The unveiling of ABCO board certification comes on the heels of the American Board of Optometry’s (ABO) announcement in February that it will offer online applications this month for its board certification program.
The most significant difference between ABCO board certification and ABO board certification is that the former accepts the NBEO examination as a key element of its certification process.
“The ABCO’s process for obtaining board certification respects the authority of state licensing boards and at the same time recognizes and celebrates optometric competence and ability,” Dr. Epstein says.
Several members of the ABCO board of directors are also officers of the American Optometric Society (AOS), the group that vocally opposed the way that the ABO voted in its board certification at the AOA House of Delegates meeting in June 2009. Dr. Epstein maintains that while ABCO is endorsed by the AOS, it is a wholly separate entity.
Within days of ABCO’s announcement, ABO issued a statement cautioning optometrists about the process of board certification.
“The American Board of Optometry Board Certification and Maintenance of Certification is based on the accepted model for board certification for physicians,” the ABO statement said. “It has the rigor—including a validated formalized examination—to withstand any question of credibility. Its practice assessment components are a critical step toward improving patient outcomes. Any less demanding program lacks credibility and could function to weaken the profession in the eyes of the public and other health care.”
Dr. Epstein disagrees that ABCO certification lacks credibility and rigor. “We follow American Board of Medical Specialties guidelines, and our rigor comes from the same metrics that have been used to define optometric competency for over a century,” he says.
Specifically, the requirements for ABCO board certification are an O.D. degree, a valid state license, and having passed the National Board of Examiners in Optometry (NBEO) exams.
Like the ABO program, the ABCO process also outlined maintenance of certification, which consists of meeting certain continuing education requirements combined with learning and self-assessment programs that run in five-year cycles.
Why the push for board certification from O.D.s who opposed the passage of ABO board certification?
“We all agree that maintenance of certification is something that is likely to be necessary,” Dr. Epstein says. “But we’re not looking to reinvent the wheel. We think that the process by which we’re already educated—and continue our education—is inherently credible.”
A handful of applicants have already applied for ABCO certification, Dr. Epstein says.
Meanwhile, the American Board of Certification in Medical Optometry (ABCMO), which differs from ABO and ABCO certification because it requires completion of an accredited one-year postgraduate residency, will certify its first 47 applicants this month. ABCMO also requires practice of the specialty at time of application and passing the NBEO examination Advanced Competence in Medical Optometry.
Three Types of Certification
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American Board of Optometry (ABO) – requires 150 “points” of ABO-approved postgraduate education/experience and passing the ABO Board Certification examination.
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American Board of Clinical Optometry (ABCO) – requires passing the National Board of Examiners in Optometry (NBEO) exams.
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American Board of Certification in Medical Optometry (ABCMO) – requires a one-year residency, practice of the specialty at time of application, and passing the NBEO examination Advanced Competence in Medical Optometry.
