I wanted to write to you all and correct some misconceptions and fears related to the Program Assessment Exam (PAE) that was developed by the Program Assessment Exam Committee (PAEC) at the request of the ARC-ST.

 Remember that under outcomes-based accreditation, an exam that specifically assesses the quality of a curriculum according to the Core Curriculum for Surgical Technology was needed. The PAE meets the necessary criteria for proper assessment of a surgical technology curriculum.

Keep in mind that the exam is a tool for program improvement, not a punitive instrument that is used against you. It is your tool, and we expect it to be used to improve deficiencies in your curriculum. The exam is broken into the primary areas of the 4th ed of the Core Curriculum (CC), so that you can assess what portion of your curriculum is deficient according to the CC.  As you incorporate the 5th ed of the Core Curriculum (after about a year) we will begin to add questions from the new CC.

The exam is yet to undergo a validation process, but we can begin that soon. Questions that are frequently and consistently missed are deemed invalid, and replaced. The first round of examinations was meant to identify the questions that are valid, and to receive input from you all for improvement. Currently, the exam is task-based, mostly related to memory items. We will eventually change that to a performance-based exam that requires critical-thinking skills and utilizes scenarios and case studies with illustrations.

Outcomes-based accreditation is designed to give you and us a valid and realistic snapshot of the quality of your students, and therefore the quality of your program. For the first time in our history, we actually have a method for standardizing and improving our educational process, and the PAE helps make that possible. The Standards and Guidelines for Surgical Technology now state that each program must incorporate the new Core Curriculum for Surgical Technology in order to maintain their accreditation status, another large step in the standardization process.

After the PAE is where we all want it (and that may take a year or so) and we have incorporated your input and validated the exam, and it reflects the new Core Curriculum rather than the old, then we can properly use it as a core indicator for outcomes. The scores will not be given full weight until that occurs. Until then, take the reports generated from your graduates' scores and use them to improve the deficient areas. And in the meantime, work with the committee to make the best program assessment tool possible.

We appreciate your patience and we welcome your input as we boldly incorporate these changes and work out the kinks. Change is hard, but surgical technology educators are resilient because they have, in my opinion, the most difficult jobs in the country.

See you all soon,