Program Innovation and Enhancement
Specialty and Advanced Practice Examinations
PES can guide your organization in exploring the utility of a new specialty or advanced practice credentialing program, and help you to understand how it could address unmet needs in your industry or profession, complement an existing credential, or enhance your organization’s value proposition. Such programs may target new areas of practice that have arisen due to advances in technology or new procedures introduced into your profession. PES will work with you to examine the demand for specialty or advanced practice credentials, as well as the efficacy of developing stand-alone assessments versus add-on assessments that supplement existing core examinations.
Practical Examinations
PES can help you to develop, implement, and score practical examinations for your credentialing program. PES has developed examinations that incorporate patient assessment and treatment of real patients, interpretation of scenarios, practical calculations, diagram interpretation, constructed response, video presentations, and construction of mechanical devices. We can assist you in developing objective scoring protocols that meet validity and reliability standards for the unique practical examination designed for your credential.
Innovative Assessments and Item Types
PES can work with you to create the best fit between examination content and the assessments and item types to measure that content. We can help you assess the feasibility of incorporating innovative assessments and item types into your credentialing program, including an estimate of development and implementation costs. We have experience developing a range of innovative assessments and item types tailored to meet the unique needs of our clients, including:
- Portfolio review
- Scenario-based items
- Questions to measure higher-order thinking
- Performance-based simulations
- Other complementary and alternative assessment types
PES will work with you to develop objective scoring protocols for these assessments and item types to ensure your credentialing program meets all relevant industry accreditation standards.
Recertification Initiatives
PES can help you to evaluate which mode of recertification will best ensure the continuing competence of your certificates, and will help you match your recertification requirements to your organizational mission. PES can assist you in developing the most appropriate set of policies, procedures, and mechanisms for granting recertification, including those based on continuing education or re-examination, and can also help you to design a self-assessment instrument uniquely tailored to the requirements of your credential. PES will help you to plan and implement a recertification scheme that includes requirements and components that reflect the cycle of change in your industry or profession and incorporate new and evolving areas of practice in a timely manner. We can help you to set up guidelines for your candidates to effectively plan and select the best recertification route. All this will help ensure that your credential remains the gold standard for your industry!
Development of Practice Examinations
PES develops internet-based practice examinations that accurately reflect the content of the high-stakes credentialing examinations upon which they are based. We will advise you regarding the strength of your existing item bank to support a practice examination, or the need to develop new items for that purpose, and will work with you to devise a plan for developing a practice examination without adversely impacting your item bank. PES can work with your organization to strategically plan for the development and implementation of one or more practice examinations, including examinations that focus on targeted content-based diagnostic feedback or those that provide a general assessment of your candidates’ readiness for the high-stakes examination.
Training Outcome Assessments
PES can help your organization to explore the utility of an end-of-training assessment, curriculum-based assessment, or proof-of-knowledge examination in terms of addressing unmet needs in your industry or profession, complementing an existing examination, or enhancing your organization’s value proposition. Such examinations may assess emerging issues, procedures, or technologies that are the subject of training activity within your profession. PES will work with you to examine the demand for a training outcome assessment, determine which model will best satisfy your organizational needs and mission, and guide you in the development and implementation of an assessment that conforms to recognized industry standards.
