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What it Means to Be Board Certified and Board Eligible
Picking a doctor is one of the most important decisions we can make. This is someone who will counsel, advise, identify, and treat everything that changes, improves, and diminishes in your body. It’s important that we can make an informed decision. But it’s just as important for us to feel comfortable with who we choose. Maybe we choose them because they share something in common with us. No matter what we’re looking for in a doctor, it’s important that above all else, they are qualified, and that means being board certified.
What Board Certification Is
In order to become a doctor, there are several levels. The first level is the completion of college. After that, an aspiring physician will undergo four, hard-working years of medical school. At this time, they are eligible to be licensed by a state-issued permit (indicated by the title, M.D. or D.O.). However, in order to practice medicine, medical school is followed by the next level, which is what’s called residency and fellowship, which is additional training and experience that is integral to being more qualified. It is only after that, doctors are eligible to be board certified.
Board certification is essentially the highest level of training. A doctor has gotten their education, acquired the right amount of experience, and now they’re showing how well they can apply the information they’ve learned. At this stage, doctors decide on a specialty. Do they want to focus on the heart? The blood? Body reconstruction? Whether a cardiologist, hematologist, or plastic surgeon — in order to be board certified, all will need additional training that a committee of the field’s top specialists believe is consistent with the expertise, and standards required to practice medicine.
Why Board Certification Matters
You can tell if a doctor is officially board certified by who certified them. In this case, either the American Board of Facial Plastic & Reconstructive Surgery (ABFPRS), the American Board of Otolaryngology-Head & Neck Surgery (ABOTO), or the American Board of Plastic Surgery. These boards have official websites that you can check in order to make sure your doctor is, in fact, board certified. This is crucial to finding out who’s qualified. Again, doctors are tasked with a serious, and sometimes grave responsibility. Are you a woman in need of breast reconstruction? Get a qualified surgeon to handle your body’s needs. Are you looking to make a surgical decision about your facial features? Get a qualified surgeon to handle chin augmentation. Do you need to make a personal decision about your body’s curves? Find a qualified surgeon who can delicately handle the desired Brazilian butt lift. For the most qualified professionals to handle your most intimate decisions, find out more at My Houston Surgeons.
