American Board of Internal Medicine Approves Eight New Quality Improvement Activities

(Philadelphia, PA), – Eight new quality improvement (QI) activities have been approved by the American Board of Internal Medicine (ABIM) for credit in Maintenance of Certification as part of its Approved Quality Improvement (AQI) Pathway. The new QI activities include:

- American College of Cardiology'sCardiology Practice Improvement Pathway
- Society of Hospital Medicine's
— Project BOOST (Better Outcomes for Older Adults through Safe Transitions)
—Venous Thromboembolism Prevention Collaborative (VTE PC) Mentored Implementation Program
- University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine's
— PennCME: Evidence-Based Diagnosis and Management of COPD in the Primary Care Setting
— PennCME/BestPractice Type 2 Diabetes Performance Improvement Module
- New York State Department of Health AIDS Institute's HIVQUAL-US
- Health Partners Medical Group's Care Model Process
- Rocky Mountain Health Plan's Colorado Beacon Consortium Performance Improvement and Practice Transformation Program


Research has shown that fewer than 30% of physicians examine their own performance data, and physicians' ability to independently self-assess and self-evaluate is poor. Physicians in ABIM's Maintenance of Certification program must apply quality measurement to their practice and then use the resulting data to improve care. The AQI Pathway helps reduce the redundancy in physician reporting- giving them credit for quality improvement activities that they are already doing that meet ABIM standards.

"If physicians are already engaged in rigorous quality improvement activities through their hospital or another organization we want them to receive Maintenance of Certification credit for that work," said Elizabeth Blaylock, Vice President of PIM Development at the American Board of Internal medicine. "These organizations have built programs that support physicians in their efforts to measure and improve patient care."

ABIM approves structured QI activities from sponsored by healthcare organizations that:
- Focus on clinical topics related to a national priority, regional initiative or local gap in patient care and relevant to ABIM-certified physicians;
- Utilize nationally-recognized and/or evidence-based performance measures;
- Identify specific organizational-level and activity-level goals and objectives;
- Incorporate robust QI resources and/or tools directly related to the program objectives;
- Require sufficient and active participation by physicians in all stages of the activity; and
- Include a strong infrastructure and resources to support and monitor the activity.

The components of the ABIM MOC program reflect the guidelines of the American Board of Medical Specialties and encompass the six general competencies established by the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education. In addition, it includes the practice performance requirement of passing a secure examination in internal medicine or subspecialty, self-assessment of medical knowledge and holding a license in good standing. Full requirements for MOC can be found here.

About ABIM
For more than 70 years, Certification by the American Board of Internal Medicine (ABIM)has stood for the highest standard in internal medicine and its 19 subspecialties and has meant that internists have demonstrated – to their peers and to the public – that they have the clinical judgment, skills and attitudes essential for the delivery of excellent patient care. ABIM is not a membership society, but a non-profit, independent evaluation organization. Our accountability is both to the profession of medicine and to the public. ABIM is a member of the American Board of Medical Specialties. For additional updates, follow ABIM on Facebook.