Dr Amit Mehta
Amit Mehta, MD, a third-year gastroenterology fellow at New York-Presbyterian/Weill Cornell Medical Center, has a clear career goal in mind. "I'm hoping to focus on endobariatrics," he said, referring to relatively new procedures that promote weight loss via endoscopy, such as endoscopic sleeve gastroplasty.
His more immediate goal, however, is to pass the American Board of Obesity Medicine (ABOM) certification exam and become an obesity medicine specialist. He and about 1400 other physicians are scheduled to take the 1-day exam during the February 18-25 testing period at computer-based testing centers in the United States and Canada and through live remote proctoring. Becoming certified, Mehta says, will help him better understand obesity and offer his patients more comprehensive treatment.
This year's pool of applicants hoping to become diplomates of the ABOM is 40% higher than last year and the greatest number taking the exam to date. And that's just the beginning, says John Cleek, MD, ABOM's board chairman and medical director of obesity medicine at Roper St. Francis Physician Partners in Charleston, South Carolina.
In 2012, the first year ABOM conferred certification, 224 physicians became diplomates. Currently, 4152 physicians are certified by ABOM. If all of the 2021 applicants pass, it will bring the number of physicians certified in obesity medicine to more than 5500 in the United States and Canada, Cleek notes.
