Enhancing Physician Performance: A Summit Report 

Despite soaring healthcare costs, the current U.S. health system consistently underperforms compared to those of leading industrialized countries and is wholly inadequate to address the pervasive gaps in safety, quality, efficiency, and disparities. Over the past decade, there has been widespread recognition and growing consensus that fundamental change in the public health and personal healthcare delivery systems is needed. The success and timelines of this transition will hinge in part on the degree to which we develop a cohesive and comprehensive approach to improving quality that takes full advantage of the incentives, knowledge, and resources inherent in both market incentives and professional programs. The Enhancing Physician Performance Summit, convened by NQF and the American Board of Medical Specialties (ABMS) in the summer of 2009, was held to initiate a multi-stakeholder dialogue around the role of Board Certification and Maintenance of Certification (MOC) in the broader quality enterprise. The summit served as a platform for key groups to discuss the roles and potential contributions of all types of accountability programs, including those sponsored by consumers, payers, and regulators, and the specialty-specific programs of certification boards.