All diplomates are encouraged to participate on a voluntary basis; however, diplomates who were certified prior to January 1, 2001, are not required to participate as their certificates have lifetime validity.

Participation is mandatory for diplomates who were certified in 2001 or later and who want to maintain their certification. Their certificates are valid for 10 years, through December 31 of the tenth year following certification. Thus, a diplomate certified on June 26, 2003, or September 19, 2003, must complete MOC in FPRS℠ by December 31, 2013.

The lifetime certificate of a diplomate who fails to complete the MOC in FPRS℠ program will remain valid.

Time-limited certificates will expire if MOC in FPRS℠ program requirements are not met by their expiration date. At the time, inquires at the board’s office about a surgeon’s status will be answered by stating the date of his or her original certificate and its expiration date.

A surgeon whose certificate has expired because he/she simply did not apply to the MOC in FPRS℠ program will be offered an uncertified grace period for up to two years. If the lapsed diplomate accepts the “grace period,” he/she agrees to complete MOC in FPRS℠ requirements as soon as possible within the 2-year period. Once all requirements are met, the lapsed diplomate is reinstated and begins a new 10-year cycle based on the original anniversary date.

At the end of two years, if the lapsed ABFPRS diplomate hasn’t completed MOC in FPRS℠ requirements, he/she must retake the initial primary certifying examination and submit all other initial certification requirements in order to regain certification.

Yes. The MOC in FPRS℠ process is the same for diplomates who hold lifelong certificates and enter it voluntarily and those who are required to do so to maintain their certification.

Yes. For lifelong certificants, MOC in FPRS℠ certificates will be good for a 10-year period, from the date the program is completed until December 31 in the 10th year to follow. Their primary certification, however, does not expire. Surgeons holding timelimited certification are eligible to take the Maintenance of Certification in Facial Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery® examination three years prior to their certification expiration date. Upon successful completion of the Maintenance of Certification in Facial Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery® program, the surgeon’s certification would be valid for 10 years from the expiration date of his/her original time-limited certificate, not from the year of the examination.

Further, MOC in FPRS℠ certificates may be revoked for cause.

The ABFPRS endorses the four principles approved by the ABMS, including evaluation of professional standing, evidence of lifelong learning, demonstration of cognitive expertise, and assessment of practice performance.

Professional standing will be assessed in a number of ways, including:

• Possession of a valid ABFPRS certificate.
• Possession of a current, earned certificate from the American Board of Otolaryngology, or the American Board of Plastic Surgery, or from the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons in Canada (in otolaryngology/head-and-neck surgery or plastic surgery).
• Possession of an unrestricted license to practice medicine in a state, commonwealth, territory, or possession of the U.S. or a province of Canada.
• Acceptable responses to a questionnaire regarding past or pending adverse actions by state medical boards, hospital privileging committees, employers, medical societies, courts of law, disciplinary boards, etc.
• Satisfactory status with the Federation of State Medical Boards and the National Practitioners Data Bank.
• Documentation of hospital privileges to practice facial plastic surgery in an accredited institution(s) or satisfactory explanation that lack of privileges is not related to adverse action by accredited institutions; or, if the surgeon operates in an office setting and uses Level II anesthesia or above, documentation of the facility’s accreditation by The Joint Commission (formerly JCAHO), AAAHC, or another third-party entity qualified to issue such accreditation.
• If the surgeon has a history of chemical dependency, documentation of successful completion of a treatment program, attestation to being drug/alcohol free, and submission of a state medical board statement that he/she is physically and mentally able to satisfactorily discharge the responsibilities of practice.
• Attestation to compliance with the ABFPRS Code of Ethics.

From the date of this policy’s promulgation forward, candidates for recertification must complete 50 hours of continuing medical education every two years. All CME must be ACCME-approved Category I of the AMA’s Physician Recognition Program, and 80% of the hours must be relevant to the specialty.

It is each diplomate’s responsibility to maintain his or her CME records.

As a point of information, the AAFPRS Foundation fall meeting is worth up to 20 CMEs, and a major course counts for up to 40 or 45 credits.

Candidates must achieve a passing score on proctored written and oral examinations that are psychometrically validated and scored on an absolute standard. The examination may be repeated a total of three times in three years.

Candidates who want to requalify in both cosmetic and reconstructive facial surgery must retake the then-current primary ABFPRS written and oral examinations. Certificates issued to candidates who take this exam will be unqualified.

Candidates who want to requalify in cosmetic or reconstructive facial surgery may take a modular exam that focuses on cosmetic or reconstructive procedures. Certificates issued to candidates who take this exam will be qualified, stating “with special emphasis in cosmetic [or reconstructive] facial plastic surgery.”

The MOC in FPRS℠ exams will be administered in Washington, D.C., at the same time as the primary examination, to ensure the integrity of the examination process and to safeguard exam materials.

To ensure high practice performance standards, candidates:

1. must submit a sequential operative log that lists all procedures performed during the year preceding submission of an application for the Maintenance of Certification in Facial Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery® program. The sequential operative log must contain a minimum of 50 procedures, which are eligible for credit toward certification as listed on the ABFPRS Acceptable Procedures Chart. Operative reports for the last 35 sequential cases on the sequential operative log must be submitted with the application.
2. may submit such other evidence of successful practice performance as the candidate believes demonstrates the caliber of his/her practice, including but not limited to patient satisfaction surveys, risk management and quality assurance programs performed in the candidate’s office, and outcomes research documentation.

The exam is based on multiple sources, so there is no one course of study, but rather it is best to keep up with the general literature in the specialty. These study materials are recommended:

• The ABFPRS practice exam (available online at www.www.abfprs.org)
• AAFPRS Foundation courses
• Courses offered by other surgical specialty societies
• AAFPRS Curriculum Compendium Bibliography (available online at www.aafprs.org)
• ABFPRS Reading List (available online at www.www.abfprs.org)
• General literature in the field

The fee to register for the Maintenance of Certification in Facial Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery® program is $250. The fee to submit an application is $1,000.

Candidates must register to enter the MOC in FPRS℠ program, then complete all MOC in FPRS℠ requirements within three years. Documentation of professional standards, CMEs, and practice performance will be required to qualify to sit for the examination.