New ACGME-Accredited Addiction Medicine Fellowship Programs and Their Impact on the Field

Abstract

With the recognition of addiction medicine as a medical subspecialty by the American Board of Medical Specialties (ABMS) in 2016, fellowship training programs for physicians have sprung up across the country at a rapid pace. As of this writing, 70 such fellowship programs exist (including in Canada and Puerto Rico), with most accredited by the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education (ACGME) or in the process of accreditation. This review explores the significant changes that have occurred already due to these training programs and the potential future implications for the field of addiction medicine. Little published information is available on the impact of fellowship-trained addiction specialists on the field or on the treatment of addictions as the accreditation was a recent development. While there is little published information about the impact that ACGME accreditation has had on the field, this article uses existing evidence to suggest areas that accreditation may impact.