Adobe PDF - Charles Louis Davis DVM Foundation

7/28/2012
Preparing for the
ACLAM Board Exam
DISCLAIMER
• This presentation is not endorsed by ACLAM
• This presentation does not represent the views of
ACLAM
• Most of the suggestions have been passed down from
others
• We were successful, you can be too 
Julie M. Sharp, DVM, DACLAM, CPIA
Duke University Medical Center
Requirements for ACLAM
Board Eligibility
• http://www.aclam.org/certification/requirements
• Training Program vs. Experience Option
• Publication – First author of an original research
article in a peer-reviewed journal
• Completing the Application – early application
deadline, final application deadline
• When in doubt…ask Mel 
• What I did…
Organize: Before…
Hunt and Gather
• ACLAM Role Delineation
Document – The RDD
• ACLAM Test Template
• 2012 Certification
Examination Reference List
o
o
o
o
Journals
Regulatory/Guidance Documents
Blue Book Series – ALL
Other Books
During…
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7/28/2012
After…
RDD & Test Template
• Print a copy for reference
• 6 Domains that describe
the specific Tasks,
Knowledge Topics, and the
% of the test that will
pertain to each Domain
o
o
o
o
o
o
RDD & Test Template
• Primary vs. Secondary
vs. Tertiary species and
the % range of the test
that will pertain to each
o Primary Species: 60-70%
o Secondary Species: 18-28%
o Tertiary Species: 7-17%
• You can see where most
of your focus should be
from these distributions.
Regulatory/Guidance
Documents
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Animal Welfare Act
Animal Welfare Regulations
Animal Care Policies
AVMA Guidelines on Euthanasia
BMBL
GLP Standards
Guide - 8th ed.
Ag Guide
25% Diseases & Conditions
24% Animal Care
20% Research
19% Regulatory
10% Pain and Distress
2% Education
2012 Certification
Examination Reference
List
• Journals – published
within the last 5 years
o
o
o
o
o
Comparative Medicine
JAALAS
ILAR
JAVMA
Others…
• Keep the RDD in mind in
terms of species and
domain
More
Regulatory/Guidance
Documents
• Neuroscience & Behavior Research
• Occupational Health & Safety
• PHS Policy
• Know the details of any applicable
o Annual Reports – Content, Reporting Period
o Frequency of Renewals – Assurances, Registrations,
etc.
o Publishing Group for each – CDC, NIH, FASS, IRAC,
NRC, etc.
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ACLAM Blue Book Series
• LAM BB, 2nd Edition – “Blue Book”
o Read, re-read, re-read…and read again…
o Know classic diagrams, images, tables
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•
•
•
• Pathology of Lab Rodents & Rabbits –
“Percy & Barthold”
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Mouse BB Series
Rat BB
Anesthesia BB
NHP BB’s – recently published ones
are available, but ACLAM site still
refers to 1995 Editions
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Other Important Books
o Read, re-read, re-read…and read again…
o Know classic images
• Flynn’s Parasitology
o Know classic images
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• The Lab Rabbit, GP, & Hamster (2012)
• Handbook of Genetically Engineered
Mice (2009)
• Harkness & Wagner’s Biology &
Medicine of Rabbits & Rodents
• The IACUC Handbook
Other References
• Mentors in your area
• LAM Organizations
o
o
o
o
AALAS – certification details table
AAALAC Int., - accreditation status
OLAW, NABR, ASLAP, etc.
Know their mission statements,
important items in history, unique
identifiers
• Industry –
o JaxLabs, Harland, CRL, RADIL
o Look at pictures of animals (different
strains, grouped by animal model)
o Look at pictures of infectious agents,
different phases of parasite life cycles
Prior to THE study year…
• Get your publication done early…
• Attend blue book reviews and seminars
o
o
o
o
Read the chapter ahead of time
Make margin notes (previous resident notes & summaries)
Cross reference material (back chapters w/ species)
Learn classic images and tables from your books
Prior to THE study
year…Journals
• Journal Club: divide and
conquer (LABSG or
personal group), key
points, mock questions
• Images – equipment,
clinical disease
presentations, pathology,
etc.
• Every question must have
2 references or, if only a
single reference, be
widely accepted in the
field.
• What I did     
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7/28/2012
Prior to THE study year…
•
•
◦ Document references for write-in material
Attend conferences such as CLASS/POLA,
Charles River Short Course, PRIM&R, AALAS,
APV, C.L. Davis series, NACLAM
◦ N.C. (Board Year For Sure; previous years if possible)
•
•
•
Prior to THE study year…
Attend seminars with your BB
Seek varied, on the job experiences – clinical
duties, IACUC experience, protocol/amendnent
review, policy development, PI
meetings/procedures
Prepare your spouse/family about time
constraint in your study year
Ask for help when you need it
•
•
•
•
BB questions
Practice quizzes
Old mock board questions
Review the NIEHS slide sets at meetings when
possible
• Mnemonics
• Mock Boards
o Use only to measure your individual progress, the exact score is not
important
o TERRIFIC tool to condition you for test anxiety
o Good mixture of images and general knowledge
Now You’re Board
Eligible…
THE year…
• Make a schedule for the entire year up to the exam
Start by June
Weekly topics work well
Cover Primary Species and Regulations at least twice
Cover Secondary and Tertiary Species at least once
Keep the RDD and Test Template in mind when allocating your time
Build in vacation and holiday time – you will need mental breaks
Build in buffer times for specific commitments (job, family, etc.)
