The Meaning of Board Certification
I. An Overview of Certification.
The certification process is designed to assure the public that a certified
medical specialist has successfully completed an approved educational program
and an evaluation, including an examination process designed to assess the
knowledge, experience and skills requisite to the provision of high quality
patient care in that specialty.
The American Board of Medical
Specialties (ABMS) is the umbrella organization for 24 approved specialty
certifying boards. To be certified as a specialist by one of these recognized
boards, a physician must complete certain requirements. The requirements for
each specialty are determined by the specialty board, but the requirements
generally include:
- Completion of a course of study leading to the M.D. or D.O. (Doctor of
Osteopathy) degree from a recognized school of medicine or school of
osteopathy.
- Completion of required training in an accredited residency program
designed to train specialists in the discipline.
- Many specialty boards require assessments and documentation of
individual performance from the residency training director, or from the
chief of service in the hospital where the specialist has practiced.
- All ABMS Member Boards require that a person seeking certification have
an unrestricted license to practice medicine in order to take the
certification examination.
- Each candidate for certification must pass examinations given by the
specialty board. Candidates who have passed the exams and other requirements
are then given the status of Diplomate and are certified as
specialists. A similar process is followed for specialists who want to
become subspecialists.
II. Time Limits on Certification
Certification is an indication that the specialist has completed an approved
medical education program and an evaluation, including an examination designed
to assess the knowledge, experience and skills necessary to provide high quality
care in that specialty at the time the certificate is awarded.
When the process of certification was begun, diplomates were awarded
certificates that were not time-limited, and therefore did not have to be
renewed. In recognition of the pace of change in medical knowledge, certificates
awarded more recently are time-limited, and are valid for six to ten years, at
which point the diplomate must become recertified through a process of
continuing education in the specialty, review of credentials and further
examination. Diplomates whose certificates were not time-limited when they were
awarded are not required to undergo this recertification process to continue
being listed as a certified specialist.
Certification indicates that the specialty board determined, based on the
criteria then in effect, that the diplomate possessed the education, training,
experience and knowledge required to be a specialist at the time the certificate
was awarded. It cannot assess a physician knowledge, skills and experience
after the certificate is awarded. To give continuity to this process the
specialty boards have recently initiated a program called Maintenance of
Certification This program is designed to assist diplomates to maintain their
knowledge and skills through continuing education and documented experience
during the period between examinations.
III. The Limits of Certification
Many qualities are necessary to be a competent physician, and many of these
qualities cannot be quantified or measured. Thus, board certification is not a
warranty that a physician is competent.
Additionally, each specialty board seeks to determine whether its diplomates
possess the knowledge, experience and skills necessary to act as a specialist
within its own specialty. Many physicians are capable of treating conditions and
performing procedures that are not within the scope of the specialty in which
they are certified. However, ABMS Member Boards do not make any assessment of
whether a physician has the knowledge, experience and skills needed to treat
conditions and perform procedures that are not within the scope of the specialty
for which it offers certification. For a description of the types of conditions
and procedures that fall within each specialty, see Which Medical Specialist
for You, which is available on the ABMS website, or visit the website of the
Member Board.
For
further information concerning the requirements for certification,
recertification and maintenance of certification for a particular specialty, you
should check with the specific ABMS Member Board or check the website of the
Member Board. A link to the website of each ABMS Member Board can be found at
www.abms.org/member.asp. If you need more information concerning the status
of a physician certification, please contact the Member Board for the
physician specialty.
WHAT IS THE ACADEMY
AND
HOW DOES IT DIFFER FROM THE BOARD?
The American
Board of Dermatology (ABD), located in Detroit, Michigan, is a separate and
autonomous body that acts as the certifying agency for the specialty of
dermatology. The ABD also works with the
Residency Review Committee for Dermatology in the accreditation of
dermatology residency training programs.
The
American Academy of Dermatology
(AAD), located in Schaumburg, Illinois, is the largest national professional
society for the specialty of dermatology. Its purposes are to educate
dermatologists and the public, and to represent the specialty on issues
concerning other professional organizations, the public, industry, and the
government. Membership in the AAD is not limited to Board certified
dermatologists, but includes other dermatologists, other physicians and health
care providers from all over the world who have an interest in the field of
dermatology.
The
differences between certifying Boards and professional Societies are discussed
by Harry J. Hurley, M.D. in an article entitled, "Boards Evaluate, Societies
Educate." (Arch Dermatology 2000;136:54-56)
http://archderm.ama-assn.org/cgi/content/full/136/1/54
VERIFYING CERTIFICATION
The American
Board of Dermatology provides written verification of Board status for a fee of
$35. Send a check or money order (payable to the American Board of Dermatology),
signed release from the physician in question, and the address to whom the
verification should be sent, to:
American
Board of Dermatology
Henry Ford Health System
1 Ford Place
Detroit, MI 48202-3450
The ABD also
accepts payment by credit card (VISA or MasterCard only). Send credit card
number, expiration date, and name as it appears on the card to the address
above.
If you do
not require written verification, the
American Board of Medical
Specialties provides Web listings and verbal verification of Board
certification. You may call 1-866-ASK-ABMS (275-2267) to receive verbal
verification.
CERTIFICATE NUMBERS
Prior to 2003, the American Board of Dermatology did not use
certificate numbers. Dermatologists certified before 2003 who are completing
forms for hospitals, government agencies, etc. should answer questions relating
to a certificate number as "Not Applicable".
