Law Summary
Initial Prescribed Refresher Course (Board Resolution No. 173, 1988)
- The first prescribed refresher course required enrollment in the 4th-year medical course.
- Candidates had to submit a certificate of course completion signed by the Dean before the examination application.
- Implementation issues arose due to the unavailability of medical schools to offer this course.
Revision and Development of a Condensed Refresher Course (Board Resolution No. 153, 1990)
- The Board made a detailed study to create a better organized and feasible refresher course.
- Designed to develop competencies essential for passing the medical board examination.
- The course content mirrors the undergraduate medical curriculum emphasizing the foundations of basic physician training.
Prerequisites and Evaluation Prior to Course Admission
- Candidates must undergo physical and psychiatric evaluations to identify and treat conditions hampering learning.
- These evaluations aim to ensure candidates can maximally benefit from the refresher program.
Educational Strategies and Course Structure
- Focus on intellectual skill development through:
- Lectures and readings for information input.
- Explanation of principles and their applications to common problems.
- Practice tests (oral and written) with immediate feedback.
- Repeated retesting and continuous use of learned principles.
- The course runs for one calendar year, divided into four 10-week quarters plus breaks, totaling 1200 instruction hours (6 hours/day, 5 days/week).
Breakdown of Instruction Hours by Subject
- Medicine (including Psychiatry, Neurology, etc.) and Surgery (including EENT): 180 hours each.
- Pediatrics: 120 hours.
- Obstetrics-Gynecology, Preventive Medicine, Anatomy, Physiology, Biochemistry, Microbiology-Parasitology, Pathology, Pharmacology: 84 hours each.
- Legal Medicine: 48 hours.
Periodic and Final Evaluations
- Simulated board exams are administered at the end of each quarter.
- Candidates failing these simulations receive remedial work and individualized instruction to address weaknesses.
- A final simulated board exam at course completion determines certification eligibility.
- Failure to pass the final simulation disqualifies candidates from certification.
Certification and Examination Eligibility
- Only candidates presenting a certificate of completion from the Dean of the medical school conducting the refresher course are permitted to take the medical board examination.
Effectivity and Repeal
- This resolution rescinds Board Resolution No. 173 dated June 17, 1988.
- It becomes effective starting with examinations scheduled in 1991.