Board News

ABTS PULSE 360 Orientation Webinar for Program Directors and Coordinators
Wednesday, Jan. 8, 2025
7:00 p.m. ET

The American Board of Thoracic Surgery (ABTS) will initiate a new program aimed at supporting professionalism and communication skills in the specialty. As a requirement for application to the Board for certification in the specialty, ABTS will require that residents scheduled to complete their training between June and August 2026 receive feedback from a formal 360 degree review via the PULSE 360 Survey System. Two surveys will be launched, one in March 2025 and a second, follow up survey in Fall 2025. The cost of the program will be underwritten by ABTS. This mandatory activity is widely used across the Harvard-affiliated hospitals and other academic medical centers and will provide a valuable tool for the trainee to receive feedback on their strengths and any opportunities for improvement on their professionalism and communication style. Their participation satisfies ACGME’s professionalism competency requirement.

Each Program Director automatically will receive a copy of their residents’ PULSE 360 Reports, and a PULSE Coach will schedule a debriefing (which you may attend if you wish) with the resident.

To support Program Directors and Coordinators in this new requirement, ABTS will host a webinar lead by Dr. Thor Sundt and Dr. Cameron Wright, both of whom have experience in using this tool. Dr Larry Harmon from the PULSE 360 team will also participate to answer any questions. Program Directors and Coordinators are strongly encouraged to join this webinar to learn more about implementing the program.

Email [email protected] to request the webinar link and passcode.

New Board Directors Elected
ABTS held a successful Fall Board Meeting and is pleased to announce Dr. Michael Mack as ABTS Chair and Dr. John Mitchell as ABTS Vice Chair. Congratulations to newly elected Board Directors:


Pictured from left to right
Joseph Cleveland, Jr., MD, University of Colorado School of Medicine;
Stephanie Fuller, MD, The Children's Hospital of Philadelphia;
S. Chris Malaisrie, MD, Northwestern University;
Sandra Starnes, MD, University of Cincinnati College of Medicine; and  
John Stulak, MD, Mayo Clinic

Click here to view a complete list of ABTS Directors.

Reminder: Diplomates and candidates are responsible for keeping their mail and email addresses up-to-date on the ABTS web portal.

ABTS and ACCME Collaboration on CME Reporting in PARS
The Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education (ACCME) and the ABTS are please to announce its collaboration to streamline physicians CME reporting requirements for Continuing Certification. Starting in November 2023, all accredited CME providers in the ACCME system are welcome to register CME activities that meet ABTS Continuing Certification requirements and to submit learner completion data in the Program and Activity Reporting System (PARS).  Physicians can now browse activities registered for ABTS Continuing Certification credit in the CME Passport, an online CME search tool. The ABTS joins nine other ABMS member boards who have transition to PARS for Continuing Certification.  This collaboration should minimize the amount of time Diplomates spend on CME record-keeping for Continuing Certification.

CME Finder
Diplomates can now search for thoracic surgery specific CMEs on the ACCME at: findit.cmepassport.org/ABTS.

Mission Statement

The American Board of Thoracic Surgery serves the public by promoting excellence in practice through rigorous evaluation and examination, providing leadership in education, and ensuring high standards for professionalism, lifelong learning, and certification.

Learn more about ABTS Certification Categories

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