AMA seeks to coordinate physician re-entry programs

The American Medical Association (AMA) announced new recommendations to improve the process for physicians who want to re-enter clinical medical practice after years in academic, business or personal pursuits.

Currently, every state has different re-entry requirements, and other barriers include high costs, limited information and resources, and a lack of standardized curricula and accreditation. The AMA issued 16 recommendations in five broad areas, including homogenizing regulatory policies across state medical boards, increasing the consistency of and possibly accrediting physician re-entry programs, studying the performance of re-entering physicians, funding the system and ensuring collaboration among all stakeholders.

The AMA's new recommendations are meant to help state medical licensing boards, the Federation of State Medical Boards, state and specialty societies and medical education programs develop and implement re-entry programs. National re-entry policy guidelines must be developed that are consistent and evidence-based, the AMA said in a press release. They should specify the length of time away from practice that necessitates participation in a re-entry process and how much clinical care constitutes active practice.

About 10,000 physicians could re-enter clinical practice in the U.S. each year, said AMA President Cecil B. Wilson, MACP. “Easing the re-entry process can help increase the physician workforce and improve access to care for patients. These new recommendations are aimed at helping ease a range of challenges physicians can face as they pursue re-entry,” he said.

ACP Internistprofiles physicians who have re-entered clinical practice, as well as the programs that certify physicians for practice after years of being away from clinical duties, in its February issue.