The relationship between performance on the infectious diseases in-training and certification examinations

Background. The Infectious Diseases Society of America In-Training Examination (IDSA ITE) is a feedback tool used to help fellows track their knowledge acquisition during fellowship training. We determined whether the scores on the IDSA ITE and from other major medical knowledge assessments predict performance on the American Board of Internal Medicine (ABIM) Infectious Disease Certification Examination. Methods. The sample was 1021 second-year fellows who took the IDSA ITE and ABIM Infectious Disease Certification Examination from 2008 to 2012. Multiple regression analysis was used to determine if ABIM Infectious Disease Certification Examination scores were predicted by IDSA ITE scores, prior United States Medical Licensing Examination (USMLE) scores, ABIM Internal Medicine Certification Examination scores, fellowship director ratings of medical knowledge, and demographic variables. Logistic regression was used to evaluate if these same assessments predicted a passing outcome on the certification examination. Results. IDSA ITE scores were the strongest predictor of ABIM Infectious Disease Certification Examination scores (β = .319), followed by prior ABIM Internal Medicine Certification Examination scores (β = .258), USMLE Step 1 scores (β = .202), USMLE Step 3 scores (β = .130), and fellowship directors' medical knowledge ratings (β = .063). IDSA ITE scores were also a significant predictor of passing the Infectious Disease Certification Examination (odds ratio, 1.017 [95% confidence interval, 1.013-1.021]). Conclusions. The significant relationship between the IDSA ITE score and performance on the ABIM Infectious Disease Certification Examination supports the use of the ITE as a valid feedback tool in fellowship training.