Formal assessment during psychiatric training is becoming more common,
not only to evaluate trainees but also to meet demands for educational and
fiscal accountability. National norm-referenced tests such as the new
psychiatry in-training examination may not meet the needs of many residency
programs. The authors describe an alternate approach: an in- house test of
psychiatric knowledge. The importance of educational objectives, test
specifications, piloting the test, and item analyses is emphasized. The
process is time-consuming, and the authors examine the advantages of this
approach in terms of its costs.
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