New COMLEX-USA-to-USMLE Conversion Formula Needed

Jay D. Burmeister

doi:10.7556/jaoa.2011.111.2.119

Article Open Access

New COMLEX-USA-to-USMLE Conversion Formula Needed

Jay D. Burmeister

Published/Copyright: February 1, 2011

Published by

Become an author with De Gruyter Brill

Submit Manuscript Author Information Explore this Subject

From the journal Journal of Osteopathic Medicine Volume 111 Issue 2

To the Editor:

I read with interest the letter to the editor by John R. Gimpel, DO, MEd,¹ published in the October 2010 issue of JAOA—The Journal of the American Osteopathic Association, regarding the formula proposed by Philip C. Slocum, DO, and Janet S. Louder_2-4 for converting Comprehensive Osteopathic Medical Licensing Examination-USA (COMLEX-USA) scores to United States Medical Licensing Examination (USMLE) scores for use by Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education (ACGME) residency program directors. Dr Gimple¹ noted that he welcomed suggestions regarding this matter. My suggestion is to allow the USMLE to be used as the competency examination for graduates of colleges of osteopathic medicine (COMs), with an adjunct test required to cover the theory and methods of osteopathic medicine, which are not included in the USMLE. In the interest of full disclosure, I acknowledge that I have not taken either examination yet, as I am currently a second-year osteopathic medical student. However, I do plan on taking the USMLE in addition to the COMLEX-USA.

In the medical education article by Dr Slocum and Ms Louder,² concern was expressed regarding how much of a COM student's score is affected by material unique to the COMLEX-USA, such as questions about osteopathic manipulative treatment (OMT). My suggestion of allowing students' knowledge of science and standard medical practice to be assessed using the USMLE and students' knowledge of OMT to be assessed using an adjunct test would address this concern. Implementing my suggestion would also allow directors of residency programs accredited by the American Osteopathic Association, such as family practice-OMT residencies, to assess student knowledge of osteopathic principles and practice without the possibility of other aspects of the COMLEX-USA outweighing knowledge of that material.

I suspect that Dr Gimpel¹ and the National Board of Osteopathic Medical Examiners may be resistant to this idea. However, my suggestion is more directed toward the American Osteopathic Association and the American Association of Colleges of Osteopathic Medicine, to urge them to consider allowing osteopathic medical students to use the USMLE with an adjunct test to obtain certification and advance through osteopathic medical school.

1 Gimpel JR. New COMLEX-USA-to-USMLE conversion formula needed [letter]. J Am Osteopath Assoc.2010;110(10):577-578.Search in Google Scholar

2 Slocum PC, Louder JS. How to predict USMLE scores from COMLEX-USA scores: a guide for directors of ACGME-accredited residency programs. J Am Osteopath Assoc. 2006;106(9):568-569.Search in Google Scholar

3 Parikh SP, Shiembob CA. New COMLEX-USA-to-USMLE conversion formula needed [letter]. J Am Osteopath Assoc. 2010;110(7):400-401.Search in Google Scholar

4 Slocum PC. Response [letter]. J Am Osteopath Assoc. 2010;110(7):401 .Search in Google Scholar

Published Online: 2011-02-01

Published in Print: 2011-02-01

The American Osteopathic Association

This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.

Articles in the same Issue

https://doi.org/10.7556/jaoa.2011.111.2.119

Creative Commons

BY-NC-ND 4.0