Diplomates must achieve a total of 100 activity points.
- A minimum of 70 activity points must be within the Diplomate’s respective specialty of certification of Small Animal Surgery or Large Animal Surgery.
- Activities completed in other species or non-patient care topics will count towards the 100 activity points needed but will not count towards the 70 points required within your surgical specialty.
|
Continuing Education |
Maximum points allowed |
|
Attendance/completion of an AAVSB RACE-approved continuing education activity |
1 per AAVSB RACE approved |
|
Attendance/completion of a non-AAVSB RACE-approved continuing education activity. |
1 per continuing education |
|
|
|
|
Presentations |
Maximum points allowed |
|
Presentation of original material at national or international meetings |
5 per ½ hour, 10 per hour |
|
Presentation of original material in brief abstract form at national or international meetings |
5 points per presentation under 30 minutes |
|
Presentation of original material as a scientific poster at national or international meetings |
5 points per presentation |
|
Participation as a panelist at a national or international meetings |
2 points per panel activity |
|
Continuing education lecture and/or laboratory instruction (non-original material) at national or international meetings |
5 per presentation or laboratory |
|
Continuing education webinar presentation |
2 per presentation |
|
Presentation to local / state / regional veterinary group |
2 per presentation |
|
Resident Advisor or primary advisor for a presentation by a student / intern / resident lecturing at a national or international scientific meeting (upload copy of abstract or proceeding or other proof of formal mentoring relationship with the presenter) |
1 per lecture |
|
|
|
|
Publications / Accepted Manuscripts These may be published works or manuscripts currently accepted for publication per ACVS Residency Training Standards and Requirements. See Appendix B for requirements for original material. |
Maximum points allowed |
|
Publication of original work in peer-reviewed journal as first author. |
20 per publication |
|
Publication of original work in peer-reviewed journal as primary advisor behind an ACVS resident as first author. Only the primary advisor of an ACVS resident-authored paper can claim 10 points. Other contributing authors should claim 5 points as non-first author (see next option). |
10 per publication |
|
Publication of original work in peer-reviewed journal as non-first author |
5 per publication |
|
Publication of review articles as first author |
10 per publication |
|
Publication of case reports, etc. as first author |
5 per publication |
|
Publication of textbook chapters as sole author or as co-author |
10 per chapter (sole author) |
|
Author of ACVS “Animal Health Topic” articles and “Surgery STAT” articles accepted by the Public Outreach Committee |
2 per article |
|
|
|
|
Examination/Specialty Training These activities must be completed after initial certification is achieved and prior to current certificate expiration. (i.e. within the Diplomate's certification period) |
Maximum points allowed |
|
Take and pass the ACVS Phase II Examination in species of certification (small or large animal) |
100 |
|
Completion of an ACVS Fellowship and approval as an ACVS Fellow |
100 |
|
Pursuit of certification in another ABVS-recognized veterinary specialty |
20 points per year |
|
Pursuit of a postgraduate academic degree (i.e., Masters or PhD) |
20 points per year |
|
|
|
|
ACVS Committee Service |
Maximum points allowed |
|
Examination Committee |
20 per year of service |
|
Research Committee |
10 per year of service |
|
Resident Credentialing Committee |
3 per year of service |
|
|
|
|
ACVS Reviewer Service |
Maximum points allowed |
|
Reviewer of “Animal Health Topics” or “Surgery STAT” articles for the Public Outreach Committee |
1 per article |
|
Reviewer of ACVS Surgery Summit scientific abstracts |
2 per year of service |
|
Editor / Reviewer (on review board or ad hoc for journal) for journal or textbook |
2 per reviewed paper / chapter |
|
|
|
|
Resident Advisor for ACVS Registered Residency Training Program Program must have a valid registration with ACVS during the effective dates of supervision in order to receive points. If a program’s registration is suspended, the period of time between the suspension and reinstatement of registration cannot be counted toward maintenance of certification. |
Maximum points allowed |
|
Name of resident(s) and effective dates of supervision |
2 per resident per 6 mos. |
|
|
|
|
Creation of Original Online Training/Assessment Module |
Maximum points allowed |
|
