Learning Walking Around Knowledge for the 2019 PANRE

The NCCPA is asking for WAK. What’s that John? WAK is walking around knowledge. That’s what the NCCPA is going to be testing us on in the pilot 2019 PANRE. It’s exciting. As you know, you will get 25 questions per quarter that you can answer all in one bundle, or you can spread them out over the three-month period.

You have a time limit based on the particular question, anywhere from one to five minutes. To succeed, you have to know WAK, walking around knowledge. It’s the kind of stuff that PAs need to know to optimally care for patients and move laterally from one field to the other. It’s going to be fantastic. The scope of medicine is going to be much more narrowly focused on core content or WAK, walking around knowledge. This is the kind of knowledge you would need to know if you went from something like gastroenterology to an urgent care setting.

What do you need to know about someone who’s has an ectopic pregnancy or blood in their urine? It’s walking around knowledge. Now, after you take one of these test questions, you will get questions from the NCCPA. Number one is, how confident are you that you’re right? Is this walking around knowledge based on where you work? Is it stuff that you need to know for your job? Do you feel it’s applicable as walking around knowledge?

I’m an emergency medicine critical care guy. If they asked me about birth control pills, I’d say, “It’s not really relevant other than the hypercoagulability for DVT/PE. Not a big deal unless it’s a mini-pill. You know, someone who had an exposure to a potential unwanted pregnancy.” The NCCPA has made it clear that there’ll be ongoing remediation throughout this process, which is fascinating. If you get it wrong, they’re going to tell you right away, “Hey, you got this wrong.” Then after two quarters, they’re going to let you know how you are doing relative to a pass/fail rate.

Passing the Alternative PANRE

I got the privilege of talking to the NCCPA representatives at the AAPA conference. I said, “Well what’s passing?” They said, “Well we don’t really know until we get more data.” Then you’re going to have a bar graph saying, “Hey, you’re doing well,” or, “You’re struggling a little bit.” Now if you fail the PANRE, in year three you have to take the high-risk exam to sit down and go for it. I’m really excited about this. I think it’s great for our profession, and CME4Life is all over this.

I was told by the NCCPA that because these questions are going to be sent to your mobile device or your cell phone, your tablet, your computer, they’re going to have a whole lot more test writers. The questions are going to be much more disposable, unlike the test as it is now. The questions will be much more clinical. I’m super excited about the direction the NCCPA is taking us.

Studying Red, Yellow and Green Lights

Remember that the diseases you have to study now fall into one of three levels. We’re going to call them red light, yellow light, and green light. That’s a CME4Life mindset. I’m sure other companies will use it as well because it’s a good paradigm.

Red light topics are the things that you have to go, “Oh crap. I better go get someone quickly,” like a thoracic dissection or cauda equina syndrome. You have to make a presumptive diagnosis based on risk factors and presentation and go get help. Get an appropriate consultation. It’s kind of what we do anyway, clinically, right? If it’s a green light, you have to know first-tier diagnostics and first-tier therapeutics. If it’s a green light or level three, you have to know everything. It’s kind of what we do anyway.

Prepare for the PANRE with CME4Life

Now, we have a live alternative PANRE board review course. It’s specifically designed to teach you what you need to know for the new curriculum. Now, I’m not convinced you need a live course. But if you’re going to study, make sure you’re studying the content at the right level. We’re looking for WAK, walking around knowledge and that is at level one, level two, and level three.

Now, we’re calling our response to the new curriculum the iPANRE because it’s innovative. It’s an innovative way to learn, where you get real-time learning. We have live courses in Orlando later this year, in November, then in January. We also have videos, recorded live in Buffalo, New York. That’s available to you so you can study what you need to know. We also have the iPANRE study resource.

What if you came to our board review course and it wasn’t boring? I mean, what if it was actually engaging? What if it was actually really engaging where you found enthusiasm for medicine? You realize you’re really processing information in a way that makes you excited. What if the board review course wasn’t boring, but it was exciting?

What if we taught you real information, not just to pass your boards? The really good thing about the NCCPA’s new changes is we don’t have to teach you the crazy stuff about polymyalgia rheumatica. I mean, I’ve never seen a polymyalgia rheumatica. It’s just not something that was clinically very relevant to me, but I needed to know it for my boards. What about basophilic stippling? When have you ever got basophilic stippling reported out on a CBC and said, “Oh my God. We got a basophilic stippling stat. We need a lead level or a hemoglobin electrophoresis.” It’s silly stuff.

Well, bottom line is, now we don’t have to teach you silly stuff. We have to teach you clinical medicine. We have to teach you WAK, walking around knowledge. The kind of stuff that you really need to know in your gut that makes you a better clinician. That’s a really good thing.

So what if our courses were not boring but they’re exciting? What if it’s transformational learning, which really gives you tools of clinical application? Would you want to attend that? Don’t take my word for it. Listen to our testimonials and see what people have to say live in the camera.

Look into their eyes and you tell me, did they have transformational experiences? Was it engaging? We just finished a course in Florida. By the end of the course, people are hugging each other, exchanging phone numbers because it’s so personal. We leave our egos at the door. I’m no different than you guys are. I’m a PA trying to practice medicine the best I can. I’m not a doc. I love medicine. I love teaching. I love engaging people with content. There’s a lot of things I don’t know. The orthopedic people contribute to the ortho portion, and the dermatology people contribute to the derma portion.

Be part of a movement. Don’t go to a board review course where people read you slides. I mean, come on. That’s insulting. It’s a new era of learning, a new era of clinical application. I invite you to come to a CME4Life Board Review Course and help us get you enthused about medicine. I don’t care if you’re taking your PANRE for the first time or your fifth or sixth time. I love medicine, I love what we get to do, and I feel blessed to be an educator.