MOC Credit Automatically Awarded for COVID-19 Learning and Practice

Monday, March 29, 2021

In the spring of 2020, pediatricians across the country were facing extreme upheaval to their personal and professional lives due to the spread of the novel coronavirus. They had to learn about COVID-19 transmission, symptoms, and treatments, and many were adapting their office triage processes and switching to telemedicine, seemingly overnight.

To recognize their efforts, the ABP made the unprecedented decision to award Maintenance of Certification (MOC) points to all board-certified pediatricians. No action or documentation was required.

Dr. Keith Mann“We know pediatricians learned about the virus — how to identify it, how to treat patients that were symptomatic, and how to best prevent spread — at breakneck speed,” says Keith Mann, MD, MEd, ABP Vice President for Continuing Certification. “The adjustments they made in their practices to accommodate families and minimize risk of exposure for their patients and staff were examples of quality improvement at its best.”

Pediatricians also were able to earn additional continuing certification credit for pandemic-related quality improvement work (MOC Part 4) by submitting a project application.

“The extraordinary dedication, service, and courage on display by board-certified pediatricians during this crisis are in the highest and best traditions of our profession,” David Nichols, MD, MBA, ABP President and CEO, told pediatricians in an email. “Our intent is to support you in a shared mission of protecting the health of children during a global crisis.”

Dr. Heather Brandon“Thank you for recognizing the amount of time and effort that all of us are putting in right now to provide care for the children in our communities. We are seeking out the newest information and updates to policies and appropriate procedures throughout the day and night. We are researching ways to protect ourselves, our staff members, our patients, and our own families in this unprecedented outbreak. It’s stressful, but it has led to many great conversations with others in the same battle as we seek advice from our fellow pediatricians. We are learning something new every day and we will be better for it in the days to come!”

Heather Brandon, MD, General Pediatrician, PediDocs, San Antonio, TX

Dr. Sharon Dial“Thank you for your words of support. They mean a lot at this time. In NYC we are in the epicenter of the epidemic in the U.S., and pediatric intensivists are covering one of the MICUs in our hospital. Our services have extended beyond pediatrics.”

Sharon Dial, MD, Pediatric Critical Care Medicine, Hospice and Palliative Medicine, and General Pediatrics, Northwell Health, New York, NY

Dr. M. Evelyn Rodriguez-Zierer“I was so moved by your act of generosity and kindness. How true it is that we physicians have all been scrambling to read every bit of information available on this challenging virus. The treating physician battled this virus like a seasoned soldier, maneuvering and altering tactics depending on the direction of the enemy’s attack. I have never been so proud of our profession and am ever so grateful to be in very good company.”

M. Evelyn Rodriguez-Zierer, MD, General Pediatrics, Summit Medical Group, Paramus, NJ

Dr. Suzanne Snyder“Thank you for realizing that many of us are at a breaking point, and yet we continue to be committed to our patients and will serve to our uttermost. Thank you so much for acknowledging the time and effort pediatricians across the country are pouring into keeping up with COVID-19 updates and literature and adjusting daily practice in a myriad of ways to keep children safe and healthy.”

Suzanne Snyder, MD , General Pediatrics, Westerville, OH

Dr. Lori Openshaw“Pediatricians take care of ‘the whole picture,’ child and family. We are an amazing group of doctors, and yet being a pediatrician and a caregiver of our own children and parents is extremely challenging. I am proud and grateful that the ABP recognizes this and actually does something about it! We are all living quality improvement right now.”

Lori Openshaw, MD, General Pediatrics, Sea View Pediatrics, Irvine, CA


This story was first published in the ABP's 2020 Annual Report.

2020 Annual Report (PDF)

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