New York, NY (PRWEB) October 01, 2015 -- The American Board of Multiple Specialties in Podiatry (ABMSP) announces that one of its board members has published a revealing comparison of wound care credentialing organizations in the latest issue of Today’s Wound Clinic magazine. Kenneth B. Rehm, D.P.M., Diplomate of the American Board of Multiple Specialties in Podiatry, authored the feature “Certified in Wound Care…What Does It Really Mean?” in an effort to shed light on the many faces of certification for today’s wound care professionals.
Today’s Wound Clinic provides practical, timely insight into clinical and operational issues inherent to the success of an outpatient wound center. Rehm’s article offers a glimpse into the diverse certification organizations that currently offer credentials in wound care. These organizations, Rehm notes, are not a “one-size-fits-all” solution, and podiatric physicians should choose wisely to ensure they are certified by an organization that offers the most professional validation and that supports a commitment to the highest quality healthcare for patients.
Rehm also argues that the best way to get off the unsustainable path of “following the manual of protocols, formularies and re-imbursement criteria demanded by hospitals, insurance companies or the government” is to seek out and maintain specialized certifications, particularly in the wound care community. “Clearly the quality of healthcare starts with the quality of its providers. The way we discern quality is through rigid educational, experiential and testing measures,” he writes. “This is where board certification comes into play.”
Rehm examines seven credentialing organizations involved in conferring and sanctioning board certifications in a wound care setting:
• The American Board of Wound Medicine and Surgery (ABWMS)
• Council for Medical Education and Testing (CMET)
• American Board of Multiple Specialties in Podiatry (ABMSP)
• The American Board of Wound Management (ABWM)
• National Alliance of Wound Care and Ostomy (NAWCO)
• American Board of Wound Healing (ABWH)
• The Wound, Ostomy and Continence Nursing Certification Board (WOCNCB)
“[This is] a wide array of board certification options in the field of wound care,” he writes. “Some of these are physician specific, some offer credentialing to both physicians and non-physicians, and one offers certification to only registered nurses with a bachelor’s degree or higher. This…definitely demonstrates an obvious increase in options for advanced certification in wound care. What impact, however, is it having in the outpatient wound clinic setting?”
Of these seven organizations, Rehm notes that The American Board of Multiple Specialties in Podiatry (ABMSP) is the only podiatric certification program accredited by the American National Standards Institute (ANSI) as having conformed to the standards of the International Organization for Standardization (ISO). ABMSP is also the only podiatric certification program accredited by URAC (formerly the Utilization Review Accreditation Commission). ABMSP is unique among podiatry boards in achieving and maintaining these important accreditations. ABMSP offers board certification not only in the prevention and treatment of diabetic foot wounds and in diabetic foot wear but also in limb preservation and salvage, foot and ankle surgery and primary care in podiatric medicine.
To read Dr. Rehm’s overview of the wide range of certification options available to today’s podiatrists and wound care providers, see the November/December issue of Today’s Wound Clinic magazine at http://www.todayswoundclinic.com. Also, visit https://youtu.be/AY7QH9aHLXk for a video presentation on the topic.
About ABMSP
The American Board of Multiple Specialties in Podiatry was originally organized by podiatrists for the purpose of granting board certification to office-based and ambulatory foot surgeons. Incorporated in 1986 as the American Institute of Foot Medicine (AIFM), the name was changed in 1992 to better reflect its mission. The Board now offers certification to qualified podiatrists in all areas of podiatric practice: Primary Care in Podiatric Medicine; Foot and Ankle Surgery, both in a hospital setting and in outpatient facilities; Prevention and Treatment of Diabetic Foot Wounds and Foot Wear; and Limb Preservation and Salvage. The California Board of Medicine, through the California Board of Podiatric Medicine, has authorized diplomates of the American Board of Multiple Specialties in Podiatry to advertise their certification from the Board in the State of California. Also, the Board’s certification examinations have been approved for reimbursement by the VA as an educational benefit for eligible veterans. The American Board of Multiple Specialties in Podiatry is the only podiatric certification program accredited by URAC (formerly the Utilization Review Accreditation Commission) and by the American National Standards Institute (ANSI) under the ISO International Standards ANSI/ISO/IEC/17024:2003 for Accreditation for Bodies Operating Certification of Persons. For more information, visit http://www.abmsp.org.
Bonnie Hayflick, The American Board of Multiple Specialties in Podiatry (ABMSP), http://www.abmsp.org, +1 904.679.5060, [email protected]
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