The American Board of Medical Specialties (ABMS) is a nonprofit organization working with its 24 Member Boards to develop and implement standards in the ongoing evaluation and certification for physicians. ABMS is continually working towards higher physician standards and believes these will lead to increased quality of care for patients.

The ABMS Member Boards offer board certification programs in more than 145 specialties and subspecialties.

The ABMS Maintenance of Certification® program focuses on lifelong learning and continual education on core competencies for quality patient care, including practice-based learning and strong interpersonal and communication skills. As a well-respected certification organization, ABMS’ participation in the National Priorities Partnership is critical to ensuring medical professionals have the knowledge and skills to meet the needs of an evolving healthcare system.

“As we look to improve the quality of the nation’s healthcare system, we need to ensure that physicians are involved in efforts to track the quality of care in their practice and stay abreast of the latest developments in medicine,” said Christine Cassel, ABMS’ representative to the National Priorities Partnership and President and CEO of the American Board of Internal Medicine. “Maintenance of Certification provides tools to help physicians meet these goals and assures patients, payers, and others that physicians have the clinical judgment, skills, and attitudes essential for the delivery of excellent patient care .”

“Because ABMS is the standard-setting organization for the nation’s specialist physicians, we have a critical stake in the success of these efforts,” said Kevin B. Weiss, President and CEO of ABMS. “We are committed to the NPP collaboration to improve and deliver quality healthcare to all Americans.”

Research shows that knowledge deteriorates over time and practice patterns fail to change in response to medical advances. Maintenance of Certification helps physicians stay up to date and assess their practice. A number of studies have found that board certified physicians provide better care than colleagues who lack board certification. In addition, consumers value certification when looking for a physician.

For more information on the American Board of Medical Specialties, please visit www.abms.org/.