COMSAE Phase 1: value added
-
Donald Sefcik
and
Elizabeth M. Petsche
To the Editor:
We read with interest the Advance Article copy of “Meaningful use of COMSAE Phase 1 in preparation for COMLEX-USA Level 1” [1]. The authors’ stated intent was to answer four questions: “How many Phase 1 forms did candidates take prior to Level 1? What was the correlation between Level 1 and Phase 1 scores? Did Phase 1 performance improve as more forms were taken? Did the Phase 1 test taking experience help with the preparation for Level 1?” The authors answered the first three, while the fourth question, “Did the Phase 1 test taking experience help with the preparation for Level 1?,” requires more than descriptive statistics to answer. We therefore pose a permutation of the fourth question: How should students, faculty, and academic advisors use information received from Phase 1 score reports to guide Level 1 exam preparation? The existing literature provides some observations to consider.
Jackson et al. [2] surveyed 171 students in the class of 2019 at the University of New England College of Osteopathic Medicine. Among 102 respondents, the correlation of the timing of the Comprehensive Medical Self Assessment Examination (COMSAE) to the Comprehensive Osteopathic Medical Licensing Examination of the United States (COMLEX-USA) Level 1 was notably stronger during the second administration (December, r=0.25; April, r=0.61). Further, they reported that the United States Medical Licensing Examination (USMLE) Step 1 and COMLEX-USA Level 1 were correlated (r=0.78) and students who took Step 1 performed better on the Level 1 than those who did not (Level 1 mean scores of 633 vs. 553, respectively). Maholtz et al. [3] reported that 399 survey respondents from 13 COMs valued practice questions and time to prepare for the Level 1 more than other preparation resources and variables. Vora et al. [4] noted that earlier initiation of Level 1 preparation was 2.5 times more likely among 113 students scoring >600 at Nova Southeastern University College of Osteopathic Medicine.
We agree with Wang et al. [1] that COMSAE Phase 1 has predictive validity and Phase 1 scores increase with serial testing. With that said, students, faculty, and advisors need more robust information to guide and support examination preparation and resource selection. As the Level 1 moves to pass/fail reporting effective in May 2022 [5], we urge all educators and researchers to continue efforts to help colleges of osteopathic medicine better understand the following:
Beyond predictive value (pass/fail), how can the Phase 1 report help students at risk of failing Level 1 allocate their study time and select resources aligned with their individual needs?
Does time spent focusing on learning content in weaker disciplines lead to higher scores?
Does preparation for USMLE Step 1 improve performance on COMLEX-USA Level 1?
What feedback needs to be included in Phase 1 and Level 1 score reports to help faculty evaluate and improve instructional and assessment activities in their programs?
What information will residency program directors substitute for the Level 1 numeric scores as they consider which applicants to interview?
As the next generation of osteopathic physicians is trained, we stand ready to work collaboratively with our colleagues to answer these and additional questions. We look forward to learning together!
Research funding: None reported.
Author contributions: Both authors provided substantial contributions to conception and design, acquisition of data, or analysis and interpretation of data; both authors drafted the article or revised it critically for important intellectual content; both authors gave final approval of the version of the article to be published; and both authors agree to be accountable for all aspects of the work in ensuring that questions related to the accuracy or integrity of any part of the work are appropriately investigated and resolved.
Competing interests: None reported.
References
1. Wang, X, Maeda, H, Craig, B, Tsai, T, Sandella, JM, Fleury, M. Meaningful use of COMSAE Phase 1 in preparation for COMLEX-USA Level 1. J Osteopath Med 2021;121:611–6. https://doi.org/10.1515/jom-2020-0190.Search in Google Scholar
2. Jackson, F, Duane, E, Harmon, R, Kollar, RA, Rainville, NM, Smith, RM. Resources that improve medical board licensing examination performance. Cureus 2019;11:e5927. https://doi.org/10.7759/cureus.5927.Search in Google Scholar
3. Maholtz, DE, Erickson, ML, Cymet, T. Comprehensive osteopathic medical licensing examination-USA Level 1 and Level 2-cognitive evaluation preparation and outcomes. J Am Osteopath Assoc 2015;115:232–5. https://doi.org/10.7556/jaoa.2015.046.Search in Google Scholar
4. Vora, A, Maltezos, N, Alfonzo, L, Hernandez, N, Calix, E, Fernandez, MI. Predictors of scoring at least 600 on COMLEX-USA Level 1: successful preparation strategies. J Am Osteopath Assoc 2013;113:164–73. https://doi.org/10.7556/jaoa.2013.113.2.164.Search in Google Scholar
5. COMLEX-USA Level 1 Scores. COMLEX-USA level 1 to eliminate numeric scores. Available from: https://www.nbome.org/news/comlex-usa-level-1-to-eliminate-numeric-scores/ [Accessed 4 May 2021].Search in Google Scholar
© 2021 Donald Sefcik and Elizabeth M. Petsche, published by De Gruyter, Berlin/Boston
This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
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Articles in the same Issue
- Frontmatter
- General
- Original Article
- Are randomized controlled trials in urology being conducted with justification?
- Medical Education
- Original Articles
- Effect of a required online graded curriculum in the clerkship years on medical student national standardized examination performance
- Examining concurrent validity between COMLEX-USA Level 2-Cognitive Evaluation and COMLEX-USA Level 2-Performance Evaluation
- Musculoskeletal Medicine and Pain
- Original Article
- Effect of integrated neuromuscular inhibition technique compared with positional release technique in the management of piriformis syndrome
- Public Health and Primary Care
- Original Article
- The role of tocilizumab therapy in critically ill patients with severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2
- Clinical Image
- Multiple thrombotic events in a patient with coronavirus 2019
- Letters to the Editor
- COMSAE Phase 1: value added
- Response to “COMSAE phase 1: value added”
