BOARD CERTIFICATION

The American Board of Medical Specialties’ (ABMS) 24 Member Boards certify more than 920,000 physicians across 40 specialties and 87 subspecialties.

ABMS board certified physicians are: ABMS Member Boards adhere to rigorous training and ✔ Skilled and knowledgeable assessment standards for medical specialty certification, giving patients peace of mind that their ABMS board ✔ Experts in their specialty certified physician is an expert in his/her specialty. ✔ Meeting a higher standard

WHEN TALKING ABOUT BOARD CERTIFICATION, PEOPLE SAY1... 82% 95% 98% Think board certification Expect their physicians Expect their physicians is an important factor to participate in ongoing to stay up to date when choosing assessment and with the latest a physician. education processes. medical advances.

EVIDENCE SHOWS THAT BOARD CERTIFICATION IS ASSOCIATED WITH…

Higher Quality Always of Care Learning

Hospitals with more board certified emergency 78.7 percent of board certified family physicians department physicians provide a measurably higher quality who completed a board certification quality of care to older patients experiencing heart attacks.2 improvement activity said they would change patient care as a result of what they learned.4 Pediatricians who participated in an obesity prevention and education program as part of their board certification activities improved their performance in managing childhood obesity.3

Lower Less Costs Malpractice

Medicare costs for patients treated for coronary Board certified orthopaedic surgeons face fewer artery bypass grafting was 2.5 percent lower among malpractice lawsuits than their counterparts internal medicine physicians who participated in who aren’t board certified.6 programs to maintain their board certification.5

Footnotes: 1. Findings are from a nationwide survey of Americans conducted by NORC at the University of Chicago. 2. Hospital and Emergency Department Factors Associated with Variations in Missed Diagnosis and Costs for Patients Age 65 Years and Older with Acute Myocardial Infarction Who Present to Emergency Departments, Michael Wilson, MD, PhD, et al., Academic Emergency Medicine, 2014. 3. Quality Improvement in Childhood Obesity Management through the Maintenance of Certification Process, Jeannie S. Huang, MD, MPH, et al., Journal of Pediatrics, 2013. 4. Physician Satisfaction with and Practice Changes Resulting from American Board of Family Medicine Maintenance of Certification Performance in Practice Modules, Lars E. Peterson, MD, PhD, et al., Journal of Continuing Education in the Health Professions, 2016. 5. Association Between Imposition of a Maintenance of Certification Requirement and Ambulatory Care-Sensitive Hospitalizations and Health Care Costs, Bradley M. Gray, PhD, et al., Journal of the American Medical Association, 2014. 6. Malpractice in Distal Radius Fracture Management: An Analysis of Closed Claims, Peter H. DeNoble, MD, et al., Journal of Hand Surgery, 2014.

Learn more at ABMS.org. © 2021 American Board of Medical Specialties