By Dr. Kenneth R. DeVault and Dr. Jane E. Onken
Kenneth R. DeVault, MD, is the Chair of the ABIM Gastroenterology Board and is a Professor in the Department of Medicine at Mayo Clinic Florida. Jane E. Onken, MD, is immediate past chair of the ABIM Gastroenterology Board and is a Professor of Medicine at Duke University in North Carolina.
As you know, the field of gastroenterology continues to evolve, with new advances in knowledge and technology helping us to provide better and more efficient care for patients. Just as our field evolves, the way we assess the knowledge of those who practice it evolves to keep pace.
In 2022, ABIM launched the Longitudinal Knowledge Assessment (LKA®) as an alternative to the traditional, 10-year MOC exam. The LKA is a more flexible assessment option for physicians that allows them to take questions when and where it’s convenient for them. Physicians participating in the LKA receive immediate feedback if they get a question right or wrong, along with references and rationales to help guide their educational efforts.
To date, physicians have had only the “general” gastroenterology LKA available to them covering the same distribution of topics as the traditional, 10-year MOC exam. We’ve heard feedback from the community, especially those in more specialized areas, that this assessment doesn’t always align with what they see in practice.
Today, on behalf of the Gastroenterology Board, we are pleased to share that ABIM will develop an additional option for those taking the Gastroenterology LKA with a focus on liver disorders, with a target launch of July 2026. This new assessment option is the result of an evidence-based process through which extensive data were collected from the gastroenterology community and analyzed to determine which focused areas would be most beneficial to the majority of specialists practicing in gastroenterology.
Why liver-focused?
ABIM continually seeks ways to align assessments with what physicians see in practice. Two data collection methods were used to determine the scope of practice and what would most benefit gastroenterologists today: physician surveys and Medicare claims. From the results, it was clear that an assessment that focuses on liver disorders would be a valuable asset to the gastroenterology community.
A special thanks to our society partners—the American Association for the Study of Liver Diseases (AASLD), the American College of Gastroenterology (ACG), the American Gastroenterological Association (AGA) and the American Society for Gastrointestinal Endoscopy (ASGE)—who promoted completion of the survey and provided feedback on the potential options that emerged from the data during conversations with the Gastroenterology Board and ABIM staff.
It’s important to note that the Gastroenterology Blueprint is also being updated to be more clinically focused, rather than anatomically based. The process of updating the blueprint includes opportunities for the gastroenterology societies and diplomates to provide feedback that will shape the new blueprint, which will be finalized and published in January 2026.
For more details about the new LKA, the process taken to develop it and the new blueprint, visit the FAQs page.
While ABIM traditionally introduces new assessments in January of a given year, we are working towards an earlier date in recognition of the significant interest our community has shown in a focused assessment in gastroenterology. July 2026 is the target, and we will keep the community informed with updates along the way, including whether that date needs to change.
Developing increasingly relevant assessments that uphold the very highest standards of our credential takes time. In the next two years, ABIM will invest significant effort and resources into IT systems and the item development process, which involves recruiting many more experts in the field to write and revise items. These items will be reviewed by the Gastroenterology Approval Committees (which are composed entirely of practicing gastroenterologists who are also experienced item-writers).
What does this mean for you?
If you are due for an assessment in 2025 and interested in participating in the new liver-focused LKA when it becomes available, you should enroll in the general Gastroenterology LKA as early as December 1, 2024. If you like, you can switch to the new liver-focused version when it becomes available as long as you are meeting the LKA Participation Requirement. ABIM will be in touch with more detailed information about when and how to switch closer to launch.
You can also choose to take the traditional, 10-year MOC exam (the long-form exam) in gastroenterology in the year your assessment is due, but that option does not offer a liver disorder-focused version of the assessment. Keep in mind that taking and passing the exam means your next assessment will be due 10 years later (2035) and you will not be eligible to take the LKA, including the new liver disorder-focused LKA, during that time.
Summing up: Your options based on assessment due dates
- You are due for an assessment in 2025.
- Enrollment opens for the LKA and all assessments on December 1, 2024. If you are interested in the new liver-focused assessment, enroll in the general Gastroenterology LKA and answer the general questions until the new version becomes available and you can switch. If you continue to meet the LKA Participation Requirement and all other MOC requirements, you will remain certified through 2030.
- We recommend you enroll as soon as possible to maximize the amount of time you have to answer the first quarter’s 30 questions, which become available on January 1, 2025.
- In 2026, when the liver-focused LKA is available, you can switch to it and complete your 5-year cycle. More information about switching will also be provided closer to launch.
- You can register for the Gastroenterology Traditional, 10-Year MOC Exam as early as December 1, 2024, if you prefer. If you pass the exam, you will not be eligible to take either version of the Gastroenterology LKA for 10 years (2035).
- You are due for an assessment in 2026.
- Enroll in the general Gastroenterology LKA on or after December 1, 2025, and switch when the new assessment becomes available. If you continue to meet the LKA Participation Requirement and all other MOC requirements, you will remain certified through 2031.
- You can register for the traditional, 10-year MOC exam if you prefer. If you pass the exam, you will not be eligible to take either version of the Gastroenterology LKA for 10 years (2036).
If you are interested in helping to shape this new assessment, consider joining the Gastroenterology Item-Writing Task Force. Item-writers are essential to the development of ABIM assessments.
We understand you may have questions, and we will keep the community updated through the ABIM Blog, emails and summaries from the Gastroenterology Board meetings throughout the development process. Most importantly, diplomates who are due for an assessment will receive reminders and further information from ABIM as the dates come closer.
Thank you to everyone in the community who provided feedback and suggestions that helped inform this decision. And, thank you most of all for your commitment to the profession and the patients we serve.