Orzone once again provided the British Cardiovascular Society (BCS) with the software for the annual accreditation Knowledge Based Assessment (KBA) in Cardiology. In 2009 Orzone developed the software specifically designed for the KBA pilot in Cardiology in collaboration with BCS during the Conference and Exhibition in London on 31 May 2009. There were 60 volunteer Cardiology Trainees taking the exam. Taking this exam helped BCS to validate the KBA and also provided insights into the necessary logistics. Orzone can now announce that an extension to this collaboration has been agreed upon and the first KBA in Cardiology intended for Cardiology Trainees was held before the 2010 BCS Annual Conference and Exhibition on June 6th, in Manchester.

“Following the successful KBA pilot performed in collaboration with Orzone in 2009; the online knowledge-based assessment has now been introduced and was conducted at our Annual Conference in June 2010. This forms part of the assessment of those training in cardiology in the UK. This process has the potential to be adapted, according to local needs, to a larger audience elsewhere in Europe” said Professor Keith Fox, President of the British Cardiovascular Society.

 

Background

For trainees enrolled on the 2007 curriculum, the KBA is an obligatory part of Cardiology Training in the UK. The KBA exam is one part of the assessment of Cardiology training for SpRs and will sit alongside the WPBAs (workplace based assessments) as part of the ARCP (annual review of competence progression).

The KBA is intended to assess cardiology SpRs knowledge of the core areas of cardiovascular medicine. The required knowledge is set out in the specialty training curriculum for cardiology. Appropriate sources of information include general text-books e.g. the ESC text book of cardiovascular medicine, teaching sections in academic journals e.g. Education in Heart, and published guidelines, e.g. ESC clinical practice guidelines. These resources are not intended as an exhaustive reading list just as examples and trainees will be expected to have developed their knowledge using the wide variety of sources available.

About British Cardiovascular Society

The British Cardiovascular Society (BCS) was founded in 1922 and has evolved into a complex organisation that plays a pivotal role in the delivery of cardiovascular health across the UK. There are currently over 1,600 ordinary members of the BCS. BCS aims to support and represent all those working in the fields of cardiovascular care and research. To help achieve this aim, BCS is affiliated with 17 unique organisations that work in specific areas of cardiovascular medicine, health and patient care. Members of the affiliated groups, who are not also ordinary members of the BCS, are associate members of the BCS and there are currently approximately 8,000 health care professionals in this category.