Why a national examination board for functional medicine?
The goal of the American Board of Functional Medicine is to create a public standard of educational requirements and diagnostic skills for practitioners advertising themselves as functional medicine practitioners.
Prior to the ABFM, no standards existed for one of the fastest growing medical specialties. Patients and referring physicians were completely unaware of the doctor's "functional medicine" training or experience. As we are all now fully aware, there is a great disparity between the educational backgrounds of these practitioners. While some have completed only a weekend course others have opted for a more rigorous academic program.
The Board servers as a national credentialing agency to ensure the integrity and competency of the education for practitioners of functional medicine. I am proud to have been a part of such a historic board and look forward to its ongoing success.
A personal note from the founder - Dr. Patrick Garrett
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