NIRSAT™ stands for Nevada Impairment Rating Skills Assessment Test. Any physician, whether an MD, DO, or DC, must pass it with 75% or higher to be designated as a PPD rater by the Nevada Division of Industrial Relations (DIR). It isn’t optional. Christine G. Caldwell, CEO & Founder of AAEME, led its development, and AAEME is the sole administrator.
Who has to take NIRSAT™?
Anyone seeking designation as a Nevada PPD rater. The exam is the same for MDs, DOs, and DCs, and Nevada’s rules name it as one of the qualifications for the rating list.
Passing NIRSAT™ is one step, not the whole path. You also need a Nevada license, three or more years of industrial health experience in private practice, an approved AMA Guides 5th Edition course, and the Nevada PTSD, TBI & Stress Disorders IR Seminar. The good news is that the exam is a one-time requirement. Who can perform impairment ratings in Nevada walks through the full list.
What is the NIRSAT™ exam format?
NIRSAT™ is an online exam of 100 questions, including a Nevada legal section, taken in one four-hour sitting, and you need 75% to pass. It’s open book, so you can use the AMA Guides 5th Edition and a calculator. Browser and camera monitoring, including an ID check, may be implemented at any time.
You do need to complete an approved AMA Guides 5th Edition course first. Any qualifying course counts, and AAEME’s AMA Guides 5th Edition Advanced course is one. That course isn’t included in the exam. The exam carries 4 AAFP CME credits, and AAEME’s exam page has the current details.
What does NIRSAT™ cover?
NIRSAT™ is built around the AMA Guides 5th Edition, the edition Nevada law requires, and adds the Nevada rules that sit on top of it. Here’s what it covers:
- How the AMA Guides 5th Edition works in Nevada PPD cases
- Nevada rules that change or limit how the Guides are used, such as apportionment, pain, and activities of daily living
- Correct diagnostic steps before rating each body region
- WPI calculation and the Combined Values Chart
- Documentation that makes a Nevada PPD report defensible
- How the PPD process runs, including the D-35 request and random assignment
Why does Nevada have its own exam?
Because Nevada’s system is the AMA Guides 5th Edition plus Nevada’s own rules, and in several areas those rules override what the Guides say. You can know the Guides thoroughly and still produce a report that’s wrong under Nevada law. NIRSAT™ was designed to close that gap. It isn’t a generic impairment rating course with a Nevada label.
If you’d like to start with the groundwork, read what WPI is and how impairment differs from disability, or take our free course, Introduction to Nevada Workers’ Comp Law.
What does passing NIRSAT™ get you?
It meets Nevada’s exam requirement, and it also issues the CIRS™ AMA Guides 5th Edition credential. So one exam gets you the Nevada qualification and a national credential. Once you’ve met every requirement, the DIR grants the Nevada PPD rater designation itself.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is NIRSAT™ the same for MDs, DOs, and DCs? Yes. One exam applies to every provider type that performs Nevada PPD ratings.
How long does NIRSAT™ take? It’s a four-hour online exam of 100 questions, including a Nevada legal section, taken in one sitting. You must complete an approved AMA Guides 5th Edition course before you take it, and the course takes additional time.
Do I have to retake NIRSAT™ to keep my designation? No. The exam is one-time. Every designated PPD rater does complete an approved rating course every two years (the biennial requirement), with certificates due to the DIR Medical Unit by December 31 of even-numbered years. The DIR’s Rating Panel page lists the approved options.
Is NIRSAT™ accepted in other states? NIRSAT™ is built for Nevada. The CIRS™ AMA Guides 5th Edition credential it issues is national. For other states, AAEME offers CIRS™ in the AMA Guides 5th Edition and AMA Guides 6th Edition.
Ready to take it? Start NIRSAT™.
CIRS™ certification through AAEME covers AMA Guides methodology, defensible documentation, and the full impairment rating process, with AAFP-accredited CME credit included.
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