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While board-certified pediatricians work to improve the care they provide children, the ABP also seeks to improve the certification process for pediatricians. The ABP staff uses a systematic, yet rapid-change, approach called lean. Lean activities — such as process-mapping exercises, root-cause analysis, and standardization of work — help identify and eliminate wasteful steps in any process and maximize value for the pediatricians the ABP serves.

“As the Board transforms to a lean culture,…

Carole Lannon, MD, MPH, ABP Senior Quality Advisory, has received the senior Advocacy Achievement Faculty Award from Cincinnati Children’s Research Foundation.

Dr. Lannon, University of Cincinnati Professor of Pediatrics, is senior faculty lead of the Learning Networks Core at the James M. Anderson Center for Health Systems Excellence at Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center.

“Dr. Lannon’s approach to sustained advocacy is not simply one of public recommendation of new policy approaches…

Dazelle Dean Simpson, MD, died Feb. 9, 2020, in Miami. She was 95.

Dr. Simpson was the first African-American pediatrician in Florida to become certified by the American Board of Pediatrics (ABP). She received her certification in General Pediatrics on Oct. 1, 1957.

A native of Miami, Dr. Simpson graduated from Fisk College in Nashville, TN, in 1945. She earned her medical degree from Meharry Medical College in Nashville in 1950. She and her husband, George Simpson, MD, (whom she met at Meharry) moved to Coconut Grove, FL, after graduation, and practiced medicine in the Miami area for more than 40 years. Dr. George Simpson was the first board-certified African-American…

In her first job after completing pediatric residency, Ulfat Shaikh, MD, MPH, MS, noticed how much time children and their families spent in the clinic waiting for care.

“Long wait times, being shuffled from area to area, filling out unnecessary paperwork, answering the same questions from multiple clinicians, and delays in obtaining test results were a real disservice to our patients,” she says. 

Pen and notebook in hand, she spent an afternoon observing the flow of patients through the…

The American Board of Pediatrics (ABP) congratulates Kathryn M. Edwards, MD, on being chosen to receive the American Pediatric Society’s (APS) 2020 John Howland Award.

The John Howland Award is the highest honor bestowed by the APS and signifies the society’s recognition of Dr. Edwards’ significant contributions to advancing child health and the profession of pediatrics.

Dr. Edwards holds the Sarah H. Sell and Cornelius Vanderbilt Endowed Chair in Pediatrics and is a Professor of Pediatrics at the…

The American Board of Pediatrics (ABP) thanks the Pediatric Hospital Medicine (PHM) community for the opportunity to respond to their petition. Our approach and response are grounded in our mission:

“Advancing child health by certifying pediatricians who meet standards of excellence and are committed to continuous learning and improvement.”

Transparency is one of the ABP’s core values, which underpins this response.

Carolyn H. Bridgemohan, MD, co-director of the Autism Spectrum Center at the Boston Children’s Hospital and chair of the American Board of Pediatrics (ABP) Developmental-Behavioral Subboard, died Aug. 16, 2019. She was 58.

Dr. Bridgemohan began volunteering with the ABP in 2016. In addition to chairing the Developmental-Behavioral Subboard, she served on the subboard credentials committee until her untimely death. 

An international leader in Developmental-Behavioral Pediatrics, Dr.…

Linda Harter Anz, MD, a general pediatrician in Auburn, AL, and former American Board of Pediatrics (ABP) volunteer, died June 13, 2019. She was 70.

Dr. Anz practiced pediatric medicine in the Auburn/Opelika metropolitan area for 39 years. For more than 12 years, beginning in 2002, she served on the ABP’s Certifying Exam Committee Group B (later known as the General Pediatrics Exam Committee Group B). Dr. Anz also was a member of the General Pediatrics Pilot testing committee. 

While practicing medicine…

Grant Morrow III, MD, former chair of the American Board of Pediatrics (ABP) Board of Directors, died May 18, 2019. He was 86.

Dr. Morrow’s contributions to the ABP and the health and care of children were significant. He began volunteering with the ABP in 1980 as an oral examiner. He continued to serve the ABP for many years in numerous roles until 2003. He was a member of the Neonatal-Perinatal Subboard, a member of the Written Examination Committee, liaison to the Subboard of Pediatric…

The American Board of Pediatrics (ABP) congratulates David Kendall Stevenson, MD, who has been named the 2019 John Howland Award recipient, the highest honor bestowed by the American Pediatric Society (APS). 

“The award signifies the society’s recognition of Dr. Stevenson for his significant contributions to advancing academic pediatrics through clinical care, scientific discovery, mentorship, leadership, and service,” the APS announced. The award was presented April 28 during the…