You were not kidding that this was a deep dive:) I am a ABOG certified obgyn and learned a lot! My question is how do we educate people being bamboozled by "functional medicine menopause experts?" It makes me sad especially when physicians (that are usually not gynecologists) are doing Dutch tests ordering expensive compounded hormones having pts come back every 3 months for "levels" and people think they are getting superior care. Ok, maybe it actually makes me angry.... Thanks for what you do. I really enjoy your writing
So interesting and valuable—after being married to an ABMS-certified neurologist for decades I naïvely assumed that those social media doctors who claim to be board certified are ABMS certified. There are a few that I realize are obviously preaching outside of their wheelhouse—trained in one discipline but apparently rather than practicing they are full-time social media influencers in another. I’ve gone as far as looking them up on LinkedIn and other sources when I seem to smell a rat. Years ago, my internist, who I liked, was dropped by her university owned practice because she didn’t pass her board. Or at least that’s what I learned through the grapevine. So, the word “board” can mean anything. The detail about Rand Paul making up his own board is fascinating and disturbing.
Thanks, Dr. Gunter! I appreciate this thoughtful and detailed discussion of board certification—particularly the emphasis on transparency and protecting patients from misleading credentials.
One organization not mentioned here is the National Board of Physicians and Surgeons (NBPS), which some physicians (myself included) hold certification through. NBPS is not a marketing-driven or pseudoscience-based board, nor does it represent a shortcut around training.
What NBPS is:
- NBPS certification is available only to physicians who have completed an ACGME-accredited residency and who were previously board-certified by an ABMS or AOA board.
- It requires active state licensure, ongoing CME, and adherence to professional and ethical standards.
- It does not certify non-physicians and does not promote alternative or non-evidence-based medical practices.
What distinguishes NBPS philosophically:
NBPS was created in response to widespread concern that traditional Maintenance of Certification (MOC) programs had become expensive, time-consuming, and poorly correlated with real-world clinical quality—particularly for experienced physicians in active practice.
Many NBPS diplomates continue robust continuing medical education tailored to their actual scope of practice, but do so without high-stakes exams, proprietary modules, or escalating fees that lack strong evidence of patient benefit.
What NBPS is not:
- It is not a substitute for residency training
- It is not a shortcut to calling oneself a specialist
- It is not a credential inflation or marketing board
I agree completely with the core message of your piece: patients deserve clarity about what “board-certified” means, and physicians should be explicit about their training and credentials.
In that spirit, I think NBPS belongs in a separate category from boards that exist primarily for branding, cosmetic expansion, or pseudoscientific practice. While ABMS certification remains the gold standard—especially for hospital-based and procedural specialties—NBPS represents a good-faith attempt to preserve rigor while questioning whether current MOC structures truly serve physicians or patients as well as intended.
Thank you for helping to sort this out; extremely helpful! BUT: These kinds of nuances are useless when we can't find a doctor—certified by any board—who accepts our insurance (Medicare, for example) and is accepting new pts. Just sayin'. Still, love these posts (as you know). x
I was curious to know which board She Who Shall Not Be Named is certified under. Suspiciously, there's no Wikipedia page for her. But there is for Dr. Jen, of course!
Thanks for this explainer! On a somewhat related note, I went down a rabbit hole a few years ago on the American Menopause Society website, which at the time listed the criteria for inclusion on its list of “certified practitioners.” More recently, I visited the site and didn’t find the same kind of information. It could still be on there and I missed it, but if not, maybe you’d consider describing its criteria in a future column?
Again, thanks for all you do to help educate women—and more importantly our ob/gyn physicians—about the latest developments in treating menopause.
As a board-certified Ob/Gyn I agree with you to some extent. Since I know some examiners and how they get selected I have to say it is an old-boys-network.
I agree that there needs to be some degree if maintaining one’s competence and to stay up to date on research, not sure that the way it’s done is the way. I have also not seen any effort by the board to make it more relevant.
I am old so actually had to take the exam which was kind of a joke… just saying.
Pulling together that information probably doesn't require MK Scott money. I can noodle on how to do that but what is of interest is when would a consumer ever want this info. My guess is that most people don't vet their doctors until they have a bad experience...but to Valerie's point earlier, the driving factor in Dr. choice is, I'm guessing: insurance coverage, physical location, telehealth options, are they recommended by a friend, or did you see them on tik tok or substack!
I would imagine due diligence might crank up a bit on the elective things like plastic surgery or probably something more serious like cancer.... otherwise people would trust a referral or the insurance company to 'pick someone good'.
