Practice Pathway Closing in 2025
Primary Specialty Certification
Practice Pathway: Acceptable Practice Activities
Practice Pathway: Counting Practice Activity Time
Practice Pathway: Graduate Biomedical Informatics Coursework
Practice Pathway Closing in 2025
After the 2025 application cycle concludes, will I be able to apply to sit for the initial certification exam in Clinical Informatics through the practice pathway?
No. After the 2025 application cycle concludes, the only way to become eligible to sit for the initial certification exam in Clinical Informatics will be via the ACGME-accredited fellowship pathway.
If I began to accumulate the required number of practice hours before the practice pathway closes, will I be allowed to complete the remainder of the required practice hours and apply to sit for the initial certification exam in Clinical Informatics after the practice pathway closes?
No. The time-in-practice requirements for Clinical Informatics will only be counted through June 30, 2025. Any practice time after the June 30th deadline will not be counted toward time-in-practice requirements to be eligibile for the Clinical Informatics certification exam through the practice pathway.
What options do I have if my 2025 Clinical Informatics application through the practice pathway is denied?
If your 2025 practice pathway application is denied, you will have thirty days from the date you received your application decision to appeal the Board's decision. Pursuant to ABPM's policies, appeal decisions are final and not subject to further consideration. If your appeal is denied in 2025, the only way to become eligible to take the initial certification exam in Clinical Informatics will be via the ACGME-accredited fellowship pathway. The fee to appeal a denied application decision is $500 and is non-refundable regardless of the outcome of the appeal.
If my 2025 application has been approved, but I either do not take or take and do not pass the initial certification exam in Clinical Informatics during the three-year eligibility window (2025, 2026, 2027), what options do I have thereafter to take the initial certification exam?
If your 2025 application is approved, but you either do not take or take but do not pass the exam in 2025, 2026, and/or 2027, the only way thereafter to become eligible to take the initial certification exam in Clinical Informatics will be via the ACGME-accredited fellowship pathway.
If my application was approved in 2023, but I either do not take or take but do not pass the initial certification exam in Clinical Informatics during my three-year exam eligibility window (2023, 2024, 2025), what options do I have thereafter to sit for the initial certification exam?
If your 2023 application was approved, but you either do not take or take but do not pass the exam in 2023, 2024, and/or 2025, the only way thereafter to become eligible to sit for the initial certification exam is Clinical Informatics will be via the ACGME-accredited fellowship pathway.
If my application was approved in 2024, but I either do not take or take but do not pass the initial certification exam in Clinical Informatics during my three-year exam eligibility window (2024, 2025, 2026), what options do I have thereafter to sit for the initial certification exam?
If your 2024 application was approved but you either did not take or take but do not pass the exam in 2024, 2025, and/or 2026, the only way thereafter to become eligible to sit for the initial certification exam in Clinical Informatics will be via the ACGME-accredited fellowship pathway.
If my practice pathway application is approved in 2025, am I required to take the initial certification exam in 2025?
No, if your application is approved in 2025, you are not required to take the exam in 2025. Physicians whose Clinical Informatics applications are approved in 2025, including those who applied through the practice pathway, are granted a three-year eligibility window to take and pass the initial certification exam. If your practice pathway application is approved in 2025, you may take the exam in 2025, 2026, and/or 2027. If you do take the exam in 2025 but do not pass, you still may retake the exam in either or both 2026 and 2027. Be advised, however, that if you either do not take or take but do not pass the exam during your three-year eligibility period (2025, 2026, 2027), the only way thereafter to become eligible to sit for the initial certification exam in Clinical Informatics will be via the ACGME-accredited fellowship pathway.
Primary Specialty Certification
Will AOA or Canadian board certification fulfill the primary specialty certification requirement?
Yes; primary specialty certification through an ABMS Member Board, the American Osteopathic Association (AOA), the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada (RCPSC), or the College of Family Physicians of Canada (CFPC) will meet the primary certification requirement.
I have not maintained my primary specialty board certification, but I have maintained my subspecialty certification. Will my current certification meet primary specialty board certification requirements to be eligible for Clinical Informatics certification through the ABPM?
