OCS Prep Program
This self-guided OCS Prep Program is designed to give you the tools you need to pass the test, gain expertise, and elevate the profession — all while earning CEUs.
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93%
of subscribers that studied with the MedBridge Certification Prep Programs successfully passed their board specialization test!
Prepare to take the next step in your career.
Our OCS Prep Program provides all of the tools you'll need to pass the board specialization test, develop your clinical skill set, and elevate your career - all while earning CEUs. With advanced certification, you'll set yourself apart as a distinguished professional equipped to provide an advanced level of care.
We can help you get there faster.
In this program you will study advanced topics taught by the best instructors in orthopedic therapy. With over 500 practice questions, this 20-week program will have you well-prepared for success on test day.
Learn from the Best
Study advanced topics taught by the top instructors in orthopedic therapy.
Identify Strengths
Analyze your strengths & weaknesses with scores for practice areas.
Personalize Your Plan
Customize the program to meet your needs. Study in groups or on your own.
Advance Your Career
Prepare for the test and earn CEUs—all included in the annual subscription.
Explore OCS Prep Courses
Evidence-Informed Assessment and Evaluation of Pain
Presented by David Walton, PT, PhD, FCAMPT and James Elliott, PT, PhD
Evidence-Informed Assessment and Evaluation of Pain
Pain is a multidimensional and intensely personal experience. This course will help you understand how to select the right application and interpretation of key tools for fully exploring a patient's pain experience, and how those results can inform clinical decisions. The perils, pitfalls, and advances of measuring an invisible experience make this a difficult topic to understand. This course will cover the methods through which comprehensive pain assessment leads to informed management and optimized outcomes.
Evidence-Based Assessment of Acute Whiplash for Prognosis and Treatment Planning
Presented by James Elliott, PT, PhD and David Walton, PT, PhD, FCAMPT
Evidence-Based Assessment of Acute Whiplash for Prognosis and Treatment Planning
This course will break down the challenge of whiplash, including topics such as its incidence, cost, trajectory, and presentation. You will review the mechanisms that influence clinical presentation and recovery as well as the clinical assessment and evaluation procedures. Dr. Walton and Dr. Elliot will review screening for red flags, key interview questions, clinical tests, appropriate use of diagnostic imaging, recommended self-report questionnaires and outcomes. You will also cover what is known about the factors that influence recovery from acute WAD, and how clinicians can use this information for prognosis-based treatment programs.
An Introduction to Evidence-Based Treatment of Whiplash
Presented by James Elliott, PT, PhD and David Walton, PT, PhD, FCAMPT
An Introduction to Evidence-Based Treatment of Whiplash
This course will review the current state of evidence for managing acute WAD to facilitate recovery and prevent chronicity. You will learn about the current state of evidence for managing chronic WAD to minimize disability and optimize function. The course will also cover interdisciplinary care considerations in acute and chronic WAD such as when to refer, to whom, and why.
Indications for Musculoskeletal Imaging
Presented by Robert Boyles, PT, DSc, OCS, FAAOMPT
Indications for Musculoskeletal Imaging
When patients present to you with an orthopaedic or sports related injury, do you need to order imaging immediately? Is there criteria to help you decide if imaging is, or isn't, necessary, and if so, which imaging modality is most appropriate? Many imaging modalities are available for the evaluation of acute and chronic musculoskeletal conditions. However, although patients are asking for high tech imaging, it does not mean better care and, in fact, can lead to harm. Using the many evidence-based imaging rules and published appropriateness criteria will help you decide if imaging is appropriate for your patient, and if so, which imaging modality should be requested. This course will briefly describe the imaging modalities and their uses available to you as a clinician, as well as the appropriateness criteria and published guidelines for each body region of interest.
Utilizing ICF Guidelines and Treatment-Based Classifications
Presented by Eric Robertson, PT, DPT, OCS, FAAOMPT
Utilizing ICF Guidelines and Treatment-Based Classifications
In this course, participants will learn to utilize the International Classification of Functioning and Disability (ICF) guidelines in clinical practice and in preparation for the OCS examination. Dr. Eric Robertson describes the ICF model from an evidence-based practice lens. Participants will explore the Orthopaedic Section's ICF Guideline project, including history and development, review of topics covered, guideline organization, and impact on orthopaedic specialist practice. This course also reviews the epidemiology of low back pain and its relation to classification systems. Low back pain is a commonly encountered problem and the most common condition seen in musculoskeletal physical therapy settings. Research supports the use of classification systems for low back pain, and the treatment-based classification system is one such system that has gained wide support, both in the literature and clinically. This course will provide an overview of treatment-based classification (TBC) and serve as an introduction to utilizing this approach for patients with low back pain.
