New ECFMG Certification Accreditation
Requirement
Characteristics of
Polish Medical School Graduates
Marta van Zanten, Ph.D.
Foundation for Advancement of International Medical
Education and Research (FAIMER)
Educational Commission for Foreign Medical Graduates (ECFMG)
FAIMER®
Overview of presentation
 New ECFMG Certification Requirement
 Description of World Federation for Medical
Education (WFME) Recognition Program
 Demographic characteristics of Polish medical
school graduates in the United States
 USMLE performance of Polish medical school
graduates
FAIMER®
Current ECFMG Certification Requirements
 Medical Education Credentials
 Completion of a curriculum of at least 4 years
 School and graduation year listed as “current” in the
International Medical Education Directory (IMED)

School recognized to grant the MD degree (or equivalent) by local
government
 Primary-source verification of medical diploma and
transcript(s) by ECFMG
 USMLE Exams
 Step 1 Basic Science
 Step 2 Clinical Knowledge (CK)
 Step 2 Clinical Skills (CS)
FAIMER®
New ECFMG Certification Requirement
 Effective in 2023, ECFMG applicants will be
required to graduate from an appropriately
accredited medical school
 Recognition of the accrediting agency by the World
Federation for Medical Education (WFME) will fulfill
this new 2023 requirement
FAIMER®
Purpose of WFME Recognition Program
Develop a mechanism for WFME to “recognize”
accrediting agencies
 Not a substitute for national accreditation
 Facilitates quality improvement and quality assurance
 Ensures trustworthiness of the quality of a medical school
accredited by a recognized accreditation system
 Similar, but not the same as the National Committee on
Foreign Medical Education and Accreditation (NCFMEA)
US DoE process
FAIMER®
WFME Recognition Documents
Policies and Procedures for Recognition of an Accrediting
Agency
• Describes responsibilities and composition of WFME
Recognition Committee, policies, procedures for
conducting a review, appeals, etc.
Criteria for Recognition of an Accrediting Agency
• Describes the standards used by WFME to evaluate an
accrediting agency
Application for Recognition of an Accrediting Agency
• “Self-study” template
www.wfme.org
FAIMER®
WFME Recognition Criteria
• Scope of authority
• Existence and availability of standards
• Type / appropriateness of standards
• Appropriate accreditation process and procedures
• Site visits
• Qualifications and training of accreditation agency staff
• Appropriate process for accreditation decisions
• Controls against conflicts of interest
• Controls against inconsistent application of standards
• Due process
• Availability and dissemination of information
FAIMER®
WFME Recognition Process
1. Accrediting agency contacts WFME to determine
2.
3.
4.
5.
eligibility
Accrediting agency completes the Application for
Recognition
WFME Recognition Team observes accrediting agency
• conducting a site visit of one medical school
• meeting to make accreditation decision of the
medical school
WFME Recognition Team writes a report describing the
accrediting agency’s compliance with the Recognition
Criteria
WFME Recognition Committee makes decision on
recognition of accrediting agency
• Process takes 6 months - 1 year
• Recognition term is 10 years
FAIMER®
Implementation of the Recognition Program
2010
 WFME Recognition process created
2011
 Pilot project with CAAM-HP (Regional Caribbean)
2012
 Recognition process open to other accrediting agencies
2013
 TEPDAD (Turkey)
 LCME / CACMS (United States and Canada)
FAIMER®
Characteristics of Polish Medical Graduates
Practicing in the United States
FAIMER®
Polish Medical Graduates in the United States
All physicians in the US who graduated from Polish
medical schools and are listed as active in the
current AMA Masterfile: 3,394
Citizenship:
 Non-US citizen
75%
 US citizen
23%
 Unknown
2%
Native Language:
 Not English
78%
 English
22%
Gender:
 Males
51%
 Females
49%
FAIMER®
Polish Medical Graduates in the United States
Top 10 Specialties
Specialty
Number
Percent
Internal Medicine
731
22%
Family Medicine
523
15%
Pediatrics
256
8%
Anesthesiology
204
6%
Clinical Pathology
99
3%
OB-GYN
92
3%
Cardiovascular Disease
82
3%
Neurology
75
2%
General Surgery
63
2%
Physical Medicine & Rehabilitation
51
2%
FAIMER®
Polish Medical Graduates in the United States
Top 10 Practice Locations
State
Number
Percent
New York
552
16%
Illinois
463
14%
New Jersey
225
7%
Florida
197
6%
California
181
5%
Pennsylvania
180
5%
Texas
127
4%
Michigan
117
3%
Massachusetts
116
3%
Wisconsin
11
3%
FAIMER®
Polish Medical Graduates in the United States
Medical School Attended
Medical School Name
Medical University of Warsaw
Jagiellonian University Medical College
Wroclaw Medical University
Medical University of Lublin
Medical University of Silesia, School of Medicine in Katowice
Medical University of Gdansk
Poznan University of Medical Sciences, Faculty of Medicine I
Poznan University of Medical Sciences Center for Medical Education In English
Akademia Medyczna, Lodz
Medical University of Bialystok
Pomorski Uniwersytet Medyczny w Szczecinie
Medical University of Lodz
Faculty of Medicine and Dentistry in Zabrze
Collegium Medicum im. Ludwika Rydygiera, Uniwersytet Mikolaja Kopernika
Military Medical Academy
Number
Percent
676
20%
658
20%
311
9%
305
9%
301
9%
240
7%
230
7%
190
6%
152
5%
145
4%
86
3%
15
<1%
10
<1%
6
<1%
4
<1%
FAIMER®
USMLE Performance (1993 – 2012)
First Attempt Pass Rates
Step 1 (Basic Science)
100
90
80
70
60
All IMGs
50
Europe
40
Poland
30
20
10
0
1993
1996
1999
2002
2005
2008
2012
FAIMER®
USMLE Performance (1993 – 2012)
First Attempt Pass Rates
Step 2 (Clinical Knowledge)
100
90
80
70
60
All IMGs
50
Europe
40
Poland
30
20
10
0
1993
1996
1999
2002
2005
2008
2012
FAIMER®
USMLE Performance (1993 – 2012)
First Attempt Pass Rates
Step 2 (Clinical Skills)
100
90
80
70
60
All IMGs
50
Europe
40
Poland
30
20
10
0
1993
1996
1999
2002
2005
2008
2012
FAIMER®
Graduates of Polish Medical Schools
Applicants to ECFMG
350
300
250
200
Polish applicants
150
USIMGs
100
50
0
1993
1997
2001
2005
2009
2012
FAIMER®
Graduates of Polish Medical Schools
ECFMG Certificate Holders
200
180
160
140
120
Polish certificants
100
USIMGs
80
60
40
20
0
1993
1997
2001
2005
2009
2012
FAIMER®
Thank you
Marta van Zanten
mvanzanten@faimer.org
mvanzanten@ecfmg.org
FAIMER®