Interventional cardiology fellow Colin Hirst, MD, practices medicine at Tufts Medical Center in Boston, Massachusetts. Since graduating from Albany Medical College, Colin Hirst, MD, has completed several years of post-doctoral training in cardiology, cardiovascular diseases, and internal medicine, and joined such professional organizations as the American College of Cardiology (ACC).

In an effort to improve heart health and cardiovascular care, the ACC announced a new maintenance of certification (MOC) option at its 2019 annual meeting in March.

Known as the Collaborative Maintenance Pathway (CMP), the new program was developed via collaboration between ACC and the American Board of Internal Medicine (ABIM). It is designed to assist cardiologists with maintaining their ABIM certification and provide professionals with access to an ACCSAP-based performance assessment and educational curriculum.

Individuals can only participate in the CMP if it is offered in their specialty. Currently, the organization expects to roll out different specialities in the months following the CMP’s release. These include interventional cardiology, clinical cardiac electrophysiology, and heart failure, all of which are expected to be made available in 2020. Aside from that, professionals must hold a current ABIM certification before participating in the new program.

Following 2019, passing the CMP Performance Assessment each year will satisfy professionals’ need to pass the traditional MOC examination. During 2019, professionals who participate in both the CMP and the program’s Performance Assessment will not see their certification status change. If they skip the exam portion in 2019, professionals will see their certification status change to “not certified.”