Pediatric Emergency Medicine Certification

Eligibility Requirements for Certification in Pediatric Emergency Medicine

The American Board of Pediatrics (ABP) in collaboration with the American Board of Emergency Medicine (ABEM) has established a procedure for certification in pediatric emergency medicine. To be eligible for this subspecialty examination, a physician must be certified in either pediatrics by the ABP or emergency medicine by the ABEM. This document provides the requirements of the ABP. In addition to the specific admission requirements listed below, general eligibility criteria for all ABP subspecialties must be fulfilled to be eligible for certification. (Note: A candidate who has a primary certificate from the ABEM should contact the ABEM regarding its eligibility criteria.) Examination registration dates may differ for each board.

Admission Requirements

Three years of full-time, broad-based fellowship training in pediatric emergency medicine are required to be completed in a program accredited for training in pediatric emergency medicine by the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education (ACGME) in the United States or the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada (RCPSC).

Absences from Training

No continuous absence of more than one year will be permitted. Due to the potential for significant changes in medicine over time, the Credentials Committee must review requests for previous credit when a fellow has interrupted fellowship for more than 12 months.

Absences or leaves in excess of three months during the three years of training, whether for vacation, parental leave, illness, and so forth, must be made up. For information regarding waiving time for parental, medical, caregiver leave, please visit the ABP Absences from Training Policy. Training time cannot be waived for convenience, such as for fellows who begin training off cycle.

Part-time training may be completed over no more than six years.

The following must be accomplished in order to become certified in the subspecialty:

  • Verification of training must be completed by the program director(s) verifying satisfactory completion of the required training, evaluating clinical competence including professionalism, and providing evidence of scholarly activity/research.
  • The fellow must meet the criteria stated in the “Principles Regarding the Assessment of Scholarly Activity."
  • The fellow must pass the subspecialty certifying examination.

DUAL SUBSPECIALTY TRAINING IN PEDIATRIC EMERGENCY MEDICINE AND MEDICAL TOXICOLOGY

The Credentials Committees of both pediatric subspecialties must approve the training proposals prospectively. Dual subspecialty training in pediatric emergency medicine and medical toxicology may be completed in four years.

Dual Training Requirements

  • Both fellowship programs must be in the same institution; separation would not allow the integration necessary.
  • Both programs must be accredited.
  • The requests for dual subcertification must be prospective, before beginning dual training. Candidates who are in the first three to six months of training in one of the subspecialties may petition the subboards for waiver of this policy. A candidate who is beyond the first year of training may not apply because integration of the two subspecialty training programs would not then be possible.
  • The application for dual training must be approved by both subboards.
  • The dual subspecialty training proposal must include a proposed program training outline signed by both fellowship training directors and submitted to the subboards for approval.

Clinical Training

Duration

The duration of clinical training will be dependent on the pediatric subspecialties. Consideration must be given to, among other areas, the body of knowledge, technical skills, and importance of longitudinal assessment in each subspecialty area. The Credentials Committees of both pediatric subboards must approve the training proposal, which includes the training outline indicating the clinical training experiences.

Integration

Dual certification pathways must provide integration of training and core material to be able to compress mastery of common areas. The integration of core material must be demonstrated by the training programs involved in the dual pathway. The degree of integration must be approved by the Credentials Committees of both subboards. Consideration should be given to block assignments as well as outpatient clinic assignments during the training period. Night and weekend call experiences should be interspersed throughout the four years in each subspecialty and should not count toward meeting the clinical time requirement.

It should be noted that these criteria and conditions are subject to change without notice. All applicants are advised to contact the ABP and the ABEM to ascertain whether the information they have is current.

11/16, edited 6.8.22

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