Physician Re-entry

The AMA defines physician re-entry as "a return to clinical practice in the discipline in which one has been trained or certified following an extended period of clinical inactivity not resulting from discipline or impairment." (See more facts on physician re-entry.)

The issue of physician re-entry into the workforce is growing in importance. Anecdotal evidence indicates that re-entry into the workforce will affect women more often than men (and the numbers of women entering medical school continue to grow), but this is an issue that cuts across genders and specialties.

To address this concern, a number of organizations and individuals are collaborating to examine re-entry and create guidelines, recommendations, and strategies to assist physicians and ensure access to care for patients. The AMA, through its Council on Medical Education (CME), continues to play an active role in this regard.

• The AMA held a conference on physician re-entry in May 2010, in collaboration with the Federation of State Medical Boards (FSMB) and the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP), to develop recommendations for a coordinated national approach to re-entry
• The AMA's annual book State Medical Licensure Requirements and Statistics includes a table on re-entry regulations of state medical boards
• An educational seminar, "Physician Re-entry to Clinical Practice: What You Need To Know," was held at the 2010 Interim Meeting of the AMA House of Delegates meeting in San Diego, Nov. 6. The presentation by Claudette Dalton, MD, is now available
• Article on regulatory challenges in re-entry (Journal of Medical Regulation, 2011)
• The AMA collaborated with the AAP to convene the Physician Re-entry into the Workforce Conference in September 2008
• AMA Bibliography on Physician Re-entry and Re-entry-Related Resources
• AMA Physician Re-entry Program Questionnaire and Results
• Physician Re-entry to Practice: Data to Guide Program Development - AMA CME Report, November 2009
• AMA CME report on physician re-entry, June 2008
• Re-entry to Physician Workforce Problematic (GME e-Letter)
• AMA seeks clear path for doctors' re-entry into medicine (American Medical News)
• A national survey of 'inactive'physicians in the United States of America: enticements to reentry (co-authored by AMA-staff), Human Resources for Health, February 2011

Also, check out a new toolkit from the American Academy of Pediatrics for physicians seeking re-entry into medicine, as well as the website of the Physician Re-entry into the Workforce Project

Re-entry Programs

Note: This list is for informational purposes only. A listing here does not indicate endorsement by the AMA.

• The Cedars-Sinai Medical Center Physician Re-entry Program (Los Angeles, California)
• Drexel Medicine Physician Refresher/Re-Entry Course (Philadelphia, Pennsylvania)
• University of California San Diego School of Medicine Physician Assessment and Clinical Education Program (PACE) (San Diego, California)
• University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health Wisconsin Physician Assessment Center (Madison, Wisconsin)
• Upstate New York Clinical Competency Center at Albany Medical College (Albany, New York)
• Texas A & M Health Science Center KSTAR Program (Fort Worth, Texas)