basic info on philippine physician licensure examination / board examination

1. PHILIPPINE
PHYSICIAN LICENSURE
EXAMINATION (PLE)
A Primer for Serviam
By
Exequiel Dimaano, MD
WVSU COM Class 2013

2. Steps to Skinning the PLE Alive!
Step 1
Know Your
Enemy PRC List
12 Subjects
Style of
Questions
Scoring
Testing
Centers
USMLE
Reviewers
Local
Reviewers
and
Samplex
Step 2
Arm
Yourself
Step 3
Find a
Sparring
Review
Partner Center or
Test Taking
not?
Review
Centers
Step 4
Skinning
the Enemy

3. Step 1
Know Your
Enemy
12 Subjects
Style of
Questions
Scoring
Testing
Centers

4. 12 Subjects to Success
 6 Basic Sciences – Days 1 & 2
 6 Clinical Sciences – Days 3 & 4
 100 Questions each
 Select the Best or Except
Time Day 1 Day 2 Day 3
630am
Filling up of
Forms
8am to 10am Biochemistry Physiology Pharmacology
Pediatrics
and
Nutrition
10am to
11am
Break
11am to 1pm
Anatomy and
Histology
Legal
Medicine and
Jurisprudence
Internal
Medicine
Obstetrics
and
Gynecology
1pm to 2pm Break
2pm to 4pm
Microbiology
and
Parasitology
Pathology Surgery
Preventive
Medicine and
Public
Health

5. Step 1
Know Your
Enemy
Style of
Questions
Scoring
Testing
Centers
12 Subjects

6. The Process of Making Board Exam Questions
Members of
Board of
Medicine
divides the 12
subjects among
themselves
Each submit
thousands of
questions to a
computer
Computer
randomly picks
100 questions
per subject
Members of
Board of
Medicine
“incarcerated”
in a room in the
PRC Building
during the
exams
NBI and Police
guards them
Computer
randomly picks
100 questions
per subject

7. The Tricky Part
 Hoarseness in post-thyroidectomy is caused by the transection of the recurrent
laryngeal nerve most commonly on ligating the:
 A) superior thyroid artery
 B) inferior thyroid artery
 C) tracheal artery
 D) superior laryngeal artery

8. The Tricky Part
 SLE is a multisystemic disease diagnosed via detection of anti-ANA, anti-dsDNA,
anti-Smith. It affects the skin, the kidneys and vessels. The autoantibodies
produced is caused by:
 A) antigen-trapping in sun-damaged skin
 B) polyclonal antibodies produced by B cells
 C) antibody-trapping in sun-damaged skin
 D) cross-reaction of antibodies to self antigens

9. The Tricky Part
 Niacin is as an important micronutrient needed in the different metabolic pathways
of the body with the vital characteristic involving:
 A) localized pigmented rash (dermatitis); gastroenteritis (diarrhea); and widespread
neurologic deficits, including cognitive decline (dementia)
 B) it forms the nicotinamide ring in NAD and NADH
 C) if left untreated, its deficiency leads to death
 D) its deficiency leads to pellagra, characterized by dermatitis, dementia, diarrhea

10. Step 1
Know Your
Enemy
Style of
Questions Scoring Testing
Centers
12
Subjects

11. Mean Passing Level: What is it?
 Optical Mark Reader (OMR) Technology
 Passing Criteria: Average of at least 75, with no grade < 50
 3 Ways of Measuring MPL
 Nedelsky Method
 Reciprocal of the number of items that cannot easily be removed
 1 / 2 = 0.5
 MPL = 0.5
 Angoff’s Method
 Assign a value from 0.25 - 1.00
 Probability of borderline examinee getting the correct answer
 MPL is equal to this value

12. Mean Passing Level: What is it?
 Ebel’s Method  Transmutation
Type No. of
Questions
Rating TOTAL
Recall
Easy 40 0.9 36
Medium
20 0.85 17
Difficult 10 0.80 8
Analysis
Easy 20 0.70 14
Medium
5 0.60 3
Difficult 5 0.50 2.5
MPL 80.5
[(SS-MPL) (100-PS)/(100-MPL)] + PS = TS
SS= Student Score
PS = Passing Score (PLE = 75)
TS = Transmuted Score (the score that is reported to you)
MPL = Mean Passing Level

13. Step 1
Know Your
Enemy
Style of
Questions
Testing
Centers
12 Subjects Scoring

14. Homecourt Advantage?
 4 Accredited Areas: Manila, Cebu, Davao, Iloilo
 Aug 2014:
 Total Takers –2,730
 Manila – 2,400+
 Cebu - ~130
 Davao - ~130
 Consider:
 Review Centers
 Cost – Board and Lodging
 Traffic
 Rainy Season
 Sites to see/unwind

15. Step 2
Arm
Yourself
PRC List USMLE
Reviewers
Local Reviewers
and Samplex

16. Recommended by PRC
 Biochemistry
 Harper’s Biochemistry (Murray, Granner, Mayes and Rodwell)
 Biochemistry (Mckee and Mckee)
 Biochemistry (Mathews and VanHolde)
 Anatomy and Histology
 Clemente, C.D. Edition; Anatomy, A. Regional Atlas of the Human Body, 4th
Edition, Williams and Wilkins, Philadelphia 1977.
 Snell, R.S.; Clinical Anatomy for Medical Students, 5th Edition, Little Brown and
Company, Boston 1995
 Cormack, D.H.L. Clinical Integrated Histology, Lippincott-Raven, Philadelphia
1977

17. Recommended by PRC
 Microbiology and Parasitology
 Zinzzer Microbiology, Current Edition
 Beaver Clinical Parasitology, current Edition
 Jawetz Medical Microbiology, current Edition
 Physiology
 Textbook of Medical Physiology by Guyton Lamb, Ingram Johnson and Pitman:
 Essentials of Physiology
 Review of medical Physiology by William F. Ganong
 Human Physiology and Mechanism of Disease by Arthur C. Guyton and John E.
Hall
 Legal Medicine
 Legal Medicine by Pedro Solis, MD, LlB.
 Medical Jurisprudence (The Practice of Medicine and the Law) by
Pedro Solis, MD, LlB.

