ABPS Urgent Care study guide
ABPS Urgent Care · Work through your exam, one topic at a time.
Urgent Care Medicine is one of the specialties in which the American Board of Physician Specialties (ABPS) offers physician board certification. ABPS describes itself as a nationally recognized multi-specialty certifying body that certifies both allopathic and osteopathic physicians across a range of specialties, and Urgent Care Medicine appears on its published specialty list. The ABPS Urgent Care study guide has 5 sections and about 1,478 words.
01Acute Illness and Injury Management in Ambulatory Patients
In ambulatory urgent care, most visits begin with an undifferentiated complaint. The candidate must know the common benign diagnoses - viral upper respiratory infection, acute otitis media, streptococcal pharyngitis, uncomplicated cystitis, bronchitis, sprains, and simple lacerations - but the exam rewards recognition of the cannot-miss conditions that mimic them.
311 words, about 2 min02Procedures, Wound Care, and Minor Surgical Skills
Procedural questions reward a reproducible sequence: indication, informed consent including alternatives and risks, site verification and time-out, adequate anesthesia, irrigation, exploration, closure or dressing, and documented neurovascular checks before and after. Know local anesthetic pharmacology: lidocaine 1% contains 10 mg/mL; maximum without epinephrine is about 4.5 mg/kg, with epinephrine about 7 mg/kg.
296 words, about 1 min03Diagnostic Testing and Point-of-Care Interpretation
Point-of-care testing is only useful when it changes management. Understand sensitivity (few false negatives), specificity (few false positives), and how prevalence changes positive predictive value.
325 words, about 2 min04Occupational Health, Preventive Care, and Health Maintenance
Occupational health questions focus on regulation, exposure management, and fitness for duty. Know OSHA’s Bloodborne Pathogens Standard: exposure control plan, hepatitis B vaccination offer, personal protective equipment, and post-exposure evaluation.
294 words, about 1 min05Practice Management, Regulatory Compliance, and Emergency Preparedness
Practice management questions test the rules that keep an urgent care open and safe: HIPAA privacy and security, CLIA certification, OSHA requirements, informed consent, mandatory reporting, scope of practice, billing and coding accuracy, and emergency preparedness. Know that CLIA-waived tests require a Certificate of Waiver and adherence to manufacturer instructions; microscopy and most complex testing are not waived.
252 words, about 1 min