Build in a ‘catch up week’ every few months – you can always add get ahead if
there’s nothing you need to catch up on
o Meet with your boss to go over your plan and determine “down time” from work
o Choose which CE meetings you will attend and add them to your study plan
o Keep the last month open
o
o
o
o
o
o
o
o
THE year…
• Stick to your schedule
o Keep your hard copy files and
electronic files organized
o Create subfolders within your main
folders for
• applicable mock questions,
• material you didn’t have time to
get through,
• material you want to be sure to
revisit
o Move on to the next topic on your
schedule regardless of how well you
know the current topic
• Make note of milestones &
follow them
• Mare revisions as necessary
– unexpected things will
come up and require
changes
• Collect new material
sparingly
THE year…
• Allocate Group vs. Individual study time
o Do what works best for you and how you learn
o If you’re part of a group, be sure to set your goals for the group and the
expectation of everyone’s preparation and participation
o Choose group members whose skill sets compliment each other
o Choose group members who get along well…because by the end you’ll be
stressed and you’ll want to stay friends.
o Groups can meet in person, by teleconference, by skype etc.
o Don’t digress, makes notes of things to look up later.
o Have internet access to quickly look up peripheral questions that come up so you
don’t dwell on them.
o Have a dry erase board – make lists, tie things together, take pictures of them.
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THE year…
• January-May
o pick up the pace
• End group study 4-6 weeks
before the exam
o
o
o
o
o
follow “individual schedule”
Last 4-6 weeks are the final push
Review those last minute items
Learn your cage size requirements
Mock exams, mock exams, mock
exams…
• Remember: This is
TEMPORARY
THE year…
• Prepare your family
o Schedule vacations
o Spend quality time with them
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Prepare your coworkers & boss
Prepare your friends – they will see little of you this year
Surround yourself with positive, supportive people
Have a mentor to check in on you
You can never have too much moral support
Minimize distractions – auto bill pay, vehicle, house, wean
yourself off of Facebook etc.
• Study at every opportunity
o Flash cards for when you have to wait – anywhere at any time
o Audio files for the car or while you work out
o The ‘little books’ travel easily
THE year…
• Get enough sleep
• Eat healthy…or as healthy as you
can
• Exercise…to manage your stress
and counteract your unhealthy
eating
THE year…
• Make spreadsheets to organize information
o Regulations to compare/contrast
• Who appoints the IACUC
• How many members on the IACUC (and which ones)
• Protocol/exemption review cycles
o Occ Health book
• Fire Classification
• Light wavelengths
o BMBL – know your BSCs by diagram and associated facts
o Tables to learn cage sizes
• The Guide vs. AWRs
• Make a blank one to use to quiz yourself
o Important numbers by species
• Gestation
• Normal food/water intake
• Numbers of toes
• Husbandry – temp/humidity/light cycle
THE year…
• Know that you know
what you know…
• Don’t freak out
• It doesn’t matter how you study;
it matters that you study
• Schedule a treat for yourself for post-exam
o Vacation, list of things you will do
• This is a race the tortoise will win (not the hare).
Prepare for the long haul.
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The “big day”
Bethesda, MD
• Book your hotel room as soon as possible
• Book enough days/nights to allow for travel, getting
settled, getting as well-rested as possible
• Set your alarm, wake-up call, and have a ‘buddy’ to
make sure you don’t happen to oversleep
• Book mental breaks - avoid the ‘freak out’
o Massage
o Trip to the zoo
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•
•
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Eat regular meals
Bring ear plugs – just in case
Bring warm clothes
Prepare your ‘data dump’ items
Exam Day
Exam Day
• Stay confident – you know more than
you think
• Don’t worry about what you don’t know
• It’s multiple choice, the answer is there
o so if you know it, mark it and move on
o If you can narrow it down, make notations and move
on
o If you don’t know for sure, but an answer speaks to
you, go with it and trust your gut
o Don’t fret about 1, 2 or even 20 questions – you don’t
remember the ones you knew right away
• Once you answer a question, leave it
alone.
• Unless you are 100% sure you
selected the wrong answer, do not
change it.
Exam Day
• The questions are higher thinking, multi-step questions
• Be able to recognize various species by pictures
o you may know the answer from memorization
o but you also need to be able to recognize the species to answer the question
o Especially NHPs and other rodents
• 1 big conference room
• 2 test takers per table
• Don’t bring your phone or anything else with you – just
the single page document the Mel sent you
• You’ll be able to take restroom breaks and mental breaks
with a snack/drinks if need to
• 2 sessions with lunch provided between them
Exam Day
• Read the questions CAREFULLY
o Mock board exams should help to prepare you for this
o Circle what the question is asking
o Put “T” and “F” next to the answers and then re-read the question and be
sure you’re answering it in the correct context
• Cover the answer choices, give it your best guess, and
then see if your answer is among the choices
• Review the questions and your chosen answers
before turning in your test
o Try to only change the answers that you are absolutely sure are wrong
because you read the question incorrectly the first time around, etc.
o You have plenty of time. Read, understand, and answer each question
• They will keep track of time in the front of the room,
pace yourself
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After the Exam
Questions?
• Do NOT expect to think that you
passed it (but you probably did!)
• Call your loved ones and say it’s
over, but leave it at that
• Unwind – quiet time alone …or
join your colleagues for dinner
and beverages of your choice in
Bethesda and blow off some
steam
o Profanity and Crying are OK
• DO NOT DISCUSS QUESTIONS -------- YOU’RE DONE
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