Board certification (medicine)

Board certification is the process by which a physician or other professional in the United States demonstrates a mastery of basic knowledge and skills through written, practical, or simulator-based testing.

There are 24 boards that certify physician specialists in the United States and there is no legal requirement to attain it. Some hospitals may demand that physicians must be board certified to get privileges.

The commonly used acronym BE/BC (board eligible/board certified) refers to a doctor who is eligible or is certified to practice medicine in a particular field.

The term board certified is also used in the nursing field, where a candidate with advanced mastery of a nursing specialty can also become eligible to be Board Certified. Board certification is also used in the field of pharmacy, where a pharmacist can be recognized in specialized areas of advanced pharmacy practice after fulfilling eligibility requirements and passing a certification examination. Doctoral level psychologists (Ph.D., or Psy.D.) may also be board certified by the American Board of Professional Psychology, or the American Board of Professional Neuropsychology or the American Board of Pediatric Neuropsychology.

Board certification is available to a licensed attorney (J.D.) in the United States as well. Many state bar associations, including Arizona, California, Florida, Louisiana, New Mexico, North Carolina, Ohio, South Carolina, Tennessee, and Texas, offer board certification in various specialty areas, such as admiralty law, civil trial law, estate planning (or wills, trusts, and estates) law, family (and/or marital) law, immigration law, and tax law. Other organizations also offer certification, with some being accredited by the American Bar Association. The American Bar Association's Standing Committee on Specialization offers extensive resources to attorneys and consumers.

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