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APWCA - Physician Certification Exam (FAQs)
I am a current APWCA Fellow, do I need to take the certification exam to
maintain my status?
Answer: No. Current Fellows do not need to be involved in the examination
process to maintain their “Fellow” status. They are grandfathered in to that
designation based on the current requirements. They must maintain licensure, be
board certified in their field of medicine or in wound care, and obtain a
minimal amount of continuing medical education in wound care on a regular basis
(currently 21 CME every 3 years).
I am a Fellow of the APWCA, why would I want to sit for the Physician
Certification Examination?
Answer: It is the member’s choice as to whether he/she wishes to have an
opportunity to attain an added credential, that is “a certification in wound
care”. In the future, it will likely be required that to become a fellow of the
APWCA a Physician would have to successfully complete this, or a similar,
examination process. Current Fellows avoid that potential future necessity.
As the field progresses, it is the opinion of many that physician certification
in wound care will become highly desirable and ultimately potentially required.
It is for that reason, a significant number of current APWCA Fellows have
requested the ability to sit for the certification examination.
What makes this certification process different from others that are already
available in wound care?
Answer: There is currently not a certification process in wound care available
specifically for physicians. There are two options for certification which are
open to all disciplines of wound care specialists: physicians, nurses, physical
therapists, etc all sitting for, and take the same examination process. Nurses
currently have the ability to be certified as a WOCN, which is specifically
written for, and administered to, nurses. It is nurse specific. Dr. Robert
Bartlett, who chairs the Physician Examination Committee, and others he has
worked with who are leaders and members of the American College of Hyperbaric
Medicine have identified that there is a need for a Physician oriented process
that recognizes physicians involved in wound care.
Specialty recognition, residency development, and related board certification by
allopathic, osteopathic, and podiatric medicine is the goal, but it is years
away. Until the development of such is attained, this physician certification
will serve to acknowledge physicians with keen interest and knowledge in the
field of wound care.
What is APWCA’s role in the examination process?
Answer: APWCA was initially needed to assist in providing funding and
question writers to develop the examination process. Field testing has
been completed as of March 2008, at which point all data was turned over to
participants from the Council for Medical Education & Testing (CMET).
APWCA is pleased to endorsed this first wound care certification process only
for physicians.
Does one need to be a member of APWCA to sit for this examination?
Answer: No. The examination is open to all physicians who seek certification in
wound care. The current concept is that the examination will serve as a method
for physicians in the future to become Fellows of the APWCA.
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