The American Society of Breast Surgeons is a professional medical society whose active members are general surgeons who dedicate all or part of their practices to the treatment of breast disease.

Demographics

As of 2011, the Society has approximately 3000 members from throughout the U.S. and 35 countries around the world. The majority of its members devote 50% or more of their practice to breast surgery. They practice in a variety of settings ranging from urban to rural and from academic institutions to

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History

The Society was founded in 1995 by a group of general surgeons interested in providing a forum for discussion, education and advancement of the quality of care provided to patients with breast disease.

Programs and services

The Society hosts

educational program An educational program is a program written by the institution or ministry of education which determines the learning progress of each subject in all the stages of formal education. See also *Philosophy of education *Curriculum In education, ...

s that serve the professional needs and interests of its membership, most notably an annual meeting that provides the surgical community with a forum for the presentation and discussion of the latest research and developments. The Society also certifies individual

surgeon In modern medicine, a surgeon is a medical professional who performs surgery. Although there are different traditions in different times and places, a modern surgeon usually is also a licensed physician or received the same medical training as ...

s and accredits facilities in breast ultrasound and in stereotactic breast procedures. In addition, its Mastery of Breast Surgery Program, a voluntary quality improvement initiative, is designed to help surgeons document their clinical performance of breast procedures, as well as their care of breast cancer patients and patients at risk for breast cancer. Participation in the program is recognized by the American Board of Surgery as fulfilling the requirements for

Maintenance of Certification Maintenance of Certification (MOC) is a recently implemented and controversial process of physician certification maintenance through one of the 24 approved medical specialty boards of the American Board of Medical Specialties (ABMS) and the 18 ap ...

(MOC) Part 4 and is also recognized as a qualified 2010

Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS), is a federal agency within the United States Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) that administers the Medicare program and works in partnership with state governments to administer M ...

(CMS)Physician Quality Reporting Initiative (PQRI) Registry for the Perioperative Measures Group. In 2015, the Society launched the ''breast360.org'' patient website that provides reliable information on breast disease and breast health. The articles are authored by Society member physicians.

Collaboration

The Society collaborates with other organizations on education,

advocacy Advocacy is an Action (philosophy), activity by an individual or advocacy group, group that aims to influence decision making, decisions within political, economic, and social institutions. Advocacy includes activities and publications to infl ...

and regulatory initiatives and members serve as representatives to numerous medical and

quality improvement organizations Quality may refer to: Concepts *Quality (business), the ''non-inferiority'' or ''superiority'' of something *Quality (philosophy), an attribute or a property * Quality (physics), in response theory *Energy quality, used in various science discipl ...

Membership criteria

The American Society of Breast Surgeons has four categories of membership: Active members including D.O. surgeons board certified by the

American Osteopathic Board of Surgery The American Osteopathic Board of Surgery (AOBS) is an organization that provides board certification to qualified Doctors of Osteopathic Medicine (D.O.) who specialize in the use of surgery to aid in the diagnosis and treatment of disease (surge ...

or M.D. surgeons board certified by the American Board of Surgery, Associate members, Affiliate members, and Candidate members. Membership is open to surgeons, non-surgeon physicians involved in the care of patients with breast disease, and non-physician licensed

healthcare professionals A health professional, healthcare professional, or healthcare worker (sometimes abbreviated HCW) is a provider of health care treatment and advice based on formal training and experience. The field includes those who work as a nurse, physician (suc ...

. In addition to those practicing in the United States, membership in all categories is open to international applicants who meet the requirements.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:American Society of Breast Surgeons Surgical organizations based in the United States Organizations established in 1995 Medical and health organizations based in Maryland