Creation of an original online training/assessment module that receives approval by the Maintenance of Certification Committee (MCC) for use by ACVS Diplomates for maintenance of certification. |
TBD |
|
|
|
|
Additional Activities Approved by the Maintenance of Certification Committee (MCC) All such requests may be submitted to the MCC any time prior to the activity or not later than 90 days after the activity concludes. Requests submitted more than 90 days after the activity will not be considered for individual activity points. |
|
|
A Diplomate may submit a request to the MCC for a specific activity to be approved for maintenance of certification points. The request is submitted online through the ACVS CERT system. An activity is approved for the requesting Diplomate-only. |
Maximum 50 points/MOC cycle. |
Appendix A: Requirements for acceptance of non-AAVSB RACE-approved continuing education activities:
To be accepted for ACVS maintenance of certification, a non-AAVSB RACE-approved continuing education activity must be education focused, have clear learning objectives, have specialist or expert speakers, and provide a completion certificate to the Diplomate. To record activity points from a non-AAVSB RACE-approved continuing education activity, Diplomates must be able to provide supporting documentation showing the following requirements are met:
- program description or other published document describing the learning objectives of the activity,
- program schedule or agenda documenting the hours of education provided by the activity,
- published list of the presenting speakers/instructors with their credentials or other indication that the speaker/presenter is a recognized specialist/leader/expert in the subject matter (e.g., advanced degree,
- a completion certificate for the activity issued by the providing organization.
Supporting documentation must be provided in English or with an English translation that clearly states all of the required information.
Appendix B: Requirements for Original Material
1. Presentations are considered original if they originate from work done by the presenter as primary investigator or as immediate supervisor/Resident Advisor for the project.
2. Manuscripts considered as original work must adhere to the following guidelines and must follow a scientific approach, containing:
- an introductory statement which summarizes the reason for the study,
- a clearly stated hypothesis or objective,
- an appropriate description of techniques used to satisfy the hypothesis or objective,
- a report of the results appropriate to the study,
- a discussion which interprets the results and relation to the original hypothesis or objective, and
- a conclusion which summarizes the importance of the study.
Appendix C: Pursuit of a certification in another ABVS-recognized veterinary specialty, or postgraduate academic degree (i.e., Masters, or PhD program) prior to 2023.
The MCC acknowledges pursuing an additional graduate degree or another ABVS-recognized veterinary specialty will expand the Diplomate's knowledge base and have the potential to impact the future of veterinary surgery and/or their patient care.
A Diplomate pursuing additional ABVS-recognized veterinary specialty certification, who started their training program prior to March 2023, may choose to submit under the previous activity points structure in which Diplomates receive up to 100 points after passing the credentialing examination. Alternatively, the Diplomate may choose to pursue the new activity points structure if they started their program prior to March 2023. If so, the Diplomate must submit letters of good standing for each year that they have completed prior to the approval of the new activity points structure. Consequently, the Diplomate would not be eligible for receiving 100 activity points after passing the credentialing examination.
Postgraduate degrees (e.g., master's or doctorate) no longer require the submission of an additional activity request. The Diplomate can record activity points for each year of postgraduate training after achieving ACVS certification. Previously approved additional activity requests continue to be honored.
Appendix D: Creation of an Original Online Training/Assessment Modules for Activity Points:
Diplomate must include a detailed description of the training module they have created, expected learning outcomes for users, and expected Diplomate time and effort expended. The MCC will evaluate the applicability and depth of content for relevance to Diplomate continuous professional development. The determination of the points to be awarded to a Diplomate for creation of an original online training/assessment module may take longer than 3 weeks depending on the complexity of the proposal submitted.
