PM&R Guide  Physical Medicine Rehabilitation Associations 
Bookmark Detail

American Board of Physical Medicine & Rehabilitation Recommend to a Friend... Gold Bookmark 
The ABPMR is an independent, non-profit organization, receives no public funds and does not issue licenses. The ABPMR comprises a distinguished board of nationally recognized leaders in physical medicine and rehabilitation medical education, clinical practice, academic medicine, and research.
About the ABPMR

What is the ABPMR?  

Founded in 1947, the American Board of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation is one of the 24 certifying boards of the American Board of Medical Specialties. The ABPMR is an independent, non-profit organization, receives no public funds and does not issue licenses.

The ABPMR comprises a distinguished board of nationally recognized leaders in physical medicine and rehabilitation medical education, clinical practice, academic medicine, and research. The ABPMR establishes the requirements for certification and maintaining certification, creates its examinations, strives to improve training, and contributes to setting the standards for physical medicine and rehabilitation.

Definition of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation  

Physical medicine and rehabilitation (PM&R), also referred to as physiatry, is a medical specialty concerned with diagnosis, evaluation, and management of persons of all ages with physical and/or cognitive impairment and disability. This specialty involves diagnosis and treatment of patients with painful or functionally limiting conditions, the management of comorbidities and co-impairments, diagnostic and therapeutic injection procedures, electrodiagnostic medicine, and emphasis on prevention of complications of disability from secondary conditions.

Physiatrists are trained in the rehabilitation of neurologic disorders, and in the diagnosis and management of impairments of the musculoskeletal (including sports and occupational aspects) and other organ systems, and the long-term management of patients with disabling conditions. Physiatrists provide leadership to multidisciplinary teams concerned with maximal restoration or development of physical, psychological, social, occupational and vocational functions in persons whose abilities have been limited by disease, trauma, congenital disorders or pain to enable people to achieve their maximum functional abilities.

Core Values  

The American Board of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation's core values provide a solid foundation for our specialty and subspecialty certification programs. We are committed to these eight fundamentals that reflect and uphold our mission:

    * Dedication to excellence
    * Public assurance of high quality patient care
    * Standard setting
    * Science-based medicine
    * Professionalism
    * Leadership
    * Accountability
    * Autonomy

Purpose of Certification   Back to top

The intent of the certification process as defined by Member Boards of the ABMS is to provide assurance to the public that a certified medical specialist has successfully completed an accredited residency training program and an evaluation, including an examination process, designed to assess the knowledge, experience and skills requisite to the provision of high quality patient care in that specialty. Diplomates of the ABPMR possess particular qualifications in this specialty.

Standards of certification are distinct from those of licensure. Possession of a Board certificate does not indicate total qualification for practice privileges, nor does it imply exclusion of other physicians not so certified.

Functions of the Board  

   1. To assist in improving the quality of graduate and continuing education in the specialized medical practice embraced by the field of physical medicine and rehabilitation;
   2. To determine and set requirements and qualifications for physicians who confine their practice to the field of physical medicine and rehabilitation and submit voluntarily to the certification processes of the Board;
   3. To determine, by written and oral examinations and otherwise, which physicians possess such qualifications;
   4. To issue appropriate certification to physicians so determined as possessing such qualifications and adhering to such standards;
   5. To promote the advancement and betterment of the specialty of physical medicine and rehabilitation.


ABPMR Board Staff 
Executive Director
Anthony M Tarvestad JD


Administrator
Donna M Morgan


Examinations Manager

Jill A Hallman


Maintenance of Certification Coordinator

Ruth E Bakken


Senior Computer Systems Programmer/Analyst
Diane C Bur



Medical Editor

Ruth H Hoover

Examinations Coordinator

Karen R Mathias



Staff Assistant-Resident Tracking

Donna Morris


Staff Assistant

Richard E Noll



Administrative Secretary
Susan K Spelhaug


Staff Assistant
Sherri M Tradup



Staff Assistant - Application Processing
Barbara B Young


1
Tuesday, 26 September 2006 / Tuesday, 26 September 2006
Administrator

[ Back ]
Robyne Wilkerson
Our other Physiatry Related Sites by PM&R Resources R. Wilkerson