This tool would solve a problem I suspect people don't know they have, again, until perhaps they have a bad experience. So not only is it an issue of designing the tool but also educating people why they should use it? I'd love to see in the comments more about how people might use it and what they would hope to get out of it. How meaningful is it, say, that board X requires Y hours of something vs Z hours? How is that going to be meaningful to a layperson like me?
Finally, I did use this to look up the new person I'm using for my hormone treatment - and she is board certified in endocrinology. I went from an obgyn who refused to prescribe T, to medispa NP who was putting in the work to become a hormone expert, to an endocrinologist. I think a deep dive into how many medispa types are providing hormones might be interesting but that's another topic!
Thank you for writing this. This is fantastic and as a board certified OB/GYN, I find myself nodding and agreeing with everything you say! I do try to take the time to explain this to patients to some degree so they understand the difference between a veritable board certified physician in their specialty and someone who crosses over like a Dr. Oz or Peter Attia. Question because I think I've said this wrong I usually tell patients that Peter Attia completed a surgery residency and then a surgery oncology fellowship and then branched into longevity medicine. Did he not complete his general surgery residency? Not nitpicking I just don't want to describe this incorrectly. Thanks for all you do! You're making us obgyns proud!!!
No, he left before finishing. There is some vagueness when exactly, but he did not finish and left to work at McKinsey. He worked there for a while and then had his podcast and did work with Gary Brecka, which is choice. And then he opened his private practice, in 2014 I believe, where he sees fewer than 100 people a year. He doesn’t have a vast clinical experience and is not board certified.
Thank you for writing this. I did not realize how all of those things work. And, thanks to your link, I found that my primary is indeed "board certified."
Thank you for making these important distinctions and understand the nuances to help people become an informed consumer/patient.
You were not kidding that this was a deep dive:) I am a ABOG certified obgyn and learned a lot! My question is how do we educate people being bamboozled by "functional medicine menopause experts?" It makes me sad especially when physicians (that are usually not gynecologists) are doing Dutch tests ordering expensive compounded hormones having pts come back every 3 months for "levels" and people think they are getting superior care. Ok, maybe it actually makes me angry.... Thanks for what you do. I really enjoy your writing
So interesting and valuable—after being married to an ABMS-certified neurologist for decades I naïvely assumed that those social media doctors who claim to be board certified are ABMS certified. There are a few that I realize are obviously preaching outside of their wheelhouse—trained in one discipline but apparently rather than practicing they are full-time social media influencers in another. I’ve gone as far as looking them up on LinkedIn and other sources when I seem to smell a rat. Years ago, my internist, who I liked, was dropped by her university owned practice because she didn’t pass her board. Or at least that’s what I learned through the grapevine. So, the word “board” can mean anything. The detail about Rand Paul making up his own board is fascinating and disturbing.
Thanks, Dr. Gunter! I appreciate this thoughtful and detailed discussion of board certification—particularly the emphasis on transparency and protecting patients from misleading credentials.
One organization not mentioned here is the National Board of Physicians and Surgeons (NBPS), which some physicians (myself included) hold certification through. NBPS is not a marketing-driven or pseudoscience-based board, nor does it represent a shortcut around training.
What NBPS is:
- NBPS certification is available only to physicians who have completed an ACGME-accredited residency and who were previously board-certified by an ABMS or AOA board.
- It requires active state licensure, ongoing CME, and adherence to professional and ethical standards.
- It does not certify non-physicians and does not promote alternative or non-evidence-based medical practices.
What distinguishes NBPS philosophically:
NBPS was created in response to widespread concern that traditional Maintenance of Certification (MOC) programs had become expensive, time-consuming, and poorly correlated with real-world clinical quality—particularly for experienced physicians in active practice.
Many NBPS diplomates continue robust continuing medical education tailored to their actual scope of practice, but do so without high-stakes exams, proprietary modules, or escalating fees that lack strong evidence of patient benefit.
What NBPS is not:
- It is not a substitute for residency training
- It is not a shortcut to calling oneself a specialist
- It is not a credential inflation or marketing board
I agree completely with the core message of your piece: patients deserve clarity about what “board-certified” means, and physicians should be explicit about their training and credentials.
In that spirit, I think NBPS belongs in a separate category from boards that exist primarily for branding, cosmetic expansion, or pseudoscientific practice. While ABMS certification remains the gold standard—especially for hospital-based and procedural specialties—NBPS represents a good-faith attempt to preserve rigor while questioning whether current MOC structures truly serve physicians or patients as well as intended.
NBPS did not come up in my research and was not mentioned in any of the state licensing boards. Thanks for mentioning. I will have to look into it.
