APMA News - July/August 2021 - 11

The Joint Task Force of Orthopaedic
and Podiatric Surgeons
O
n May 6, APMA and its partners on the Joint Task
Force of Orthopaedic and Podiatric Surgeons announced
the outcome of nearly two years of collaboration
on mutually beneficial goals. The four participating
organizations, the American Academy of Orthopaedic
Surgeons (AAOS), the American College of Foot and Ankle
Surgeons (ACFAS), the American Orthopaedic Foot & Ankle
Society (AOFAS), and APMA unanimously endorsed a white
paper, which addresses the goal of equivalency in education
pathways and certification. The task force also produced a
resolution that was submitted for consideration at the June
2021 Special Meeting of the American Medical Association
(AMA) House of Delegates.
Both the white paper and resolution demonstrated the
goal shared by orthopaedists and podiatrists in standardizing
education and accreditation for care of the foot, ankle,
and lower leg.
Since the announcement, several misconceptions emerged
about the white paper and the AMA resolution. In this article,
we debunk the myths and share the facts about what is an
important step forward in our relationship with other specialties
and our advancement as a profession.
* Misconception: Podiatrists will be required to take the
USMLE for licensure.
Fact: The efforts of the Joint Task Force of Orthopaedic
and Podiatric Surgeons are designed to persuade the National
Board of Medical Examiners (NBME) to grant podiatric
medical students and graduates of CPME-accredited
colleges of podiatric medicine access to take the USMLE.
Currently, only allopathic students and graduates, osteopathic
students and graduates, and certain foreign medical
school students and graduates are allowed to take the
USMLE.
* Misconception: The white paper published by the task
force concedes that podiatrists are not currently physicians.
Fact: The white paper discusses the fact that there currently
is disagreement amongst the four organizations represented
on the task force as to podiatrists' status as physicians. APMA
and ACFAS are adamant in our position that podiatrists are
physicians. AAOS and AOFAS want proof that our education
and training meet the same standards that mark our allopathic
and osteopathic colleagues as physicians. The white
paper establishes a set of criteria that all four organizations
agree qualify an individual as a physician.
* Misconception: We have given control of our profession to
other organizations.
Fact: Nothing could be further from the truth. The reality
is that the NBME controls access to the USMLE, and AMA
is the organization that can best facilitate discussions with
the NBME about access to the exam for podiatrists. Once
we gain access, how we proceed is completely in our control.
It will be up to our podiatric medical schools to decide
if it is reasonable, desirable, and feasible to prepare their
students to take and pass the USMLE. If our students begin
taking and passing the examination, as a profession, we
have many options about how to proceed.
* Misconception: APMA Resolution 4-19 only allowed the
joint task force to have discussions with AMA about the
USMLE.
Fact: The pertinent " resolved " clause in 4-19 stated, " work
with AMA to facilitate discussions with the NBME... . "
Working with AMA included developing our resolution to
the AMA House of Delegates. Our resolution prompts AMA
to pursue discussions with NBME.
The California Podiatric Medical Association (CPMA), the
maker of Resolution 4-19, recently released the following
statement: " Resolution 4-19 ... passed on consent agenda
with multiple states and organizations signing on. CPMA is
proud of the work of the national task force and fully supports
the recently released white paper and AMA resolution. [These
are] exactly the actions that CPMA hoped the national task
force would take based on the passage of Resolution 4-19. "
The goals included in Resolution 4-19 were first reported
to the 2006 House of Delegates meeting, during which the
Vision 2015 Task Force established that the final proof of
parity would be the ability of podiatric medical students to
take and pass the same examinations as allopathic and osteopathic
medical students.
The AMA House of Delegates meeting was held virtually in
June, effectively limiting the number of resolutions the house
could consider. The AMA did not prioritize the resolution
from the joint task force for consideration during that meeting.
The joint task force remains committed to this process,
however, and plans to reintroduce the resolution at the November
meeting of the AMA House of Delegates. Watch your
APMA publications for more information to come.
To learn more about the white paper and the resolution,
visit www.apma.org/jointtaskforce. n
APMA News July/August 2021 11

https://www.apma.org/files/Joint%20Task%20Force%20of%20Orthopaedic%20and%20Podiatric%20Surgeons%20-%20White%20Paper.pdf https://www.apma.org/files/Joint%20Task%20Force%20of%20Orthopaedic%20and%20Podiatric%20Surgeons%20-%20White%20Paper.pdf https://www.apma.org/files/Joint%20Task%20Force%20of%20Orthopaedic%20and%20Podiatric%20Surgeons%20-%20AMA%20Resolution.pdf https://www.ama-assn.org/house-delegates/special-meeting http://www.apma.org/jointtaskforce

APMA News - July/August 2021

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