A Classification Approach to Managing Shoulder Pain and Dysfunction
Presented by Derek Clewley, PT, DPT, PhD, OCS, FAAOMPT
A Classification Approach to Managing Shoulder Pain and Dysfunction
Shoulder pain is a common condition seen in physical therapy practice; however, are you confident that you are managing shoulder cases with the most up to date, best evidence? This course will examine shoulder outlining, the major classifications that contribute to shoulder pain and dysfunction. Take your confidence to the next level as you develop the expertise to effectively manage patients with shoulder pain.
ICF Clinical Practice Guidelines Update: Lateral Ankle Sprains
Presented by Todd Davenport, PT, DPT, MPH
ICF Clinical Practice Guidelines Update: Lateral Ankle Sprains
Lateral ankle sprains are a common injury that frequently results in prolonged pain and disability. The research evidence for physical therapy management of lateral ankle sprains is increasingly voluminous, making it difficult for the busy physical therapist to keep up their reading of the latest research evidence in order to engage in evidence based practice. This course provides an overview of the clinical practice guideline for lateral (inversion-mechanism) ankle sprains. This first course of the two course series on lateral ankle sprain, will discuss the differential diagnosis, risk factors, prognosis, and clinical measures for patient reported outcomes.
Be sure to watch the second part of this two part series: ICF Best Practice Recommendations: Lateral Ankle Sprain Interventions
Evidence and Interview of the Patient with Osteoarthritis of the Knee
Presented by Gail Deyle, PT, DSc, DPT, OCS, FAAOMPT
Evidence and Interview of the Patient with Osteoarthritis of the Knee
Why the focus on treating osteoarthritis of the knee? Osteoarthritis (OA) is one of the most rapidly growing conditions worldwide with knee osteoarthritis (knee OA) being one of the most prevalent forms. Patients with knee OA have a wide variety of presentations making it a disorder that is best addressed with strong clinical reasoning and high differential diagnosis skills. Despite a compelling body of literature for physical therapy directed exercise programs and growing evidence that manual therapy combined with exercise increases the level of symptom relief and functional benefit, most patients do not receive physical therapy treatment prior to total joint replacement. There is also a concerning lack of consistency in physical therapy treatment approaches with many physical therapists still reaching for their favorite modalities.
This course will help the learner make accurate judgments on the patient with knee OA's likely tolerance for examination and treatment while identifying key impairments to strength, range of motion, flexibility, gait, and balance that can be addressed with manual therapy and exercise. This clinical reasoning-based process facilitates highly focused treatment strategies that are typically well tolerated by the patient.
Although patients with knee OA can be challenging to treat, focusing on the concepts presented in this course will enhance your ability to provide well-tolerated treatment strategies that are consistent with the best research evidence, and that consistently produce highly satisfying outcomes for both the patient and the treating physical therapist.
Track Your Strength
The OCS Prep Program is based on both practice areas and body regions in alignment with the Orthopedic Description of Specialty Practice. Over 500 test questions are mapped to these two matrices so participants can track their strengths and weaknesses to prepare for the exam.
See your strength in over 20 categories! Begin the OCS program today.
Practice Exam
Case Excerpt:
A patient is presenting with neck and arm pain with insidious onset three weeks prior to referral to physical therapy. The patient states that the pain started in the anterior shoulder and radiated proximally to the neck and distally to the mid-forearm. The patient had a diminished C6 reflex upon evaluation, and also showed significant weakness in the elbow flexion manual muscle testing.Question:
Which of the following diagnoses is least likely to be implicated in this patient’s symptoms?The correct answer is "Arterial compression from thoracic outlet syndrome."
There is no information provided that would lead one to believe that this patient has any arterial compression due to thoracic outlet syndrome. If an individual had thoracic outlet syndrome, they may have shoulder and neck pain but the likelihood of diminished reflexes and weakness in elbow flexion manual muscle testing is low.Meet Our Instructors
What's Included in the Program
Advanced Courses
Choose from over 45 online, video-based courses taught by the experts
Practice Questions
Study with over 500 practice questions and recommended journal articles
Group Study
Prepare on your own or with others sitting for the exam
Structured Program
Improve your expertise with this 20-week program designed specifically for the OCS exam