Emergency Medicine Board Certification: Greater Professional Credibility, Satisfying Personal Development
Diplomates of the Board of Certification in Emergency Medicine (BCEM) enjoy many professional and personal benefits, including increased credibility in the eyes of hospital administrators and staff members, and the sense of satisfaction that comes with successfully demonstrating an elite level of knowledge and experience in a chosen medical specialty. Board certification can enhance a physician’s chance to become a senior partner in a practice, and hospitals increasingly identify certification as a requirement to work in their emergency departments.
Yet, as professionally and personally gratifying as Emergency Medicine board certification can be for its active Diplomates, the process of earning certification through the BCEM provides its own rewards. Even to become eligible to apply to take the written and oral examination is challenging. The American Board of Physician Specialties (ABPS) established eligibility requirements that ensure only truly qualified physicians are positioned to earn certification through one of its 18 Member Boards. For Emergency Medicine, applicants must meet the general requirements, as well as requirements based on completion of a residency, years of Emergency Medicine practice, hours of continuing medical education completed, and more.
Many Diplomates have found that during the course of ensuring they are eligible – documenting case work, for example – and preparing for the exams they actually improved their ability to provide patients the best care possible. The process allows emergency department physicians to:
- Refresh their knowledge of core competencies of practicing Emergency Medicine
- Learn new material about the specialty
- Identify areas of knowledge that require additional study and/or experience
- Improve the approach for bedside manner and diagnostic processes
The ABPS is committed to providing career emergency medicine practitioners a chance to demonstrate their mastery in their field by earning EM board certification. We believe that the experience and knowledge gained by these dedicated physicians over the years deserves recognition. To learn more about the benefits of and eligibility requirements for Emergency Medicine board certification through the BCEM, contact the ABPS. The ABPS is the official multi-specialty board certifying body of the American Association of Physician Specialists, Inc.