ABMS Selects Six Visiting Scholars for the 2021-2022 Class

Six physicians receive financial awards for research in physician assessment, continuing professional development, and quality improvement

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American Board of Medical Specialties

Oct 12, 2021, 14:00 ET

CHICAGO, Oct. 12, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- The American Board of Medical Specialties (ABMS) has selected six outstanding individuals to participate in its 2021-2022 Visiting Scholars Program. Launched in 2014, the one-year, part-time Visiting Scholars Program supports early-career physicians and researchers in scholarship and leadership development in the fields of physician assessment, continuing professional development and practice improvement, initial and continuing board certification, and related health policy issues.

ABMS Visiting Scholars are selected based on the quality of their proposed research project, the relevance of their research to the ABMS mission and the certification community, and the likelihood of making substantial progress on the project during the scholar year. Focused areas of interest for the certification community include diagnostic accuracy, competency-based medical education and assessment, racial equity and diversity in health care and quality improvement.

"From health care disparity to competency and professionalism, the selected research projects will explore and advance some of the most pressing issues in healthcare and certification," stated Greg Ogrinc, MD, MS, Senior Vice President, Certification Standards and Programs. "The results of these projects will deepen our understanding of how to best help physicians develop their skills and gain experience, which will positively impact the quality, safety, and value of patient care."

To date, 44 Visiting Scholars have participated in the program. During the yearlong program, ABMS Visiting Scholars remain at their home institutions, work with self-selected mentors, and participate in monthly interactive webinars with national leaders in such areas as medical education, assessment, professionalism, research methodologies, and big data. They traditionally attend three in-person leadership meetings and present their research findings before a national audience at the annual ABMS Conference. During the COVID-19 pandemic, these in-person meetings and presentations are being hosted virtually.

The 2021-2022 Visiting Scholars and their projects are:

Asma Ali, PhD, MA, ERM, Advanced Health Professions Education Evaluation and Research Fellow, Michael E. Debakey Department of Veterans Affairs Medical Center (Houston, TX)

Project: Toward an Updated Definition of Professionalism and Competencies for Post-Training Physicians (Co-sponsored by the American Board of Otolaryngology–Head and Neck Surgery)
Holly Caretta-Weyer, MD, MHPE, Associate Residency Director, Department of Emergency Medicine, Stanford University School of Medicine (Stanford, CA)

Project: Mapping Assessment Gaps and Defining Processes for Summative Entrustment Decision-Making by Clinical Competency Committees in Emergency Medicine
Benjamin Cloyd, MD, MIPH, Clinical Lecturer, Department of Anesthesiology, University of Michigan (Ann Arbor, MI)

Project: The Association of Participation in the MOCA-ASPIRE Part IV Collaborative Program and Change in Quality of Care Metrics (Co-sponsored by the Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation)
Stacy Cooper, MD, Assistant Professor, Department of Pediatrics, Johns Hopkins University (Baltimore, MD)

Project: A Pilot Analysis of an Exclusively Narrative Format to Assign ACGME Milestone Sub competency Scores
Saanie Sulley, MD, PhD, Lead Researcher/Data Manager, National Healthy Start Association (Washington, DC)

Project: Understanding physicians' perspectives on the effectiveness of multidisciplinary quality improvement (QI) strategies to address disparities in maternal health. (Co-sponsored by the Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation)
Thomas Utset-Ward, MD, MBA, Resident, Department of Orthopedic Surgery, The University of Chicago (Chicago, IL)

Project: Pilot Study on the Use of the ABOS Surgical Skills Assessment Tool to Inform Resident Milestones in the First Year of Milestones 2.0 (Co-sponsored by the American Board of Orthopaedic Surgery)

"Four of these research projects are supported by the Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation, the American Board of Orthopaedic Surgery, and the American Board of Otolaryngology–Head and Neck Surgery," said Dr. Ogrinc. "Their generous sponsorship helps us to sustain this program and offer more early-career physicians access to this valuable opportunity."

Applications for the 2022-2023 Visiting Scholars Program will be available January 2022 on the ABMS website.

About ABMS
Established in 1933, the American Board of Medical Specialties (ABMS) is the leading not-for profit organization overseeing physician certification in the United States. ABMS supports 24 Member Boards that develop educational and professional standards and programs of assessment to certify physician specialists, all dedicated to improving the quality of care to the patients, families, and communities they serve. More than 920,000 physicians are certified in one or more of 40 specialties and 87 subspecialties offered by the ABMS Member Boards. For more information about ABMS, visit abms.org or call (312) 436-2600.

SOURCE American Board of Medical Specialties