Last June, the American Board of Ophthalmology announced its commitment to transition Maintenance of Certification (MOC) to a program of continuous certification focused on recognizing professional achievements that are more closely linked to the needs of our patients and the diplomate community. Today, I’m pleased to describe three important developments that move us closer to this goal.
Effective immediately, Periodic Ophthalmic Review Tests (PORTs) are no longer required activities for recertification. These self-assessment tools will remain available as optional activities in 2017 for diplomates interested in using them to enhance their skills in core, comprehensive, or subspecialty topics, but the development of new PORTs will cease.
The Demonstration of Ophthalmic Cognitive Knowledge (DOCK) Examination will be phased out as soon as practicable. The Board’s goal is to replace the traditional high-stakes examination, which has been required to comply with American Board of Medical Specialties (ABMS) standards for MOC Part III, with a new longitudinal assessment program, Quarterly Questions. Quarterly Questions is currently available to all diplomates in pilot format. Diplomates who are on track to recertify this year should complete the DOCK exam, but will have the option to take the test remotely from their home or office. Diplomates with one or more years remaining on their current certificate are encouraged to participate in Quarterly Questions this year to help expedite the timeline for replacing the DOCK.
Over the next few months but by the end of 2018 at the latest, the Practice Improvement Modules (PIMs) will be replaced by a simpler tool to measure practice improvement. Many diplomates have found the Self-Directed PIMs to be helpful, so we plan to continue this option for those who are interested. Our aim is to integrate these practice improvement projects with the Academy’s IRIS registry as much as possible, to ensure that satisfactory completion satisfies MIPS requirements, and to continue compliance with ABMS standards for MOC Part IV.
Please let us know your thoughts about these changes in the comments window below, or write to us at moc@abop.org. Within the next several weeks, you can expect to receive more detailed information delivered to your email address about what these changes mean for you based on your current MOC cycle.
The Board will also continue to meet diplomates as part of our ongoing Co-Design Initiative to create the certification program of the future.