Some ABMS boards consider maintaining subspecialty certification as meeting the primary specialty certification requirements. In those cases, the individual is deemed certified in the primary specialty. Primary specialty certification status is determined by each individual board. For more information about qualifying primary specialty certificates, please visit the ABMS website.
Primary specialty certification is a core requirement. Physicians must possess current primary specialty certification through an ABMS Member Board, the American Osteopathic Association (AOA), the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada (RCPSC), or the College of Family Physicians of Canada (CFPC).
Can I be eligible for Clinical Informatics certification if I am not currently certified through an ABMS Member Board?
Current primary specialty certification is a core requirement to be eligible for the Clinical Informatics certification exam.
Current primary specialty certification through an ABMS member board, the American Osteopathic Association (AOA), the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada (RCPSC), or the College of Family Physicians of Canada (CFPC) will satisfy this requirement.
Practice Pathway: Acceptable Practice Activities
What types of practice activity will count toward Clinical Informatics Practice Pathway requirements?
Practice activities that count toward Practice Pathway requirements must fall into one of the following categories:
- Health IT leadership and governance
- Electronic health record systems
- Clinical decision support systems
- Healthcare analytics
- Technology needs assessment
- Informatics-related educational activities
- Other informatics-related activities.
The practice setting (e.g., clinical, academic, or industry) does not affect the acceptabilty of practice activity.
When describing my Clinical Informatics practice activities, how much detail should I include?
In the descriptions of your practice, you should provide evidence that you are involved in broad-based, subspecialty-level Clinical Informatics practice.
Subspecialty-level Clinical Informatics practice must go beyond that of a manager, supervisor, subject matter expert, advisor, consultant, researcher, or champion. In your description, avoid phrases like, "involved in," "worked closely with," or "provided expertise for."
Can I use time in practice during my ACGME-accredited residency or fellowship toward Clinical Informatics practice pathway requirements?
No. Time spent in practice during ACGME-accredited training does not count toward the time-in-practice requirements of the Clinical Informatics practice pathway. To count toward the time-in-practice requirements, you must be the primary decision-making physician, not a trainee or concurrent with time as a trainee.
Can I fulfill a portion of Practice Pathway requirements during my residency or a non-Clinical Informatics fellowship through electives, research, or other activities?
Research, electives, or other activities completed during residency do not count toward Practice Pathway requirements.
Research time during a non-Clinical Informatics fellowship may count toward Practice Pathway requirements, provided that: 1) the fellowship training is not used to satisfy eligibility requirements for another board certification and 2)the research conducted is substantial, Clinical Informatics-related, and can be demonstrated through publications or presentations.
Any other activities completed during a non-Clinical Informatics fellowship do not count toward Practice Pathway requirements.
Will completion of AMIA's 10x10 course count toward Practice Pathway requirements?
ABPM encourages applicants to include in their application any coursework which may supplement their practice experience. Completion of AMIA's 10x10 course may be counted for up to three months of practice time.
During my healthcare system's electronic health record implementation, I provided medical expertise so order sets could be built and I created documentation templates. Will these activities count toward Clinical Informatics Practice Pathway requirements?
Content expertise does not qualify as significant, subspecialty-level Clinical Informatics practice and, therefore, it does not count toward Practice Pathway requirements.
Practice Pathway: Counting Practice Activity Time
If I do not meet the 36 required months of practice, can I still qualify for the initial certification exam through the practice pathway?
To qualify for the Clinical Informatics practice pathway, you must document a minimum of 36 months of practice experience at a minimum 25% FTE (10 hours per week). If you have completed any Clinical Informatics graduate coursework, you can submit an official transcript and course description in addition to your practice time.
I have been practicing Clinical Informatics full time (40 hours per week) for the past 24 months. Can I still qualify for the practice pathway since I have been practicing above a 25% FTE (10 hours per week), but for less than the required 36 months?
No. Practice time must be completed at a minimum 25% FTE (10 hours per week) over a minimum of 36 months. These hours cannot be averaged; therefore, and by way of example and not limitation, practicing for 24 months at 40 hours per week will not qualify you for the initial certification exam through the practice pathway.
