Chicago, IL, November 29, 2021: The American Board of Preventive Medicine (ABPM) announced today that, beginning in 2022, the Core Preventive Medicine examination questions will be incorporated into each of the three Specialty certification exams – Aerospace Medicine, Occupational Medicine, and Public Health and General Preventive Medicine. Previously, examinees were required to take and pass two separate exams – the Specialty certification exam and the Core Preventive Medicine exam. This change will eliminate the need to take a separate Core Preventive Medicine exam.
Exams will continue to include the breadth of both Specialty and Core Preventive Medicine content, as each of the Specialty certification exams will increase from 150 to 200 questions and the maximum time allowed to complete the exam will increase from 3.5 hours to 4.5 hours.
“The Board is excited to offer a more streamlined exam experience for our candidates next year,” said Wendy E. Braund, MD, MPH, MSEd, ABPM’s Board Chair. “Incorporating Core Preventive Medicine questions into each of the Specialty certification exams means our Specialty exam candidates will only need to schedule and sit for one exam, instead of two, making the scheduling process easier and more flexible. At the same time, ABPM will continue to administer high-quality, reliable exams that emphasize the importance that Preventive Medicine specialists adequately understand both Core and Specialty content.”
For those interested in learning more about the incorporation of Core Preventive Medicine content into the Specialty exams, the ABPM has prepared a list of FAQs that can be found at https://www.abpm-us.org/become-certified/certification-exam-faqs/core-examination-faqs/.
Physicians interested in ABPM certification will be able to apply online for eligibility to take the exam when the 2022 application cycle opens. ABPM will post updated application deadlines and exam dates on its website, www.theabpm.org, in early 2022.
The ABPM is a Member Board of the American Board of Medical Specialties (ABMS). Founded in 1948, ABPM works with the ABMS in the development of standards for the ongoing assessment and certification of over 12,000 physicians certified by the ABPM in the specialties of Aerospace Medicine, Occupational Medicine, and Public Health and General Preventive Medicine; and in the subspecialties of Addiction Medicine, Clinical Informatics, Medical Toxicology, and Undersea and Hyperbaric Medicine.