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Requirements for Certification

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REQUIREMENTS

The American Osteopathic Board of Surgery (hereafter referred to as the “Board”) will accept for examination for certification only osteopathic physicians who are specializing in General Surgery, Neurological Surgery, Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery, Cardiothoracic Surgery, Urological Surgery, General Vascular Surgery, Surgical Critical Care, or such other surgical specialty that may be assigned to this Board by the AOA Board of Trustees.

Candidates for certification by the AOA through the American Osteopathic Board of Surgery must PROVIDE DOCUMENTARY EVIDENCE of the following requirements:

1. The candidate must have graduated from an AOA-accredited College of Osteopathic Medicine.
2. The candidate must be licensed or credentialed to practice in the state or military jurisdiction where practice is conducted and must provide documentary evidence of an unrestricted license prior to taking an examination.
3. The candidate must conform to the standards set forth in the Code of Ethics of the American Osteopathic Association (AOA).
4. The candidate must be a member in good standing of the AOA or the Canadian Osteopathic Association throughout the certification process. Following the examination process, if a candidate is found to be delinquent in his/her maintenance of membership and/or payment of membership dues, certification may be delayed.
5. The candidate must have satisfactorily completed an AOA-approved OGME-1.
6. EFFECTIVE JULY 1ST, 2009, NEW APPLICANTS MUST HAVE COMPLETED ALL THE PRESCRIBED YEARS OF AN AOA-APPROVED RESIDENCY TRAINING PROGRAM IN THE SURGICAL SPECIALTIES UNDER THE JURISDICTION OF THE BOARD PRIOR TO REGISTERING FOR THE WRITTEN QUALIFYING EXAMINATION. Candidates must have all previous years of residency training reviewed and approved by the Specialty College and its Residency Evaluation and Standards Committee.
7. Candidates who entered the certification process prior to July 1, 2009 must have evidence of satisfactory completion of previous years of an AOA-approved residency training program in the surgical specialties under the jurisdiction of the Board. Candidates must have all previous years of residency training reviewed and approved by the Specialty College and its Residency Evaluation and Standards Committee.
   1. General Surgery:
      1. Four (4) years of training in General Surgery.
      2. Candidates who began their residency training with the required OGME-1R internship year effective in the academic year 2008, five (5) years of training in General Surgery.
   2. Neurological Surgery:
      1. One (1) year of training in General Surgery followed by four (4) years of training in Neurological Surgery.
      2. Five (5) years in Neurological Surgery.
      3. Candidates who began their residency training with the required OGME-1R internship year effective in the academic year 2008, six (6) years of training in Neurological Surgery.
   3. Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery:
      1. Three (3) years of training in General Surgery followed by two (2) years of training in Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery.
      2. Candidates who began their residency training with the required OGME-1R internship year effective in the academic year 2008, three (3) years of training in General Surgery followed by two (2) years of training in Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery.
      3. An AOA-approved and completed residency program in Orthopedic Surgery.
      4. An AOA-approved and completed residency in Otolaryngology/Facial Plastic Surgery.
   4. Cardiothoracic Surgery:
      1. Four (4) years of training in General Surgery followed by two (2) years of training in Cardiothoracic Surgery.
      2. Candidates who began their residency training with the required OGME-1R internship year effective in the academic year 2008, five (5) years of training in General Surgery followed by two (2) years of training in Cardiothoracic Surgery.
   5. Urological Surgery:
      1. Two (2) years of training in General Surgery followed by three (3) years of training in Urological Surgery.
      2. One (1) year of training in General Surgery followed by four (4) years of training in Urological Surgery.
      3. Five (5) years of training in Urological Surgery.
      4. Candidates who began their residency training with the required OGME-1R internship year effective in the academic year 2008, five (5) years of training in Urological Surgery.
   6. General Vascular Surgery:
      1. Four (4) years of training in General Surgery followed by one (1) year of training in General Vascular Surgery.
      2. Candidates who began their residency training with the required OGME-1R internship year effective in the academic year 2008, five (5) years of training in General Surgery followed by one (1) year in General Vascular Surgery.

   At least one (1) year of the surgical specialty training program must encompass all aspects of the particular specialty including adequate training in the basic medical sciences, with emphasis on pathology, physiology and osteopathic principles as related to the specialty. The required number of years of residency training in each specialty are as follows:

8. Candidates for certification in Cardiothoracic Surgery and General Vascular Surgery are required to first pass the written and oral examinations in General Surgery.
9. Following satisfactory compliance with the prescribed requirements for examination, the candidate is required to pass written qualifying and oral certifying examinations which shall be designed, constructed and conducted so as to evaluate the candidate’s understanding of the basic sciences, knowledge of surgical principles and the osteopathic philosophy of surgery as it applies to diagnosis and management of surgical diseases, familiarity with current advances in surgical philosophy and techniques, possession of valid surgical judgment and a high degree of skill in the diagnostic, operative and therapeutic procedures involved in the specialty practice.
10. For candidates entering the certification process for the first time after January 1, 2006, a qualifying and certifying (written and oral) examination are required. A clinical examination is required for candidates who entered the certification process prior to January 1, 2006. NOTE: In order to enter the final phase of certification, the candidate must have achieved program complete status from the Specialty College, and all the documentation requested at the time of original application submission MUST be in the candidate’s file.
11. The clinical examination for certification in General Surgery will be waived for those already certified by a three-part examination in Cardiothoracic Surgery, Urological Surgery, Neurological Surgery, Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery, and General Vascular Surgery provided that:
    1. Documentation from the American College of Osteopathic Surgeons or the AOA that verifies completion of training in a General Surgery residency is on file with the AOBS.
    2. General Surgery written and oral examinations were successfully completed.

• Candidates for examination for certification are required to file an application which shall set forth their qualifications for examination.
• Candidates beginning the certification process for the first time in 1997 and thereafter will be issued a time-dated certificate for a ten (10) year period. The Board will make available, beginning in the 8th year of certification, the opportunity to take the re-certification examination.

Certification of Added Qualifications

Certification of Added Qualification (CAQ) constitutes a modification of a general certificate or certificate of special qualifications to reflect additional training of at least one (1) year in length and satisfactory completion of a certifying examination in that field. The training required for added qualifications must incorporate a specific and identifiable body of knowledge within the broader practice of the general specialty. Certificates read, “Certified in (general field), with Added Qualifications in (added field).”

1. Surgical Critical Care – the candidate must be certified in General Surgery or a surgical specialty and must pass a Surgical Critical Care written examination after one (1) year of ACOS or AOA-approved training in Surgical Critical Care.