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Credentialing Committees: Does Your Hospital Recognize All Three National Multispecialty Physician Certifying Organizations?

Credentialing CommitteesIf 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 choose from when making hiring decisions, you should consider candidates affiliated with all of the major certifying groups. After all, you’d hate to diminish your ability to select a highly trained and experienced physician to join your hospital staff because you didn’t recognize a leading certifying organization.

The ABPS Is a Nationally Recognized Physician Certification Board

While there are hundreds of organizations that validate the expertise of physicians in their chosen specialties, three primary multi-specialty physician organizations oversee the majority of specialty certifications:

  • The American Board of Medical Specialties (ABMS)
  • The American Board of Physician Specialties (ABPS)
  • The American Osteopathic Association Bureau of Osteopathic Specialists (AOABOS)

Each of these multi-specialty physician certifying organizations are extremely well established in the healthcare industry and have extensive experience providing board certification to eligible physicians who meet their stringent eligibility requirements. ABPS, for instance, was first organized in 1950 and has been granting certifications since 1960. Today, ABPS oversees the development and administration of 12 member boards, which represent 20 distinct medical specialties, including family medicine, internal medicine, dermatology, and emergency medicine. What’s more, of the three primary multispecialty boards, the ABPS is the only one that offers certification in the emerging specialties of integrative medicine and disaster medicine.

The ABPS Maintains Rigorous Certification Standards

The ABPS may be the smallest of the three primary certification boards, but our standards are no less rigorous. ABPS boards emphasize psychometrically evaluated testing, in addition to advanced training, experience, and moral character. That’s why only the brightest and most dedicated talents earn ABPS certification. Once certified by the ABPS, a physician becomes a member of a community of like-minded professionals who are nationally recognized for their achievements. ABPS-certified physicians work at some of the nation’s most trusted institutions and can be found across all 50 states, as well as Canada and Puerto Rico.

Benefits of ABPS Certification.

Recognized by the U.S. Department of Labor, ABPS board certification is a reliable indicator of a physician’s ability to care for patients in a compassionate and professional manner.  ABPS certification also:

  • Makes physicians more marketable to hospitals and other employers, which are increasingly showing a preference for board-certified physicians
  • Increases a physician’s opportunities for positions of more responsibility and higher earnings
  • Reveals a professional commitment to abide by the ABPS medical code of ethics

Find Out More About Certification With an ABPS Member Board

When it comes to identifying and hiring board certified physicians, it is extremely important that your credentialing committee recognizes the stature of the three largest multi-specialty physician certifying organizations in North America. To learn more about the board certification process through the ABPS, contact us today. The ABPS is the official board certifying body of the American Association of Physician Specialists, Inc.

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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.

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
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
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
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 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
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
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