ER board certification

[storePQ]

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Hi there,

There are many ER docs who are board eligible but not certified for long time. Is there any one noticed this and know the reason why? Thanks

 

[dchristismi]

Define "long time." Two years or 20 years? The process to become BC takes awhile after finishing residency.

 

[storePQ]

4 or 5 years, I think

 

[Arcan57]

Define "many". Board certification takes ~2 years (depending on whether you get the spring or fall qualifying exam). Depending on how your getting your info, it's not immediately obvious who is and who is not board certified. Being BC'ed doesn't add initials to your title. If you're going by seeing FACEP after the title, that's a minimum of three years out from residency. And there are pleny of BC EPs that are not FACEP or FAAEM.

If you know for a fact that many of the EPs you met are residency trained, 4-5 years out, and not board-certified I would think that means you're not around a stellar group of physicians.

 

[docB]

It's not unusual for EPs to take an extra year or so to get around to taking their boards. On guy in my group who graduated the same time I did waited the max which I think was 5 years for people in my cohort. He took them and now he doesn't have to recert until something like 2018. I have to recert in 2014. I couln't figure out if he was crazy or brilliant. I've decided he was nuts because I wouldn't have passed the boards 5 years out from residency.

For the OP I think you need to figure out if the docs you're dealint with are just procrastinators or if they're not actually board eligible. There's a big difference.

 

[Raryn]

Can a BE EP work without taking the exam? I know other specialties can, though they may have trouble getting priveleges long-term. (In my hometown, one of the hospital groups will hire most docs for up to 5 years without taking/passing the board exam. Another one, iirc doesn't give a rats ass, as long as you finished the residency in your specialty and are board eligible. I have no idea how it works for the EMs in the area though)

 

[Arcan57]

Yes, you can work without taking the exam. However, you're more marketable with taking it. And as always, there will be groups in areas that have a large supply of EPs that will not hire people that aren't BC.

 

[WilcoWorld]

There is sometimes a pay differential as well. Pulling numbers out of my butt, you could see something like $150/hr for board eligible vs $170/hr for board certified. All of the places I interviewed were willing to hire me while I was board eligible, but they expected me to pass my boards in a "reasonable" amount of time.