Recertification in Internal Medicine: A Program of Continuous Professional Development

1 August 2000 | Volume 133 Issue 3 | Pages 202-208

In 2000, the American Board of Internal Medicine (ABIM) introduced a second-generation recertification process that builds on the current knowledge-centered program by adding assessments of clinical and communication skills, clinical performance, and medical outcomes. The three-part process, called a program of continuous professional development, includes innovative self-evaluation exercises, documentation of essential knowledge, and confirmation of satisfactory qualifications and professional and community good standing. The program introduces the principles of continuous quality improvement; deemphasizes the summary nature of the traditional secure examination; and is designed to be a more continuous, less saltatory process for maintaining clinical competence. With the continuous professional development program, ABIM believes that it has taken a substantial step toward creating a recertification process that meets its goal of being "valuable, doable, tolerable, and affordable" while maintaining the high standards expected of an accountable profession.

*For members of the Task Force on Recertification, see Appendix.

Author and Article Information

From the University of California at San Diego, San Diego, California, and the American Board of Internal Medicine, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

Acknowledgments: The Task Force thanks the following persons for valuable advice and assistance: John A. Benson Jr., MD, Oregon Health Sciences University, Portland, Oregon; William A. Conway, MD, Henry Ford Health System, Detroit, Michigan; Richard J. Glassock, MD, Laguna Niguel, California; Lee Newcomer, MD, United HealthCare, Minnetonka, Minnesota; Margaret E. O'Kane, National Committee for Quality Assurance, Washington, D.C.; Dennis J. O'Leary, MD, Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations, Oakbrook Terrace, Illinois; Sam J.W. Romeo, MD, Accreditation Association for Ambulatory Health Care, Wilmette, Illinois; Robert F. Avant, MD, and Joseph W. Tollison, MD, American Board of Family Practice, Lexington, Kentucky; James A. Stockman III, MD, and Walter W. Tunnessen, MD, American Board of Pediatrics, Chapel Hill, North Carolina; Wallace P. Ritchie Jr., MD, and Robert S. Rhodes, MD, American Board of Surgery, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania; and Linda L. Blank, Lynn O. Langdon, MS, Henry F. Strozeski, MBA, and Catherine A. Tiziana, American Board of Internal Medicine, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The Task Force also thanks the 42 American Board of Internal Medicine diplomates who participated in focus groups in Butte, Montana; Washington, D.C.; and Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

Requests for Single Reprints: Harry R. Kimball, MD, American Board of Internal Medicine, 510 Walnut Street, Suite 1700, Philadelphia, PA 19106-3699.

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Current Author Addresses: Dr. Wasserman: University of California, San Diego, Stein Clinical Research Building, Room 244, 950 Gilham Drive, La Jolla, CA 92093.

Drs. Kimball and Duffy: American Board of Internal Medicine, 510 Walnut Street, Suite 1700, Philadelphia, PA 19106-3699.