PHILIPPINE

PHYSICIAN LICENSURE
EXAMINATION (PLE)
A Primer for Serviam
By
Exequiel Dimaano, MD
WVSU COM Class 2013
 Steps to Skinning the PLE Alive!
Step 3
Step 1 Step 2 Step 4
Arm Find a
Know Your Review Skinning
Enemy Yourself Sparring
12 Subjects PRC List Center or the Enemy Test Taking
Partner
not?

Style of USMLE Review

Questions Reviewers Centers

Local
Reviewers
Scoring
and
Samplex

Testing
Centers
 Step 1
Know Your
Enemy

Style of Testing
Scoring
12 Subjects Questions Centers
 12 Subjects to Success

Time Day 1 Day 2 Day 3

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

12 Subjects
Style of Scoring
Testing
Questions Centers
 The Process of Making Board Exam Questions

Members of
Members of Board of
Board of Each submit Computer Medicine Computer
Medicine thousands of randomly picks “incarcerated” NBI and Police randomly picks
divides the 12 questions to a 100 questions in a room in the guards them 100 questions
subjects among computer per subject PRC Building per subject
themselves during the
exams
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
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
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
 Step 1
Know Your
Enemy

12 Style of Testing
Subjects Questions Scoring Centers
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
Mean Passing Level: What is it?

 Ebel’s Method  Transmutation

Type No. of Rating TOTAL
Questions [(SS-MPL) (100-PS)/(100-MPL)] + PS = TS
Recall
SS= Student Score
Easy 40 0.9 36 PS = Passing Score (PLE = 75)
20 0.85 17 TS = Transmuted Score (the score that is reported to you)
Medium MPL = Mean Passing Level
Difficult 10 0.80 8
Analysis
Easy 20 0.70 14
5 0.60 3
Medium
Difficult 5 0.50 2.5
MPL 80.5
 Step 1
Know Your
Enemy

Testing
Style of
12 Subjects Scoring
Questions Centers
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
Step 2
Arm
Yourself

USMLE Local Reviewers

PRC List Reviewers and Samplex
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
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.
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
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
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
Step 2
Arm
Yourself

USMLE Local
Reviewers
PRC List Reviewers and
Samplex
My 2-cents Opinion: Physiology
My 2-cents Opinion: Biochemistry
My 2-cents Opinion: Microbiology
My 2-cents Opinion: Pathology
My 2-cents Opinion: Anatomy and Histology
My 2-cents Opinion: Pharmacology
My 2-cents Opinion: Surgery
My 2-cents Opinion: Internal Medicine
My 2-cents Opinion: Pediatrics
My 2-cents Opinion: Obstetrics
My 2-cents Opinion: Preventive Medicine
My 2-cents Opinion: Legal Medicine

 SOLIS!

 UPEC

INSERT PICTURE HERE!

Step 2
Arm
Yourself

USMLE
Local
PRC List Reviewers Reviewers
and Samplex
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!

Step 3
Find a
Sparring
Partner

Review Review
Center or Centers
not?
Decisions! Decisions!

 Know your study habits

 Know your goal

 Know your resources

Step 3
Find a
Sparring
Partner

Review Center Review

or not?
Centers
Schools of Thought???

 Topnotch  UST
 New Manila, Fairview  Taft

 Cracking D’ Board  Makar

 Cebu, Manila  Manila

 Primus
 Davao, Cebu
 Step 4
Skinning
the Enemy

Test Taking
Fighting the Good Fight

PRAY!
 BE early!
 Keep calm
 Bring food
 Do some light read
 Use time wisely
 Fight! Fight! Fight!
 What You Need
1. Birth Certificate (must be NSO certified)
2. Certificate of Graduation from Medical School(COG)
3. Certificate of Internship(COI)

REGISTRATION
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
 WIN
BIG!!!

“The harder the

GOD struggle, the greater
BLESS!!!! the glory.”