Articles - General Certification Information
The ABPS Board Certification Schedule for 2016
One of the central components to earning board certification through the American Board of Physician Specialties® is the successful completion of a standardized, psychometrically validated examination. We use computer-based testing for all of our written examinations, which are offered at a network of testing centers throughout the United States, Puerto Rico, and Canada. In order to be eligible for ABPS ...
Credentialing Committees: Does Your Hospital Recognize All Three National Multispecialty Physician Certifying Organizations?
If your credentialing committee is concerned with identifying qualified physicians to join your organization, it is vitally important that you recognize the three leading multi-specialty physician certifying organizations in the United States. Increasingly, board certification, while entirely voluntary, is becoming an invaluable designation in the medical community. In order to ensure that you have the best possible talent pool to ...
The Path to Board Certification Through The American Board of Physician Specialties
At the American Board of Physician Specialties (ABPS), we are proud to serve as one of the leading certifying bodies in the United States. ABPS Diplomates practice in all 50 states, the District of Columbia, and Puerto Rico. And one of the defining elements of our organization is a commitment to helping physicians deliver the best possible care to their ...
Perspective on Changes to the Recertification Process for American Physicians
The concept of recertification is nothing new among the healthcare field. For decades, medical doctors have understood that they have an obligation to periodically become recertified in their specialty, ensuring that they are up-to-date in their field and able to provide the best standard of care to their patients. Recertification was also an effective tool for demonstrating to staffing bodies, ...
Physician Objections to Maintenance of Certification Requirements
Physician specialists have begun to voice their objections to the recent implementation of maintenance of certification (MOC) rules that make it more difficult to maintain active physician board certification credentials. Whereas the member boards of the American Board of Physician Specialties® (ABPS®) require recertification after eight years, and other board certifying bodies in North America used to require 10 years ...
ABPS Physician Board Certification Now Listed on Healthgrades.com
Physician board certification through Member Boards of the American Board of Physician Specialties® (ABPS) is now listed on the physician referral website, Healthgrades.com. With more than 30 million patients conducting research on providers listed on Healthgrades.com each month, it is crucial that all of a physician’s training, qualifications and areas of expertise are listed in detail. Physicians who hope to ...
Why Physician Specialists Pursue Dual Board Certification
There are two primary reasons physician specialists might seek dual board certification from a multi-specialty certifying body such as the American Board of Physician Specialties® (ABPS). The first is that a young physician starting out in a career might decide that his or her interests lie along two paths, likely in related fields. These new physicians are determined to chart ...
What Must a Physician do to become Board Certified?
In order for a physician to become board certified through one of the Member Boards of the American Board of Physician Specialties (ABPS), he or she must meet the general ABPS eligibility requirements and the eligibility requirements that are specific to his or her chosen specialty. It is important for students who are just beginning their medical studies to understand ...
Who is Eligible for ABPS Physician Board Certification?
While the specific eligibility requirements to apply for the opportunity to achieve physician board certification through the American Board of Physicians Specialties (ABPS) differ from specialty to specialty, there are a number of general eligibility requirements that are shared by our Member Boards. The examination standards of the ABPS are as rigorous as any physician certifying body in North America, ...
The Origin of Physician Board Certification
Physician board certification in the United States originated in the early 20th century as a means for identifying who was competent to practice particular specialties. Medical advances and scientific breakthroughs engendered a widespread desire by physicians to focus on specific aspects of medical care, rather than generalizing. As physicians gravitated toward specialization, more attention was paid to the means and ...