Original ContributionAdopting the American anesthesia oral examination in China: value and roadblocks

•China has no standardized anesthesia oral examination compared to the United States.•The first-time experience of introducing the American oral exam in China was shared.•The value and roadblocks of adopting anesthesia oral exam in China were discussed.•A pragmatic approach of adopting anesthesia oral exam in China was proposed.•Both anesthesia training and clinical care in China can be improved by this move.

The quality and standardized training and certification of young physicians is key to the quality of health care in the future. In contrast to the American system, there is no nationwide and standardized oral examination in the training and certification process for anesthesiologists in China. The adoptability of the American anesthesia oral examination in China, as well as potential roadblocks, has not been specifically discussed. In this commentary, we share our experience of introducing the American oral examination to an audience of Chinese anesthesiologists and propose a pragmatic approach for adopting the anesthesia oral examination in China. This initiative has the potential to reform the current anesthesia training and certification process and improve the quality of anesthetic care in China.