On December 11, 2018, the ABMS Vision
for the Future Commission released a report regarding their review of the
MOC process. The Commission was tasked with reviewing MOC within the current
medical profession and confronted issues that ABMS Boards and Diplomats
experience. The Commission addressed areas that are problematic for physicians
and provided recommendations for overhauling the MOC system, including retiring
the “maintenance of certification” terminology. It remains to be seen what
specific changes the ABMS will make to the MOC process, but the commission’s
report represents a concerted turn towards real change in the current status
quo.
The Commission
also recommended that ABMS boards conduct research to analyze the success of
continued certification in helping clinicians provide quality and safe care for
their patients. In addition, ABMS should research potential activities that
help clinicians maintain their skills. The commission did not directly address
fees, yet the survey measured that 58% of doctors said MOC costs were their top
concern, 52% said MOC was a burden, and 48% said MOC was not a true reflection
of their abilities as clinicians. The Commission report suggested shifting from
single point-in-time assessments leveraged years apart to more regular,
longitudinal, multi-source assessments to provide more useful appraisals of
physicians’ ongoing competence. The report also encouraged medical staff
offices and other credentialing professionals not to make credentialing and
privileging decisions solely on the basis of certification status, but to
utilize certification as an additional data point when evaluating practitioner
applicants.
Commission Co-Chairs Christopher
Colenda, MD and William Scanlon, PhD told Medscape
that while fee structures and pricing were not addressed in the Commission
report, they noted that boards should implement reasonable fees. They believe
that the changes recommended will enhance the value of the MOC process for all
stakeholders. Former NAMSS Presidents, Linda Waldorf and Diane Meldi
contributed to the Commission’s work.
Click here
to read the Commission’s draft report and here
for more information regarding the ABMS commission report on MOC. NAMSS will
continue to monitor any further actions of the Commission and changes to the
MOC process.
