Fall, 2020

Niels F. Jensen, M.D.
Dr. Jensen Board PREP Virtual/ZOOM Courses

With Covid-19 still active across the Country, we have to suspend our live courses, probably until we have a vaccine, and instead resort to virtual courses.

After 650 live courses over 30 years, involving thousands of fine anesthesiologists striving hard and succeeding at a phenomenal level to pass their Boards, Covid-19 forces us to take a different path. So I'm excited to try some small, live, virtual meetings using Zoom. The first of these meetings is scheduled for

Whether we meet in a hotel conference room, or from our own homes and offices, live encounters bring us together to simulate the actual exams, and in so doing review the key, focused information tested by the Board.

My own preparation many years ago was flawed. Specifically, it was not focused upon the key words designated by the ABA as governing the examination(s).

The point is, without rigorous attention and focus upon these ABA key words and key concepts, some of us struggle on these types of examinations. On the other hand, by achieving such focus we can move much more decisively and confidently forward toward success.

Many people seek reassurance in their study, rather than seeking to find weaknesses; so often we seek comfort in validating what we already know, rather than searching for, identifying, and correcting what we don't know. This program corrects this potentially flawed tendency.

In truth, the Board doesn't care about our feelings, but rather only how well we understand, and can apply the ABA content domain—whether it is involves the Basic, part 1 Written, part 2 Applied Oral, MOCA, Pain, or Pediatric Boards.

Our successful formula is based upon COMMAND of focused central sources such as Big Blue, Big Red, MOCA Blue, Big Yeller, and Peds Blue coupled with live courses with structured, realistic, simulated, mock examinations to test that command.

Through self-evaluation, trying always to stay positive with ourselves and each other, we seek not just reassurance but rather, too, an agenda for improvement, as connoted by key words and key concepts. We are not afraid of and don't fear a stumble at a course if it can prevent, as is so often the case, a failure in the real exam room.

The study materials and courses are focused, honed, tweaked, and highly efficient. Based upon the experiences of so many, the focus of the materials can be transformative.

Simply put, the home study materials, coupled with the courses, can turn a marginal performance into a very good or even excellent one.

One thing hasn't changed over all these years: In the words of one participant who finally passed after multiple failures, "This stupid exam does bad things to good people." Yes, unfortunately, it surely can. That same person also said, "At the course we got more done in a single day than other courses accomplished in a week."

Staying positive is so important to our productivity, and we must constantly remind ourselves that these exams can also serve us well in helping us learn and review vital information which makes us better anesthesiologists.

I've spent some time with Zoom. I'm working upon both focused content and techniques to convey it virtually which will motivate and help you to become successful.

Having struggled myself at various points in this process, the lack of direction, lack of focus, lack of honesty by those who knew or should have known still frustrates me, even after over 35 years.

Yet, with focus and hard work, focused study materials and valid testing, in other words, real and effective training directed at the key words which govern these exams, success is much closer than one realizes: "It would be so easy for our competitive situation to change, suddenly and quite dramatically. Only a hair lies between being our being successful and self-confident, open to change and able to change, and floundering mediocrity." (John MacArthur, former Dean, Harvard Business School)

The virtual courses, like the live courses, force us to go on a journey together seeking knowledge and understanding. We all have dozens of things we would rather be doing, but by taking this time together we not only review what we need to know in a highly efficient manner, but we also are confronted by those knowledge gaps and deficiencies which hold us back. In overcoming these our chance for success improves dramatically.

Many are simply told, "You're smart, you'll pass, just read Miller. . ." I went down this path and didn't work for me, as it doesn't for many. I did not lack the will to win, nor the will to prepare to win, but rather I lacked the focus and the study tools to win.

So let's come back together, in a virtual way, focus, and win.

I hope to see you at a ZOOM, where we'll simulate the exam, and have fun learning, reviewing, and testing what the ABA believes is most important for us to become consultants in anesthesiology.

In this spirit, "Onward to Victory!"

Niels F. Jensen, M.D.
Dr. Jensen Board PREP
319-321-3701 (cell, call anytime)
njensen@boardprep.com