With some subspecialists deciding not to recertify in internal medicine, some hospitals are already anticipating disruptions in their call coverage and attending schedules. It is just one more concern that has emerged as internists embark on a new, career-long relationship with the internal medicine board. Internists have known since 1987 that mandatory recertification would become reality. That's when the ABIM announced that its efforts to persuade internists to voluntarily recertify had failed, leading it to create two tiers of diplomates. Internists who became board certified before 1990 have lifetime certificates, while internists certified during or after 1990 are given 10-year certificates.
Time is only one of many beefs that internists have with the recertification process.
There is also travel time and expense for many physicians. Patrick G. Quinn, FACP, for instance, who will take the final exam this month in gastroenterology, must fly to Phoenix because he said the exam is not offered in his home state of New Mexico. But the complaint that comes up again and again in conversations with internists is that too much of the recertification process is irrelevant to daily practice. While most internists say that they support the principle of time-limited certification, they are angry at a process they say doesn't enhance their knowledge or skill as physicians. The complaint that comes up again and again is that too much of the recertification process is irrelevant to daily practice Like Dr. Ross, Dr. Quinn said he found many of the SEP questions obscure or ambiguous, and he is afraid he'll find more of the same on the exam.