ABMS Annual Report and Certificate Statistics Booklet Now Available

CHICAGO, Ill. – Dec. 9, 2009 - Find out how the American Board of Medical Specialties (ABMS) is helping to improve the quality of healthcare in the United States and access statistics pertaining to board certification by viewing the newly released 2009 Annual Review and Certification Statistics publications now available at http://www.abms.org/Products_and_Publications/.

Purchase | Download PDF

The Annual Review, “A Year of Progress: Sharing Our Vision for Quality Healthcare” highlights the key projects, programs and collaborations for the benefit the public trust. It outlines how these efforts and accomplishments align with the historic national effort to enact major healthcare reform by:

• Offering clear, accessible information about board certification and board certified physicians;
• Creating  lifelong learning activities to assure that physicians keep current on the latest practices and treatments;
• Working with healthcare industry leaders to analyze the relationship between physician standards and improving healthcare quality; and
• Educating legislators on the importance of board certification in a quality-driven world.

Purchase | Download PDF

The Certificate Statistics booklet has been revised to include four new tables:  Relationship of ABMS with Other Organizations, ABMS Member Board Requirements for Subspecialty Certification, Administering Board for Subspecialty Certificates Offered by Multiple Boards and ABMS Member Board Requirements for Maintenance of Certification. The tables have been grouped into categories with introductory text relating to board certification, becoming board certified, statistics and verification information and ABMS Maintenance of Certification® (MOC). Some general certificate statistics include:

• In 2008, a total of 25,307 general certificates were issued to physicians by the 24 ABMS Member Boards. Since 1999, these boards have issued a total of 242,658 general certificates.
  
  
• The following boards issued the greatest number of general certificates in 2008:
• American Board of Internal Medicine – 6,916
• American Board of Family Medicine – 2,759
• American Board of Pediatrics – 2,862
• American Board of Psychiatry and Neurology – 2,276

A total of 766,445 U.S. physicians hold general certificates from ABMS Member Boards (according to current July 2009 data). The states reporting the greatest number of board certified physicians are:

• California (85,536)
• Florida (39,281)
• New York (60,762)
• Texas (43,837)
• Pennsylvania (34,313)

Read the ABMS Annual Review online at www.abms.org or order a free copy. The Certification Statistics publication may be ordered at a cost of $6. Other publications are also available online.

About ABMS
For over 75 years, American Board of Medical Specialties is the medical organization overseeing physician certification in the United States. It assists its 24 Member Boards in their efforts to develop and implement educational and professional standards for the evaluation and certification of physician specialists. ABMS Member Boards provide physician certification information to ABMS for its certification verification service programs. ABMS is recognized by the key healthcare credentialing accreditation entities as a primary equivalent source of board certification data for medical specialists. Patients can visit www.abms.org or call toll-free 1-866-ASK-ABMS to see if their physician is board certified by an ABMS Member Board. For more information about ABMS visit www.abms.org or call (312) 436-2600.

The 24 Member Boards that make up the ABMS Board Enterprise, cover over 145 medical specialties and subspecialties, and include: American Board of Allergy and Immunology, American Board of Anesthesiology, American Board of Colon and Rectal Surgery, American Board of Dermatology, American Board of Emergency Medicine, American Board of Family Medicine, American Board of Internal Medicine, American Board of Medical Genetics, American Board of Neurological Surgery, American Board of Nuclear Medicine, American Board of Obstetrics and Gynecology, American Board of Ophthalmology, American Board of Orthopaedic Surgery, American Board of Otolaryngology, American Board of Pathology, American Board of Pediatrics, American Board of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, American Board of Plastic Surgery, American Board of Preventive Medicine, American Board of Psychiatry and Neurology, American Board of Radiology, American Board of Surgery, American Board of Thoracic Surgery, and American Board of Urology