Listening Sessions

	Physicians felt that their relationship with ABIM in the past had been transactional and only focused on issues specific to their board certification. They didn’t know that they could come to ABIM with concerns, because they didn’t know that anyone would be listening.
	Physicians welcomed personal and authentic interaction with ABIM. They appreciated having a safe space to share their experiences and criticism, along with hopes and ideas for future direction.
	Physicians recognized that ABIM is making an effort to shift programs and policies, especially by creating a longitudinal assessment option. They asked ABIM to continue taking the initiative to share updates and seek their feedback.

There are many more groups that ABIM wants to hear from, and we plan to continue holding listening sessions on a rolling basis. We recognize that no single invitation can reach every physician, and we invite you to share your thoughts, suggestions and feedback at any point.

What we heard

Black Physicians

Chair of ABIM’s Equity Committee, Robert O. Roswell, MD, led a listening session with Black physicians who said that they supported our desire to seek out the data that would uncover any potential bias and disparate outcomes in our exams. They also suggested we get in touch with affinity groups to make more inroads with physicians of color. This would give us the opportunity to invite more diverse voices to the table. “The voice of ABIM has to change. Right now, it sounds white and male,” said one participant.

Early-Career Physicians

Vineet Arora, MD, past member of the ABIM Board of Directors, led a listening session with early-career physicians who shared similar concerns about the complexity of navigating their personal lives in combination with the start of their medical careers, complying with inconsistent or redundant training and documentation requirements across multiple medical organizations and the rising costs of living, practicing medicine and maintaining certification.

They would like ABIM to take a more supportive role in their educational journey. "It’s hard to say whether any organization cares about you. I agree with value of certification, but between the pandemic, childcare and a new job, it makes it hard to think it’s worth it; is it worth it?" said one participant.

Women Physicians

In a session facilitated by ABIM Vice President of Medical Education Research, Lorna Lynn, MD, women physicians wanted to ensure that their colleagues just starting their career weren’t left behind. While new MOC options solved some issues, initial certification hasn’t changed much, and ABIM should “look at the cadence of women’s lives when they have children; postpartum depression, pregnancy loss, clinical depression.”

As a result of these impactful and constructive conversations, ABIM has continued to gather insights with groups of women physicians attending to the unique challenges women might face across their careers.