18. Recommended by PRC
 Pathology
 Cotran, R.S., Kumar, V. & Collins, T: Robbins Pathologic Basis of Disease; 6th
Edition; W.B. Saunders Company, Philadelphia 1999.
 Danjanor, I. And Linden, J.: Anderson’s Pathology, 10th Edition, Volume 1 and 2,
Mosby, Boston 1996.
 Pharmacology
 Goodman & Gilman’s the Pharmacological Basis of Therapeutics, Ninth Edition
 Basic and Clinical Pharmacology by Bertram G. Katzung, MD, PhD.
 Pediatrics and Nutrition
 Textbook of Pediatric by Waldo Nelson
 Textbook of Pediatric and Child Health by by Fe del Mundo, Felix Estrada, Perla
D. Santos-Ocampo, Xerxes Navarro
 Red-Book Committee on Infectious Diseases, American Academy of Pediatrics,
24th Edition, George Peter-Editor

19. Recommended by PRC
 Surgery
 Basic Surgery (Poll, Gardnesr and Stone)
 Textbook of Surgery (Sabiston)
 Textbook of Surgery (Schwartz)
 Ophthalmology, Principles and Concepts (Dewell)
 Ophthalmology,, Secrets (Vander and Gault)
 Fundamental of Otorlaryngology (Adams, Boies and Hilger)
 Internal Medicine
 Cecile, Textbook of Medicine, current Edition
 Harrison, Textbook of Medicine, Current Edition
 Obstetrics and Gynecology
 William Obstetrics, 20th Edition Textbook of Obstetrics
 Novak’s Gynecology, 12th Edition comprehensive Gynecology, 3rd Edition

20. Recommended by PRC
 Preventive Medicine
 Foundations of Statistical Analysis for Health Sciences by Ophelia Mendoza,
Maridel Borja, Caridad Ancheta. Ofelia Saniel. Jesus Sarol
 Research Methods in Health and Medicine (Philippine Council for Health
Research and Development), Department of Science and Technology, Volume I
by F.S. Sanchez, S.I. Morelos, J.C. Baltazar
 Reading in Preventive Medicine II (UST, Dept. of Preventive and Social Medicine)
 Bioethics by A. Angles Tan-Alora, MD
 The Implementing Rules And Regulations of the National Health and Insurance
Act of 1995.
 Epidemiology Manual by Dr. Rosa Santos-Carreon (UST)
 Lectures and manuals on Preventive Medicine from different Philippine Medical
Schools.
 San Beda Prev Med Reviewer

21. Step 2
Arm
Yourself
PRC List
USMLE
Reviewers
Local
Reviewers
and
Samplex

22. My 2-cents Opinion: Physiology

23. My 2-cents Opinion: Biochemistry

24. My 2-cents Opinion: Microbiology

25. My 2-cents Opinion: Pathology

26. My 2-cents Opinion: Anatomy and Histology

27. My 2-cents Opinion: Pharmacology

28. My 2-cents Opinion: Surgery

29. My 2-cents Opinion: Internal Medicine

30. My 2-cents Opinion: Pediatrics

31. My 2-cents Opinion: Obstetrics

32. My 2-cents Opinion: Preventive Medicine

33. My 2-cents Opinion: Legal Medicine
 SOLIS!
 UPEC
INSERT PICTURE HERE!

34. Step 2
Arm
Yourself
PRC List
USMLE
Reviewers
Local
Reviewers
and Samplex

35. How True?
Samplex have no assurances
Even if 2008 and earlier copies are authentic
But DO PRACTICE-TESTS daily!
Get a copy of T---o--h Notes!

36. Step 3
Find a
Sparring
Partner
Review
Center or
not?
Review
Centers

37. Decisions! Decisions!
Know your study habits
Know your goal
Know your resources

38. Step 3
Find a
Sparring
Partner
Review Center
or not?
Review
Centers

39. Schools of Thought???
Topnotch
 New Manila, Fairview
 Cracking D’ Board
 Cebu, Manila
Primus
 Davao, Cebu
UST
 Taft
Makar
 Manila

40. Step 4
Skinning
the Enemy
Test Taking

41. Fighting the Good Fight
PRAY!
BE early!
Keep calm
Bring food
Do some light read
Use time wisely
Fight! Fight! Fight!

42. REGISTRATION
What You Need
1. Birth Certificate (must be NSO certified)
2. Certificate of Graduation from Medical School(COG)
3. Certificate of Internship(COI)
4. Community Tax Certificate (Cedula)
5. Medical Transcript of Records(TOR)
6. Four 2x2 full-face photographs, with name tag (Last
Name, First Name and Middle Name)
7. Postage Stamps
8. One long brown envelope, pencils(Mongol #2) and
erasers, black ball pen, paste
9. One government-issued ID

43. WIN
BIG!!!
GOD
BLESS!!!!
“The harder the
struggle, the greater
the glory.”