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Disaster Medicine Eligibility

Updated June 2022

In order for an applicant to be considered qualified to sit for the American Board of Disaster Medicine® (ABODM®) written examination, the applicant must:

ABPS General Requirements:

  1. Be in conformity with the Code of Ethics of the American Board of Physician Specialties (ABPS), be known in his/her community as an ethical member of the profession and be active specialist in Disaster Medicine.
  2. Be a graduate of a recognized U.S., Canadian, or international allopathic or osteopathic college of medicine. International graduates must also hold a valid Educational Commission for Foreign Medical Graduates (ECFMG) Certificate.
  3. Hold a valid and unrestricted license(s) to practice medicine in the United States, U.S. territories, or Canada.

ABoDM Training and Experience:

  1. Residency – All applicants must have completed residency training in a program approved by the Accreditation Council of Graduate Medical Education (ACGME), the American Osteopathic Association (AOA), the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada (RCPSC) or the College of Family Physicians of Canada (CFPC) or have a current board certification granted on or before December 1, 2001. The ABPS accepts medical residencies approved by the RCPSC and CFPC, including approved residencies outside Canada.
  2. Board Certification – All applicants must have a current, unexpired board  certification by granted by an ABPS, American Board of Medical Specialties (ABMS), American Osteopathic Association (AOA), or Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons (RCPSC) board.
  3. Disaster Medicine Experience & Training – All applicants must qualify under at least one of the following (A., B., or C.):
    1. Fellowship – Applicants must document successful completion of a disaster medicine fellowship or equivalent training.
    2. Field Experience – Successful completion of seven days total deployment to one or more disaster venues with recognized disaster medicine agency. Recognized agencies include, but are not limited to, a National Disaster Medical System Disaster Medical Assistance Team (NDMS/DMAT), National Disaster Medical System Urban Search & Rescue (NDMS/US&R), Medical Reserve Corps (MRC), International Red Cross/Red Crescent (ICRC), Doctors Without Borders/Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF), United Nations (UN) and military deployments. Applicants must submit a brief summary of the nature and scope of each deployment along with documentation of their participation and length of deployment from an appropriate representative of the agency.
    3. Training & Community Engagement- Applicants must complete all the following:
      1. Basic Disaster Life Support (BDLS) course AND
      2. Core Disaster Life Support (CDLS)  or Essentials of Disaster Life Support (EDLS) course AND
      3. Advanced Disaster Life Support (ADLS) course or participation in a functional or full field exercise AND
      4. a minimum of one year’s active participation on a national, state, regional, county, hospital, or healthcare agency or facility disaster committee
  4. FEMA Emergency Management Institute Courses – Submit documentation of successful completion of required FEMA courses.  These courses are available for free and can be completed online.  More information can be found on the FEMA Emergency Management Institute’s website, http://training.fema.gov/is/.
  5. Disaster Medicine CME – Submit documentation of a minimum of 50 hours of disaster medicine-related, AMA Category 1 CME earned within the last 2 years.  Please note, this requirement is waived for Disaster Medicine fellows who apply for certification within two years of graduating the fellowship.

Additional Application Requirements:

  1. Submit three (3) letters of recommendation from Diplomates of any ABPS, ABMS, AOA, RCPSC, or CFPC Board of Certification. All letters of recommendation must be signed by the author, printed on letterhead, dated within the twelve month period just  prior to the submission of the application, and must include author contact and board certification information.
  2. All U.S. physicians must perform a self-query of the National Practitioner Data Bank and submit the report. Get your self-query report at www.npdb-hipdb.hrsa.gov. All Canadian physicians must request a Testament Statement from each province in which a license is held verifying that there have been no disciplinary actions against the applicant.
  3. Submit a current curriculum vitae, which includes medical school, degrees earned, and work experience, in chronological order.
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Medical organizations throughout North America understand that our rigorous certification standards prove that ABPS Diplomates are capable of delivering the best patient care possible.

With declining access for maternity care amid rising maternal mortality, ABPS and their Board Certification in Family Medicine Obstetrics has been essential for me and many of my colleagues in getting privileges and thereby creating local access for mothers and their children.

Ashish Anand, MD, FAASOS
John B. Waits, MD
Family Medicine Obstetrics
Board certification through the American Board of Physician Specialties has served to substantiate my interest and additional training in several fields of medicine including Internal Medicine, Disaster Medicine, and Administrative Medicine. As a result, I have been able to serve my community in clinical, disaster response, and administrative medicine roles. Through the ABPS, I have become recognized as a leader in my various fields of interest.

