Find Your Specialty 813-433-2277

What Hospital Administrators Need to Know About Physician Choice for Board Certification

Group of modern doctors standing as a team with crossed arms and stethoscopes in a sunny hospital office.When making staffing decisions, it is incumbent on hospital administrators to ensure that they have the best candidate pool available. One of the most trusted indicators of a physician’s abilities is the successful completion of a board certification program. Currently, in the United States there are three primary, multi-specialty physician certifying organizations – the AMA, AOA, and ABPS – and each organization provides the exact same standard of board certification. Diplomates of each group have met the same baseline of eligibility requirements and have successfully demonstrated a mastery of the core concepts and competencies that define their specialty area.

Board Certification Is a Verifiable Indicator of a Physician’s Expertise

Choosing to hire a board-certified physician is a savvy decision because, in order to become board certified, the physician must show demonstrable firsthand experience in the specialty as well as successful completion of a standardized examination that tests fundamental knowledge of the field. Board-certified physicians are also required to stay focused on the trends in the specialty they practice and commit to continuing medical education (CME) to ensure they remain qualified for periodic re-certification. These requirements ensure that board-certified physicians remain eminently qualified in their field even as medical technology and best practices are rapidly changing.

Yet, while each physician-certifying organization offers the same standard for board certification, there are differences among the three that hospital administrators should understand. When a physician candidate begins to pursue board certification, he or she has the opportunity to partner with the organization that is most in line with their values and offers the benefits that resonate with the candidate most highly. For instance, at the American Board of Physician Specialties® (ABPS), we have built a reputation for giving our Diplomates a voice, and our team works tirelessly with hospital administrators across the country to ensure that our physicians get every opportunity for professional advancement. We also work with legislators and other decision-makers to ensure that our community is well represented.

What Differentiates the ABPS From Other Certification Boards

Of the three primary multi-specialty physician certifying bodies, the ABPS is the smallest, which allows us to be more responsive to each individual Diplomate and offer increased opportunities to seek leadership opportunities and involvement in the process.

Our Diplomates are also encouraged to share key learnings and assume leadership roles in their areas of expertise to help the medical field grow as a whole. We also offer board certification in a number of specialties that other certifying organizations currently don’t, including administrative medicine, urgent care medicine, disaster medicine, and integrative medicine. We also offer career emergency medicine physicians a unique opportunity for board certification. For example, physicians who have extensive experience working in emergency departments, but who completed their residencies in a primary care field, can earn board certification in emergency medicine through the ABPS without needing to complete an additional residency.

The ABPS Offers a Pragmatic Approach to Board Certification

At the ABPS, our non-discriminatory and pragmatic approach to board certification has endured since our founding in 1952, and today the ABPS remains committed to helping physicians gain personal and professional advancement while meeting increasing demands for patient care. Our Diplomates practice throughout the United States, as well as Canada and Puerto Rico, and are widely considered to be leaders in their fields. Top medical entities and professional organizations have updated their bylaws, policies, and standards to include the ABPS. And the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, the Veterans’ Health Administration, and the United States Armed Forces under the GI Bill are just a few of the federal organizations that recognize ABPS certifications.

If you are a hospital administrator and you are interested in learning more about our organization, our eligibility requirements, and the advantages to hiring ABPS Diplomates, contact us today. The ABPS is the official certifying body of the American Association of Physician Specialists, Inc.®

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.

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
Meet Our Staff Read All Reviews
Boards
Careers
Login
Contact