ABFAS foot and rear foot certified-Should I let my ABPM certification lapse ?

This forum made possible through the generous support of SDN members, donors, and sponsors. Thank you.

uberconfuzzled

Full Member
15+ Year Member
Joined
Aug 13, 2008
Messages
63
Reaction score
19
Hi guys,
I was certified by a ABPM right out of residency.
I have been ABFAS foot and rear foot certified for a few years now. My hospital only recognizes ABFAS.
I am a partner at my medical group and plan on staying here for many years.
Is there any reason I should keep ABPM? I’m just sick of paying dues and keeping up with their (very stupid and very $$) MOC for ABPM.

Update:
I decided to let the ABPM lapse. I went to acfas last year and the western conference the year before thinking that it would fulfill the MOC. But acfas is not an approved lecture/conference and the western is only approved for 2022. So, I’m 2 years behind and just figured I would forget it. So dumb.

Members don't see this ad.
 
Last edited:
Hi guys,
I was certified by a ABPM right out of residency.
I have been ABFAS foot and rear foot certified for a few years now. My hospital only recognizes ABFAS.
I am a partner at my medical group and plan on staying here for many years.
Is there any reason I should keep ABPM? I’m just sick of paying dues and keeping up with their (very stupid and very $$) MOC for ABPM.
No
 
Members don't see this ad :)
It won't hurt you.

Most people let ABPM expire once they get ABFAS cert unless they have a very high CME allowance (hosp employee, etc).
 
I would keep it......but please, please do not advertise that you are triple board certified.

It is certainly optional at this point.
 
I would keep it......but please, please do not advertise that you are triple board certified.

It is certainly optional at this point.

Whaaaaaat? If I had the extra time and employer funded CME, I would definitely go for the quintuple board certification for advertisement purposes.
 
  • Haha
Reactions: 1 users
I would keep it......but please, please do not advertise that you are triple board certified.

It is certainly optional at this point.
Ugh... agree here. Some pods on LinkedIn have this as their descriptor and it makes me wanna vomit. The 3rd board is usually the “CWS” designation. No humility.
 
  • Like
Reactions: 1 user
You don’t need to be board certified in wound care. Just use your brain and understand biomechanics and you can heal any wound.
 
  • Like
Reactions: 1 users
I do not know anyone personally that has been affected by not being certified in wound care. I have heard of some facilities (possibly some nursing homes in Florida maybe) requiring PAs and DPMs that do wound care there to be certified in wound care. Of course those same facilities do not require this of an MD.

It makes sense to get the certification in wound care if one makes their living primarily from wound care, especially if they have academic appointments and lecture for continuing education.

There are also some saturated markets where all the other podiatrists seem to advertise they have it.

I have also seen many podiatrists that are not board certified at all or not board certified in surgery get it.

I heard some older podiatrists at a conference once stating they were glad they got their wound care certification back when all they had to do was mail in a check. There are several wound care boards and I have not kept up with which ones are the most reputable.

I bought the book for the CWSP exam several years ago, but went no further, and decided it was not worth it or necessary for me.

There is so much to treating the diabetic foot and wound care. The actual product I use is usually my least important decision. I am not saying the exams do not cover more than just wound care products as they certainly do. It is surprising how little EBM there is to support using one wound care product over another.
 
Last edited:
I do not know anyone personally that has been affected by not being certified in wound care....
Yeah, it all depends how much CME $$ you have. ABPM did do a nice thing in that you don't pay anything extra to renew the CAQs for wound, sports, etc. I did the wound cert since I had a lot of CME for prior hospital job (and not many places to spend it during first year of COVID) and was doing a fair amount of wounds and amps at the time, but I probably wouldn't have done it in PP setup with more limited CME and less wound care practice... or if it had carried annual upkeep fee. It certainly won't hurt me if I go back to a hospital employ or want to get privileged somewhere new.

...There is so much to treating the diabetic foot and wound care. The actual product I use is usually my least important decision. I am not saying the exams do not cover more than just wound care products as they certainly do. It is surprising how little EBM there is to support using one wound care product over another.
The ABPM CAQ actually had very little products on it (probably because they have almost zero quality EBM?). I spent time to memorize most of the dozens of wound wizard products from the FDA and CMS lists, and you see they have basically nothing but tiny maker-sponsored trials or sometimes basic non-inferiority or comparison trials. On the exam, there were maybe a few questions on what dressings for wet or dry or etc wounds but almost none of the skin graft subs. It was not a bad test overall... I just had to put the answers they would want and not amp anything reasonable (which is my actual practice: amp any obvious osteo, neuropathic deep plantar ulcer, deformity failing Rx shoes, etc... get them healed fast and into a toe filler and on with life, or to BKA and on with life if they have no reasonable foot salvage).

I would agree with CutsWith... there is not much to wound care and limb salvage. It is the easiest part of podiatry...
If they have PAD concern, they go to Vasc asap.
If it's venous, wrap and compress with occasional debride.
If it's biomech/pressure (majority of DM), offload with Rx shoes/insoles or brace it... or amp/recon (and recognize equinus!)
If it's traumatic, control infection and debride aggressive.
A few pts are just way too sick medically with PAD and bad immune system and bad overall cardiopulm, so you polish spit and try to keep it from getting infected before they crump. There is a reason those wounds are often done by students and the amps or I&Ds are first year resident cases, though. The part I hate about wound care is how pts can often be duped into any plan by the docs (and a lot of DPMs want to keep the cash register churning). It is frustrating having to tactfully explain to people why they need an amp even despite some prior treating DPM (sometime my colleagues) crazy graft or Chopart with tendon transfer or months of TCC or honey or silver dsg or years of wound center debridement or Charcot frame attempt just a year prior...

"The pathway to amputation of the leg is littered with bandages and dressings which have deceived both doctor and patient into thinking that by dressing an ulcer they were curing it."
 
Drop it. It doesn't do anything for you. Except cost you money.
 
  • Like
Reactions: 1 user
As someone alluded to above. The only people who get certifications in wound care are APRNs and podiatrists. I worked in a wound care facility for 5 years at my last hospital job. I did not get certified in wound care.

An MD (internal med, gen surg, vascular, plastics) can walk into any wound care facility and get hours and they are not requested to get a wound certification. These are facts. So I will repeat again. Use your brain and understand biomechanics and you can heal any wound
 
  • Like
Reactions: 1 user
Top