Spencer Price MD, MPH, MBA
Administrative Medicine
In this era, when continuous updated medical knowledge means so much to you, when quality of emergency care matters most to you ,when you need to excel in your medical career to continue providing exceptional service to your critically ill patients, please consider board certification with the Boad of Certification in Emergency Medicine (BCEM). Where your knowledge & expertise translates to credentialing & certification with wider approval & recognition every day at many fronts. We Welcome you to join our team for a brighter future of our emergency healthcare where dedication to profession relies not solely on clinical practice but also on sound academic certification.

Ashish Anand, MD, FAASOS
Ashraf A. Gerges, MD, FAAEP
Emergency Medicine
Board certification in Orthopedic Surgery through the American Board of Physician Specialties validated my training and surgical experience through a process that was both rigorous and respectful of real-world practice. ABPS recognizes clinical competence, not just credentials, and that sets it apart.

Ashish Anand, MD, FAASOS
Ashish Anand, MD, FAASOS
Orthopedic Surgery
The American Board of Physician Specialties is a forward- thinking organization that focuses on where Medicine is going, not just where it has been. Traditional Certification Boards like Internal Medicine, Emergency Medicine, and Dermatology are represented as are Integrative Medicine, Disaster Medicine, and Family Medicine-Obstetrics. Physicians appreciate the ability to showcase their skills and knowledge through Board Certification, and this organization allows excellent physicians the ability to bring their skills to patients. The dedication and commitment of this organization and its volunteers will ensure ongoing distinction and commitment for decades to come.

Jeffrey B. Stricker, DO, MBA, FAASD
Jeffrey B. Stricker, DO, MBA, FAASD
Dermatology
Serving as a member on the American board of Integrative Medicine (ABOIM) for many years and now serving as a Member at Large of the American Board of Physician Specialties (ABPS) has been an enriching and rewarding experience. The board’s commitment to excellence, integrity, and positive impact is truly inspiring. I am grateful to collaborate with such a dedicated and visionary group, and I am proud of the meaningful progress we continue to achieve together.

Arti Prasad, MD, FACP
Arti Prasad, MD, FACP
Integrative Medicine
There are many ways board certification advances a physician career. ABPS Board examination verifies your accuracy, precision, and reflects your mastery of your residency training verifying your expertise. ABPS Board certification demonstrates your level of expertise beyond your practice experience, primary education degrees, and training which are necessary for insurance reimbursement and practice privilege requirements. Attaining your ABPS Board Certification will clarify your purpose, secure your practice growth, and expand into leadership positions. Board certification can serve as an indication of a physician’s commitment to medicine, beyond the minimal standards and competency of training, their measurement to quality of care, and attaining an award for excellence.

Chris Kunis MD
Internal Medicine
When the American Board of Physician Specialties offered to host the American Board of Integrative Medicine, ABPS became a landmark organization working to move medicine into the twenty first century. Certifying physicians who have completed rigorous academic training in Integrative Medicine ensures that the field of Integrative Medicine will continue to develop academically, clinically, and professionally. The leadership of ABPS continues to impress me - they are diligent in constantly innovating to provide certifications for physicians who want to advance their careers and their areas of expertise. I am honored to be a part of this organization.

Ann Marie Chiasson, MD
Integrative Medicine
On October 18, 2007, President George W. Bush released Homeland Security Presidential Directive 21 (HSPD-21), calling on our nation, among other initiatives, to “collectively support and facilitate the establishment of a discipline of disaster health”. It is a great testament to the wisdom and foresight of the American Board of Physician Specialties that it immediately set to work and created, within the short span of only one year, an educational blueprint and set of certification examinations, both written and oral, for a new subspecialty of disaster medicine—and it is why I chose to be part this vital initiative and this wonderful organization. This is but one of the many innovative programs initiated by the American Board of Physician Specialties over the years, and why I am proud to support its work on behalf of our nation’s public health.

Art Cooper, MD
Disaster Medicine
Far too often, medicine is led by less than 5% of non-practicing physicians taking away and replacing the voice of the 95% of physicians practicing and placing patient safety and care first on the front lines every day. The American Board of Physician Specialties has raised the standards in physician board certification not only in the quality of their boards of certification, but in hearing and allowing for the voice of those active physicians caring directly for patients. Having been a part of the ABPS over the last 28 years has allowed me to grow as a woman leader in a field often wrought with challenges. It helped me and others raise the bar of the standards of care in my specialty, Emergency Medicine, through their Board Certification in Emergency Medicine (BCEM). ABPS also helped raise the standards of care for 21st century medicine through their certifications in other specialties, particularly in Integrative Medicine & Disaster Medicine. Having physician voices heard matters to medicine and is essential in the betterment of patient safety and care.

Sarah E. Gilbert, MD, FAAEP
Sarah E. Gilbert, MD, FAAEP
Emergency Medicine
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