Thank you for helping to sort this out; extremely helpful! BUT: These kinds of nuances are useless when we can't find a doctor—certified by any board—who accepts our insurance (Medicare, for example) and is accepting new pts. Just sayin'. Still, love these posts (as you know). x
Yes, that is another issue. And it isn't helped by insurers reimbursing very poorly or doctors leaving en mass for expensive concierge models.
Right and right. x
I was curious to know which board She Who Shall Not Be Named is certified under. Suspiciously, there's no Wikipedia page for her. But there is for Dr. Jen, of course!
Thanks for this explainer! On a somewhat related note, I went down a rabbit hole a few years ago on the American Menopause Society website, which at the time listed the criteria for inclusion on its list of “certified practitioners.” More recently, I visited the site and didn’t find the same kind of information. It could still be on there and I missed it, but if not, maybe you’d consider describing its criteria in a future column?
Again, thanks for all you do to help educate women—and more importantly our ob/gyn physicians—about the latest developments in treating menopause.
Just to keep going on what the user might want - do these ring true?
User problem 1 - Confusion
"I don't understand what 'board certified' means when I see it on a doctor's website, and I don't know if it should give me confidence."
2 - Deception detection
"I suspect I'm being misled by credential language, but I don't have the tools to verify what's real vs. marketing."
3 - : Training mismatch
"I'm seeing a doctor for X, but I don't know if they actually trained in X or learned it at a weekend course."
4- Comparison
"I'm choosing between several doctors and want to understand who has the most relevant training for my specific need."
5- Post-hoc understanding
"Something went wrong with my care, and now I'm trying to understand if my doctor was actually qualified to do what they did."
Anyone who wants to noodle on this with me can DM but it's an interesting problem!
As a board-certified Ob/Gyn I agree with you to some extent. Since I know some examiners and how they get selected I have to say it is an old-boys-network.
I agree that there needs to be some degree if maintaining one’s competence and to stay up to date on research, not sure that the way it’s done is the way. I have also not seen any effort by the board to make it more relevant.
I am old so actually had to take the exam which was kind of a joke… just saying.
Thank you for this!
Pulling together that information probably doesn't require MK Scott money. I can noodle on how to do that but what is of interest is when would a consumer ever want this info. My guess is that most people don't vet their doctors until they have a bad experience...but to Valerie's point earlier, the driving factor in Dr. choice is, I'm guessing: insurance coverage, physical location, telehealth options, are they recommended by a friend, or did you see them on tik tok or substack!
I would imagine due diligence might crank up a bit on the elective things like plastic surgery or probably something more serious like cancer.... otherwise people would trust a referral or the insurance company to 'pick someone good'.
This tool would solve a problem I suspect people don't know they have, again, until perhaps they have a bad experience. So not only is it an issue of designing the tool but also educating people why they should use it? I'd love to see in the comments more about how people might use it and what they would hope to get out of it. How meaningful is it, say, that board X requires Y hours of something vs Z hours? How is that going to be meaningful to a layperson like me?
Finally, I did use this to look up the new person I'm using for my hormone treatment - and she is board certified in endocrinology. I went from an obgyn who refused to prescribe T, to medispa NP who was putting in the work to become a hormone expert, to an endocrinologist. I think a deep dive into how many medispa types are providing hormones might be interesting but that's another topic!
Thank you for writing this. This is fantastic and as a board certified OB/GYN, I find myself nodding and agreeing with everything you say! I do try to take the time to explain this to patients to some degree so they understand the difference between a veritable board certified physician in their specialty and someone who crosses over like a Dr. Oz or Peter Attia. Question because I think I've said this wrong I usually tell patients that Peter Attia completed a surgery residency and then a surgery oncology fellowship and then branched into longevity medicine. Did he not complete his general surgery residency? Not nitpicking I just don't want to describe this incorrectly. Thanks for all you do! You're making us obgyns proud!!!
No, he left before finishing. There is some vagueness when exactly, but he did not finish and left to work at McKinsey. He worked there for a while and then had his podcast and did work with Gary Brecka, which is choice. And then he opened his private practice, in 2014 I believe, where he sees fewer than 100 people a year. He doesn’t have a vast clinical experience and is not board certified.
Mark Cuban should comment on this topic as it affects healthcare costs.
Thank you for writing this. I did not realize how all of those things work. And, thanks to your link, I found that my primary is indeed "board certified."
So helpful. Thank you! My social media feed is clogged with menopause specialists...I am trying to find a good gyn in NYC. This helps!
Dr. Gunter, how is a lay person to research if a “new specialty” obesity and weight management is working towards ABMS certification? Thank you.
The American Board of Obesity Medicine is, to my understanding, considered a credible non-ABMS board. A member must also be ABMS certified.
Thank you so much. Have a lovely weekend.
Thank you for this information.