Physician Attitudes on the Status, Value, and Future of Board Certification in Lifestyle Medicine

Abstract

Objective: To assess physician attitudes on the status, value, and future of board certification in lifestyle medicine (LM). Study design: Cross-sectional survey of physician members of the American College of LM. Methods: A 49-item, web-based survey with a 5-point Likert response scale. Results: The 351 respondents did not differ significantly from the eligible sample of 6334 members regarding gender (68% female), country of residence (88% U.S), or census region, but did include more ABLM diplomates (63% vs 22%). Certification by ABLM was considered a source of personal pride (95% agree or strongly agree) that could help in marketing clinical services (85%) and potentially increase job opportunities (60%). Certification by ABLM is sufficient for certification needs (67%), but there was interest (65%) in LM becoming a member board of the American Board of Medical Specialties (ABMS) as an aspirational goal (48%). Few respondents (22%) practiced intensive therapeutic lifestyle change (ITLC) even though most (57%) considered it an essential aspect of LM. There was agreement (94%) that LM is essential to mainstream medicine. Conclusion: Survey respondents, regardless of certification status, agreed that becoming an ABLM diplomate both meets their certifying needs and offers substantial benefits, with the caveat that ABMS recognition is an aspirational goal.