What is Continuous Certification?
Continuous Certification is a program used to demonstrate the plastic surgeon's commitment to life-long learning and practice improvement throughout the certification years.
Certificates issued since 1995 are valid for 10 years. Starting in 2024, all new ABPS certificates issued will no longer include expiration dates. Each new class of Diplomates will start a 5-year cycle of Continuous Certification. Current Diplomates with a 10-year certificate who recertify will transition to a 5-year cycle once their current certificate expires. All Continuous Certification requirements must be met in order to continue certification.
Prior to 1995, certificates were issued with no expiration date and valid indefinitely. Diplomates with lifetime certification are expected and encouraged to participate (voluntarily) in the ABPS Continuous Certification Program.
The following ABPS Continuous Certification Program requirements are aligned with the four basic components approved by all 24 Member Boards of the American Board of Medical Specialties (ABMS):
Professionalism
- Verification of state medical license(s), hospital privileges, accreditation of nonhospital-based freestanding outpatient surgery centers, and peer review
Life-long Learning & Self-Assessment
- 125 CME credits in the previous five years
- Completion of one ABPS-approved educational activity
Assessment of Knowledge, Judgement, & Skills
- Continuous Certification Examination
Improvement in Medical Practice
- Completion of one Practice Improvement Module to review case data
- Action Plan for Improvement
- Review of benchmarking report of case data to compare to peers