The American Board of Pathology and the American Society for Clinical Pathology Announce an Opportunity to Earn CME/SAM Credits for Participating in ABPath CertLink®

The American Board of Pathology (ABPath) and the American Society for Clinical Pathology (ASCP) are pleased to announce a partnership to award Continuing Medical Education (CME/SAM) credits to participants in ABPath CertLink®, an innovative assessment program that drives physician professional development. ABPath has selected ASCP, a leading educational provider for pathologists, as the accredited ACCME provider. ASCP will enter into a joint providership agreement with ABPath to award diplomates AMA PRA Category 1 Credit™ for self-assessment for participating in the ABPath CertLink program. The two organizations believe that assuring that pathologists maintain continuing competence includes participation in Continuing Certification (CC, formerly known as MOC) and completing relevant CME/SAM.

The ABPath CertLink Pilot is an online, longitudinal assessment program that was developed through a partnership with the American Board of Medical Specialties to improve the CC Part III experience for diplomates. It is anticipated to be a reliable and valid assessment for making summative decisions about medical knowledge, judgment, and skills. Through CertLink, participants answer questions, many with images, using a web browser. Diplomates receive immediate feedback whether they answered the question correctly or incorrectly, a short narrative about the topic (critique), and references. A personalized dashboard summarizes participants’ ongoing performance and identifies any knowledge gaps. Participants in the pilot have given extremely positive feedback, with increased enrollment each quarter. ABPath CertLink is expected to be an eventual alternative to the current 10-year CC examination.

“It is important that Continuing Certification is relevant to our physicians’ practice and ABPath CertLink is proving to be an effective means for physician self-assessment,” states Rebecca L. Johnson, CEO of the American Board of Pathology. “We are so pleased to work with ASCP to provide CME/SAM and greater value to our diplomates for this activity.”

ABPath CertLink meets ACCME requirements for continuing medical education with assessment. In response to feedback from our diplomates, ABPath wanted participating physicians to have the opportunity to receive CME credits. Through this partnership, ASCP will award 5 AMA PRA Category 1 Credits™ each year (1.5 credits/quarter) to diplomates participating in ABPath CertLink. These credits will be available in the first quarter of 2019.

ASCP has been reviewed by the Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education (ACCME) and awarded Accreditation with Commendation for six years as a provider of continuing medical education (CME) for physicians. This achievement has placed ASCP in the highest tier of all continuing medical education (CME) providers. Accreditation in the ACCME System seeks to assure the medical community and the public that ASCP delivers education that is relevant to clinicians’ needs, evidence-based, evaluated for its effectiveness, and independent of commercial influence." 

“Through participation in accredited CME, clinicians and teams drive improvement in their practice and optimize the care, health, and wellness of their patients,” said ASCP CEO E. Blair Holladay, PhD, MASCP, SCT(ASCP)^CM.

For more information or to enroll in ABPath CertLink®, visit abpath.org or contact ABPath’s CertLink® Coordinator at (813) 286-2444 x234 or at abpath@mycertlink.org. For more information on the designation of AMA PRA Category 1 Credits™ for ABPath CertLink®, please contact Devon Cortright at (312) 541-4987.