ABPN
Patients & Credentialers
- Value of Certification
- Public Survey
- Check Physician Status
- Verification of Certification Requests
- Credentialers
Value of Certification
Information for Patients and the General Public
The ABPN certifies physicians in the specialties of psychiatry, neurology, and child neurology, as well as in many subspecialties of psychiatry and neurology. Physicians who are “board certified” by the ABPN have demonstrated their abilities to provide quality care to the highest standards of certification.
The resources linked below provide more information about board certification by the ABPN and what it means for your physicians to achieve and maintain their certification.
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- Is my physician board certified by the ABPN? How can I find a physician in my area who is board certified by the ABPN?Please see our VerifyCERT page, which allows you to look up ABPN-certified physicians by name, specialty, or geographic location.
- How a Physician Becomes, and Remains, Board-CertifiedView these flowcharts, which show the typical professional journey taken by board-certified psychiatrists, neurologists, and child neurologists.
- Patient FlyersThese informational flyers briefly summarize important facts about your board-certified physician.
- Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) for the General PublicFind answers to commonly asked questions about board certification and the ABPN
- Videos about Board CertificationABPN President and CEO Dr. Jeffrey Lyness has prepared several brief videos that describe the importance of board certification, including the ABPN Continuing Certification Program and its components, such as the Article-Based Continuing Certification pathway.
- Further Reading — Articles and Research about the Value of Board CertificationRead commentary in the journal Academic Medicine from President and CEO Dr. Jeffrey Lyness and ACCME President and CEO Dr. Graham McMahon about the value of specialty board certification, as well as find links to other research on continuing certification as collected by the American Board of Medical Specialties Continuing Certification Reference Center.
- Test Development, Scoring, and Reporting ProcessesView the Flow Chart that shows the overall process of ABPN test development, scoring, and reporting processes.
- ABPN Position on Advocacy for Board Certification and Continuing CertificationThe ABPN believes very strongly in the value of certification; however, we do not engage in formal advocacy activities, as described in the ABPN Position statement.
The American Board of Medical Specialties (ABMS), of which the ABPN is a member board, lists many other published research articles related to the value of board certification on its Certification Matters website and on the advocacy page of the ABMS website.
Public Survey
What do you know about board-certified physicians? Please take the ABPN public survey and let us know.
Check Physician Status
VerifyCERT
Visit our VerifyCERT page to look up ABPN-certified physicians by name, specialty, or geographic location.
Verification of Certification Requests
Third Parties: Contact the ABPN diplomate for a formal verification of certification letter from ABPN as these requests are initiated through the ABPN Physician Portal account. The physician will log into their Portal account and will provide ABPN with the email address(es) where the verification letter should be emailed.
ABPN Diplomates: Please log into your ABPN Portal account. At the bottom of your certification section, you will see an orange button, ‘Request Certification Verification.’ Click the Request Certification Verification button and follow the prompts to enter in one or multiple emails to send a formal verification letter.
Credentialers
Verification of a diplomate’s current board certification status can be accessed at no charge on the ABPN verifyCERT® certification and status verification system. For verification letters, diplomates can access and provide verification letters directly through their ABPN Physician Portal’s Certifications section.
ABPN verifyCERT® is a primary source verification for ABPN certified diplomates. Another resource for primary verification of board-certified physicians can be found here.
Change in Certification Status Reporting
As of January 2012, the American Board of Psychiatry and Neurology (ABPN) implemented new certification standards which specify that ongoing certification with ABPN is contingent upon meeting the requirements of Continuing Certification (CC). Once a diplomate is certified or their current, time-limited certificate expires, these individuals are required to enroll in the Continuous Certification Program (CC) and successfully complete specific requirements throughout ongoing CC cycles to maintain certification. Accordingly, the ABPN does not issue certificates with end dates. See ABPN Certification Status Reporting notice to credentialers for more information.
Utilizing an Annual Reverification Date
The ABPN recognizes that some entities may still require a certification end date to complete verification. To assist in this process, we encourage credentialers to utilize an annual reverification date of March 1st in any given year. Please note, this date is not necessarily reflective of individual CC requirements, nor does it indicate certification or CC cycle end dates.
ABPN diplomate certification status will only change at the beginning of a specific year unless a certificate is invalidated or revoked for disciplinary reasons, or if they are not up to date with the certification requirements. Therefore, by utilizing the annual reverification date suggested, you will have accurate information about diplomate’s current certification status via the ABPN verifyCERT® system.
Lifetime Certification
Lifetime certificate holders are not required to participate in CC to remain certified by ABPN; however, those who choose to participate are designated as “Meeting CC Requirements” on ABPN verifyCERT®.