Find Your Specialty 813-433-2277

American Board of Physician Specialties Offers a Pragmatic Approach to Board Certification

As one of the highest honors physicians can earn, board certification serves to validate a physician’s skills and knowledge. It’s a completely voluntary process marked by rigor and relevance, particularly in the case of certification at the American Board of Physician Specialties® (ABPS). Like other prominent certification boards, our eligibility requirements are stringent, and our candidates must pass a comprehensive specialty exam to achieve certification. But part of what makes us unique goes back to 1952. That’s when a group of osteopathic surgeons who were denied certification by the AOA and ABMS because they did not complete osteopathic residencies created a certification board that didn’t discriminate on training and actually tested a physician’s knowledge of the specialty.

Certification in Emerging Medical Specialties

Today, the ABPS still takes a non-discriminatory and pragmatic approach, offering both allopathic and osteopathic physicians certification options in a variety of specialties, from traditional fields like family medicine and dermatology to emerging specialties like integrative medicine and disaster medicine. As healthcare continues to evolve, we remain committed to our goal of enabling physicians to gain personal and professional advancement while meeting today’s increasing demands for patient care. To that end, we have created other boards that are unique in the certification industry, including:

  • The American Board of Integrative Medicine (ABOIM)
  • The Board of Certification in Urgent Care Medicine (BCUCM)
  • The Board of Certification in Family Medicine Obstetrics (BCFMO)
  • The American Board of Administrative Medicine (ABAM)
  • The Board of Certification in Emergency Medicine (BCEM)

More Competition Leads to Better Healthcare

At the ABPS, we believe that more competition among certification organizations leads to more innovation and improvements. With more certification options available, physicians have the flexibility to choose the board that is most consistent with their values and best fosters their career development. Consider our emergency medicine board, the BCEM. While other multi-specialty organization may have emergency medicine boards, the BCEM is the only one that offers a pathway for primary-care trained doctors. Given the nation’s ongoing shortage of emergency medicine physicians in a time when more employers are prioritizing the hiring of board-certified physicians, the certification offered by the ABPS is critically important.

To learn more about the ABPS and any of our Member Boards, contact us today. We will be happy to provide you with detailed information about our eligibility requirements.

Save the Date
House of Delegates & Annual Scientific Meeting
Innovation & Overcoming Challenges
June 10-15, 2022
Plan Your Visit. Meeting Information
Patient Care Is Our Priority

Medical organizations throughout North America understand that our rigorous certification standards prove that ABPS Diplomates are capable of delivering the best patient care possible.

The American Board of Physician Specialties has provided me with the opportunity to demonstrate mastery of internal medicine through board certification. As a hospitalist, board certification is an expected credential, and hospitals recognize the American Board of Physician Specialties (ABPS) as one of the three standard credentialling bodies for Internal Medicine. Additionally, the ABPS has helped me develop leadership skills as a Board member and Committee Chairperson. ABPS has also helped me sharpen critical thinking skills as a test question developer and reviewer. The Allopathic (MD) and Osteopathic (DO) physicians in the ABPS are lifelong learners and frequently pursue multiple board certifications. I enjoy the camaraderie of my peers in ABPS.

Loren Jay Chassels, DO
Internal Medicine
When I think historically, advancement in medicine and patient safety and care has been driven by the diversity of people and scientific thought. That’s what I found at the ABPS and more. For over 60 years that is just who we are. I found a physician certifying body that provides a choice and voice to all physicians ensuring that patients are always placed first.

Jerry Allison, MD
Emergency Medicine
When I decided to pursue a full time role as a physician executive it was important to me to obtain additional professional training, education and work experience. Board certification through the ABPS in Administrative Medicine is validation of my efforts and a demonstration of dedication to professional development. We need more physicians to become full time health care executives, knowing there is a board certification option in Administrative Medicine encourages physicians to take the leap from full time clinical practice to healthcare organizational leadership.

Richard Paula, MD
Administrative Medicine
Meet Our Staff Read All Reviews
Boards
Careers
Login
Contact