Ahmed Abdul-Kareem H, Schnatz Peter F, Adashi Eli Y
Warren Alpert Medical School, Brown University.
Fam Med. 2017 May;49(5):374-377.
In 1968, the American Medical Association resolved to accept qualified graduates of osteopathic medical schools into its accredited Graduate Medical Education (GME) programs. An equally momentous decision was arrived at in 2014 when the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education (ACGME), the American Osteopathic Association (AOA), and the American Association of Colleges of Osteopathic Medicine (AACOM) resolved to institute a single unified GME accreditation system by July 1, 2020. As envisioned, the unified accreditation system will all but assure system-wide consistency of purpose and practice in anticipation of the Next Accreditation System (NAS) of the ACGME. Governance integration replete with AOA and AACOM and osteopathic representation on the ACGME Board of Directors is now well underway. What is more, osteopathic representation on current Review Committees (RCs) and in a newly established one with an osteopathic focus has been instituted. Viewed broadly, the unification of the GME accreditation system goes a long way toward recognizing the overlapping characteristics in the training and practice of allopathic and osteopathic medicine. As such, this momentous development represents the latest, indeed boldest leap toward convergence between the two historic branches of American medicine. In this Health Policy Analysis we seek to place the impending unification of the GME accreditation process in its historical context, delineate its near-term impact, and discuss the potential long-term implications thereof.
1968年，美国医学协会决定接纳整骨医学院的合格毕业生进入其认可的毕业后医学教育（GME）项目。2014年达成了一项同样重大的决定，当时毕业后医学教育认证委员会（ACGME）、美国整骨疗法协会（AOA）和美国整骨疗法医学院协会（AACOM）决定在2020年7月1日前建立一个统一的GME认证系统。正如所设想的那样，统一认证系统几乎可以确保在ACGME的下一代认证系统（NAS）预期下，全系统在目标和实践上的一致性。AOA和AACOM以及整骨疗法代表在ACGME董事会中的治理整合目前正在顺利进行。此外，目前的评审委员会（RCs）以及一个新设立的专注于整骨疗法的评审委员会中都有整骨疗法代表。从广义上看，GME认证系统的统一在很大程度上有助于认识到对抗疗法和整骨疗法在培训和实践中的重叠特征。因此，这一重大发展代表了美国医学这两个历史分支走向融合的最新、也是最大胆的飞跃。在本健康政策分析中，我们试图将即将到来的GME认证过程的统一置于其历史背景中，描述其近期影响，并讨论其潜在的长期影响。
