the changes reflect NCCPA’s commitment to produce dynamic, relevant exams.

Says Grady Barnhill, director of psychometrics and development, "Responsible test maintenance requires that an organization periodically revisit and reevaluate the examination process—including the exam structure and how that structure is validated. By using data from reliable sources, we’ve been able to fine-tune our exam blueprints to more accurately reflect the professional practice of the physician assistant. In order to keep the NCCPA examinations in compliance with current professional standards, it is important for us to document how our test blueprint relates to the real world, from the perspective of the PAs we’re certifying."

The content blueprint changes were fueled by data collected from the National Center of Health Statistics of the Center for Disease Control and directly from physician assistants, via the 1998 Practice Analysis Study conducted by NCCPA.

For more details on NCCPA’s exam content blueprint, call 770.734.4500, select "6" from the main menu to access our free fax-on-demand service, and request document #105. Or visit NCCPA Connect at www. nccpa.net. Below are the tables listing the changes.

Organ System       Current     New

Gastrointestinal        12%         10%
Hematology                 6%             3%
Musculoskeletal         7%          10%
Neurology                    7%             6% 
Pulmonary                 11%          12% 
Reproductive               6%            8%
Renal                            8%            6%

Also, the 2001 exams will include two new categories: Infectious Diseases (3%) and Eye, Ear, Nose & Throat (9%), previously separate Eye (4%) and ENT (6%) categories.

There will be no changes in the other organ system categories: cardiovascular (16%), dermatology (5%), endocrinology (6%) and psychology (6%).

Task Areas                             Current                        New

Histories & Physicals                 10%                         16%
Using Lab &                                  15%                         14% 
Diagnostic Studies
Diagnosing                                    20%                        18%     
Health Maintenance                        9%                        10% 
Clinical Intervention                      16%                        14%
Clinical Therapeutics                   24%                        18%
Scientific Concepts                          6%                       10%

The development of NCCPA’s exams is by necessity a dynamic and complicated process. However, since it’s an issue that physician assistants ask about fairly frequently, here’s a quick look at the making of an exam.

First, the exam content blueprint provides the outline for the exam’s content, dictating what percentage of test questions address each of a variety of organ systems and task areas. (See article above)

The questions themselves are developed through several channels: NCCPA test committees, focused collaborative item-writing workshops and corresponding item writers.

Each NCCPA exam has at least one committee dedicated to developing and ensuring the validity of the exam. Those committees comprise physicians and physician assistants from a variety of academic and clinical practice settings and specialties. Those test committees, working with staff from NCCPA and the National Board of Medical Examiners, develop test questions; review, edit and approve those submitted by others; and construct, review and ensure the validity of exam forms.

Last year, NCCPA started conducting focused collaborative item-writing workshops, through which subject-matter specialists develop possible exam questions. Though collaboration with other organizations is in the works, thus far we’ve conducted item-writing workshops in conjunction with the following organizations:

And, finally, each year several dozen individual physician assistants submit questions for consideration for NCCPA’s exams as corresponding item writers. Of course, their submissions, like those of the item-writing workshop participants, are reviewed by NCCPA’s test committees before they’re included on exams.

Interested in submitting questions? Call 770.734.4500, select option "6" from the main menu, and request document #115 for more details about becoming a corresponding item writer.

Professional CME relates to your role as a PA or your personal professional development. Examples of professional CME seminar topics include managed care, how to conduct Internet-based medical research, PA legislative issues, effective precepting or enhancing faculty development.

Q. I’m scheduled to reregister this year. What’s new about CME logging in 2000?

A. Since you last logged CME in 1998, a few things have changed.

1. You now have to log at least 50 Category I (Preapproved) hours (up from 40 in 1998).

2. At least 40 of your Category I hours—and 80 hours overall—must have been earned via clinical programs or activites. That is, they must relate directly to the practice or study of medicine.

3. You’ll notice that the logging form looks a little different. NCCPA and AAPA have worked together to produce a single form for use when logging CME with either organization.

• Paul Ryan (formerly NCCPA’s director of communications) and Janet Lathrop (former director of certification services) have been promoted to associate executive director positions. As such, they work closely with Executive Director Kate Hill in the strategic oversight of the organization.
• Diane Boyd (ext. 4507, dianeb@nccpa.net), former manager of certification maintenance, is NCCPA’s new director of certification services. She oversees NCCPA’s exam administration and certification maintenance programs.
• Jocelyn Sweatman (ext. 4504, jocelyns@nccpa.net), former manager of exam administration, is now manager of certification maintenance and oversees the reregistration and CME logging processes.
• To request certification verification, you may now contact Eric Jarrel at ext. 4532 or ericj@nccpa.net.