Mandated State Medical Licensing Board Disclosures Regarding Resident Performance

Area of Science:

• Medical Licensure
• Graduate Medical Education
• Physician Training Verification

Background:

• State medical licensing boards require program directors (PDs) to complete verification of training (VOT) forms for physician licensure.
• Existing residency program evaluations use Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education (ACGME) core competencies, but licensing boards lack uniform metrics for assessing academic competency.

Purpose of the Study:

• To determine the specific performance metrics that PDs are mandated to disclose on state licensing VOT forms.

Main Methods:

• A comprehensive online search was conducted to obtain VOT forms from allopathic medical licensing boards across 50 states, Washington, DC, and 5 US territories.
• Forms were systematically reviewed and categorized based on disciplinary actions, documents on file, resident actions, and non-disciplinary actions.
• Independent review by multiple individuals ensured accuracy and consistency in data extraction and discrepancy resolution.

Main Results:

• While 45 of 56 jurisdictions accept the Federation Credentials Verification Service (FCVS), 33 states maintain their own unique VOT forms, with 10 mandating FCVS use.
• The majority of states inquire about probation (43), disciplinary actions (41), and investigations (37).
• Questions regarding resident performance metrics are inconsistently addressed, with some states' forms lacking such inquiries.

Conclusions:

• Significant variability exists in the required VOT forms among states and territories for allopathic physicians.
• Current VOT forms predominantly emphasize disciplinary actions rather than incorporating the performance assessment tools utilized by PDs.