Board Exam

The anesthesia oral boards are quite a surreal experience. The testing happens in a specialized center in North Carolina, and coming from the West Coast, the flying and travel for a two hour exam is a weird feeling. For that short session, I spent ten hours in the air and the rest of the time in airports and the hotel. I imagine this is not so unusual for other professions like businessmen and consultants, but for me, it just felt strange.

I think compared to other tests, this feels like one where last minute cramming won't help. You're either ready or not, and what you do in the last twenty four hours before the test probably makes only a difference in self-confidence. This might apply to studying as a whole. It's hard to know how to prepare for the oral boards. Practice is the most important element as being able to articulate your thought process is essential for passing. But outside of that, I really wasn't sure how best to prepare. Some people say reread major textbooks. Others find review books useful. There are only a handful of actual released old exams. But for me, textbooks seemed too detailed and review books too superficial. Practice exams were helpful, but without "model answers" it's hard to gauge how you're doing. It honestly does feel like the kind of test for which the entirety of residency (and fellowship) prepares you.

It goes by fast. Suddenly, you're getting off the shuttle and sitting down in the exam room. You flip over your exam stem, and your eyes quickly lock onto those keywords that you know will guide your scenario. Some questions you can predict. Some topics you know you aren't prepared for. But in a blink of an eye, you're sat down in front of two stern-faced examiners. They rapid-fire questions to you across the table, cutting you off just as you're getting mid-stride, probing to get you to sweat. They throw complication after complication and just as you wrap your head around what's going on, they move on. You never feel fully in control of anything.

There are two scenarios (plus several "grab-bag" miscellaneous questions). One situation was easy for me, given my training, and that was actually quite fun; it felt as though I was having a conversation with the examiners. The second was much harder, but I think that's okay; they want to see if we derail when we encounter a few bumps in the road. And then, all of a sudden, you're back in the airport, mind still ajar.

It's a strange experience, and a costly one, but so far, I have faith in the system that it's necessary and that it works. I wonder if someday these will occur virtually; although there is something to seeing people in person, the world is quickly digitizing, and it seems that taking two days off work for a two hour exam may become obsolete.