The true value in any medical board certification is the element of specialty peer review and recognition. In a study on assessing quality in academic research in biomedical, clinical, and social sciences published in Higher Education: The International Journal of Higher Education and Educational Planning, scholars discovered that the vast majority of scientists still consider the traditional peer review process to be the best determinant of quality and achievement in medicine and science. The evidence supports the value of the peer review process when performed by specialty certification groups such as the American Board of Multiple Specialties in Podiatry (ABMSP) to determine the highest quality and achievement in medical and surgical practice.

The ABMSP has issued a call to podiatric physicians and surgeons who treat diabetic patients and foot-related complications, as well as those involved in limb preservation and salvage endeavors, to achieve the highest and most prestigious certification possible within the podiatric profession for this level of expertise by becoming board-certified through the ABMSP. Achieving this certification is the only way podiatric physicians and surgeons can attain prestigious peer review status and recognition for their accomplishments and expertise in these emerging and vital areas of podiatric medical and surgical practice.

"Certification by non-podiatric boards will not offer podiatric physicians and surgeons the recognition they need, as the near-epidemic of diabetes and the burgeoning population of those with diabetic foot disease command more attention to our nation's need for these specialists," explained Earl R. Horowitz, DPM, president of the ABMSP. "Not only does the podiatric profession advance, but certainly the patient benefits by having broader access to the expertise of these specialists," he continued. "The ABMSP is a patient-centered organization, because the patient is really the most important part of this equation."