ABMS develops assessments related to health information technology

The American Board of Medical Specialties said it intends to create tools to promote the meaningful use of health information technology (HIT) and incorporate them into the ABMS Maintenance of Certification (MOC) program.

"Over 750,000 U.S. physicians are certified by an ABMS member board, so it’s readily apparent that building meaningful use of HIT into MOC will benefit patients," said Kevin B. Weiss, MD, of ABMS. "Aligning MOC and meaningful use of HIT will help to facilitate physicians’ knowledge, skill and use of HIT, and in turn can improve physician performance and patient outcomes."

Under a new federal program, physicians will be rewarded for "meaningful use" of electronic health records and other technology to guide improvements in public health, quality and safety, engagement of patients and families, and coordination of care while preserving privacy and security. These dimensions overlap with the six core competencies that are continually measured through ABMS MOC: patient care, medical knowledge, practice-based learning and improvement, interpersonal and communications skills, professionalism, and systems-based practice.

ABMS will foster the development of new measurement tools or enhancement of existing activities to promote meaningful use of HIT, with three ABMS primary care member boards developing initial products.