How many hours per week, on average, must I work in Clinical Informatics to be eligible for the certification exam through the Practice Pathway?
Practice time must occur over at least ten hours per week (i.e., 25% of a full-time, 40-hour-per-week position) on average to count toward practice pathway requirements.
Applicants will document the average number of hours they work in Clinical Informatics per week and must include detailed descriptions of their Clinical Informatics activities.
I worked one month in decision support at .15 FTE and another month in informatics research at .10 FTE. Will this combined effort count as one month at .25 FTE?
No, these activities cannot be combined to count as one month at .25 FTE. However, if both activities had occurred during the same month, they could be added and may count toward practice pathway requirements.
For 12 months, I worked a varying amount of hours in Clinical Informatics. In some months, my Clinical Informatics work averaged six hours per week (.15 FTE) while other months it averaged 20 hours per week (.5 FTE). Will this year count toward the practice requirements of the Practice Pathway?
Yes, if your Clinical Informatics work activity averaged .25 FTE, or ten or more hours per week, it may be counted toward Practice Pathway requirements.
Practice Pathway: Graduate Biomedical Informatics Coursework
I completed a graduate degree in Clinical Informatics. Will this count toward Practice Pathway requirements?
Completion of a Clinical Informatics graduate degree program may fulfill the practice time requirements of the Practice Pathway. To request credit for your graduate coursework, please provide your graduate program transcript and curriculum.
I am currently pursuing a Master's degree in Clinical Informatics. My degree will not be conferred until the end of 2025. What options do I have to qualify for the initial certification exam through the practice pathway in 2025?
ABPM does not provide pre-approvals for practice time or graduate coursework. We cannot guarantee that a Master's degree completed after June 30, 2025, will be accepted. However, you do have the option to submit practice time with an in-progress degree. You must submit an official transcript and course descriptions for any graduate coursework for which you are seeking credit.
How can I tell if my graduate degree program will count toward Clinical Informatics Practice Pathway requirements?
ABPM does not maintain a list of "approved" graduate-degree programs. ABPM evaluates each graduate-degree program is evaluated individually. In its review, the Board considers the number of credit hours completed (regardless of time spent in the program), course descriptions provided by the applicant, and the breadth of topics covered in the program.
ABPM is most likely to approved graduate degrees that are specifically in the Clinical Informatics domain or have a strong clinical-informatics focus.
General healthcare-related degrees (e.g., MHA, MBA) that include some amount of informatics content are less likely to be accepted by the Board to fully replace practice time requirements. However, time spent in informatics courses may be applied toward and partially fulfill practice time requirements.
Board-certified Clinical Informatics physicians review all applicants and supporting documentation to determine if a specific graduate degree will count toward practice pathway requirements.
Will a Clinical Informatics graduate degree program that is less than 24 months long count toward Practice Pathway requirements?
While a Clinical Informatics graduate program that consists of at least 32 credit hours may completely fulfill the practice time requirements of the Clinical Informatics Practice Pathway, a Clinical Informatics graduate program that is fewer than 32 credit hours may partially fulfill Practice Pathway requirements.
To request credit for your graduate coursework, please provide your graduate program transcript and curriculum. You will also need to describe your Clinical Informatics practice activities.
Do I need to finish my Clinical Informatics graduate degree program by June 30, 2025, to apply it toward Practice Pathway requirements?
If you complete your graduate program by June 30, 2025, it may fully satisfy Practice Pathway requirements. However, if the program is not finished by that date, the coursework you did complete may partially fulfill Practice Pathway requirements. In the latter case, you will also need to include descriptions of your Clinical Informatics practice activities in your application.
The Clinical Informatics practice pathway closes at the end of the 2025 exam cycle. Beginning in 2026, you will need to complete an ACGME-accredited Clinical Informatics fellowship to be eligible for the certification exam.
Do I need to complete a capstone project during my 32-credit hour Clinical Informatics graduate degree program in order for it to fulfill the practice activity requirements of the Practice Pathway?
Your 32-credit-hour Clinical Informatics graduate program does not need to include a capstone project to fulfill practice pathway requirements. However, if you do complete a capstone project, please include the details of the project in the coursework section of your application.