ABOUT THE EXAM
The foundation of the ABUCM examination is a practice analysis survey. The examination is designed to test the areas of knowledge determined to be essential for the current competent practice of Urgent Care Medicine across all clinical settings.
Exam Schedule
The exam is offered during four exam windows throughout the year: March, June, September and December at thousands of testing centers both nationally and internationally. Although there is no deadline for submitting an application for any of the exam windows, applicants should allow enough time for their application to be processed, which can take up to two months.
Certification Fees
The application fee is $105
The exam fee is $995
Please see Applying for the Exam for information on submitting the application, taking the exam, rescheduling, retaking the exam, etc.
The exam is an electronic exam comprised of 225 multiple-choice questions. It is broken down into seven general categories: General Medicine, Pediatrics, Surgery, Pharmacology, Public Health, Risk Management and Occupational Medicine.
These categories are further broken down into the more specific areas of abdominal and gastrointestinal disorders, cardiovascular disorders, thoracic and respiratory disorders, traumatic disorders, pediatric disorders, toxicology and clinical pharmacology, obstetrical and gynecological disorders, procedures and skills of Urgent Care Medicine, musculoskeletal disorders, cutaneous disorders, systemic and cutaneous infectious disorders, endocrine, metabolic and nutritious disorders, head and neck disorder, hematology and oncology disorders, nervous system disorders, psychological and behavioral disorders, urological and renal disorders, environmental disorders, immune system disorders, epidemiology, and public health disorders.
The content of the examination is divided into more than a dozen main knowledge areas including: anatomy/physiology, medicine, surgery, pediatrics, dermatology, infectious disease, pain medicine, radiology, orthopedics, pharmacology, psychiatry, sports medicine, occupational medicine, and compensation/disability/medical-legal issues. These areas are further divided into a matrix of sections. The information from the practice analysis survey is then used to determine the number of items to include under each of the knowledge areas.
