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Important ABPS Facts for Physician Board Certification Candidates

Important ABPS Facts for Physician Board Certification CandidatesAs a physician, you’ve dedicated many years of your life to become the medical professional you are today. Your rigorous medical school and postgraduate training, and the thorough approval process from your state’s licensing board—all of that is behind you. But, now, you’ve realized that to differentiate yourself in today’s competitive medical environment, your next logical step is to pursue board certification. But which certification body do you choose?

The American Board of Physician Specialties® (ABPS) believes you have the right to choose a board that aligns with your values, a board that can offer you the widest range of professional opportunities. As a nationally recognized choice for physician board certification, we believe that more choices foster increased competition, which results in innovation and advancement that results in improved patient care.

We think our Diplomates, as well the growing number of respected healthcare institutions that hire them, would certainly agree. As members of a trusted community of like-minded professionals, ABPS Diplomates are considered leaders in their fields wherever they practice, which is to say all 50 states, Canada, and Puerto Rico.

ABPS: A Nationally Recognized Physician Certification Board

As you narrow down your board certification options, here are a few salient facts about the ABPS to consider:

  • We have 12 Member Boards that offer certification in a variety of specialties, from primary care fields such as family medicine and internal medicine to innovative specialties such as integrative medicine and family medicine obstetrics.
  • The U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Handbook was revised to include the ABPS as a choice for board certification.
  • Various state medical boards have retained strict language that accepts and recognizes the ABPS as a recognized certifying entity that meets the higher certification standards they require.
  • ABPS certification exams, procedures, and protocols are clinically, psychometrically, and legally defensible, and have been found to be equivalent to those set by the American Board of Medical Specialties (ABMS) and American Osteopathic Association (AOA).
  • Leading credentialing organizations such as Greely, HCPro, and the National Association of Medical Staff Services (NAMSS) recognize the ABPS as a choice in physician certification.

ABPS Board Certification Standards

To apply for ABPS certification, candidates need to meet general requirements and specialty-specific eligibility criteria set by our boards. These criteria vary by specialty but are designed to show expertise in core competencies. As noted above, the ABPS emphasizes psychometrically evaluated testing, in addition to advanced training, moral character, and experience.

Certification in each specialty involves a written exam with multiple-choice questions. Some specialties also require an oral exam to showcase diagnostic and treatment skills. All ABPS certifications cover the essential technical knowledge and skills relevant to each medical specialty. Recertification standards depend on the specialty board.

ABPS Code of Ethics

The ABPS is the only major certifying body that requires a non-remedial medical ethics course every eight years. With the ABPS code of ethics as an indispensable guide in their medical practice, our Diplomates:

  • Maintain an unimpeachable standard of personal conduct
  • Uphold the laws and regulations related to the practice of medicine
  • Utilize only legal and ethical means to care for patients
  • Provide impartial patient care, offering no special privileges based on a patient’s race, color, creed, sex, age, national origin or handicap
  • Maintain the confidentiality of privileged patient information
  • Accept no personal compensation from any party that would require special consideration in how patient care is provided
  • Cooperate in every reasonable way with other physicians to deliver quality patient care

If you would like more information about the ABPS, why not contact us today? We will gladly provide you with information about our Member Boards, our eligibility requirements, and our certification process.

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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.

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
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