ASAM Certification History:  In 1985, as part of its medical education mission, ASAM announced the certification project and began the development of a credentialing process and a certifying examination to be administered at the national level. The first examination in October, 1986 was the result of a process which had been started by the California Society of Addiction Medicine (CSAM). In 1981, CSAM developed a consensus on how to identify a physician recognized for expertise in the diagnosis and treatment of alcoholism and other drug dependencies. Next came the identification of a core body of knowledge and subsequent development of questions that would test the mastery thereof.

A pool of questions was formed starting with selected items from alcoholism and substance abuse modules prepared by the National Board of Medical Examiners (NBME) and items developed by career Teachers. CSAM refined and updated those questions, added new items to the pool and then gave the exam in 1983 and 1984 to about 200 physicians.

In 1985, the item pool was taken over by ASAM. New items were developed for ASAM in order to cover all required topic areas. The ASAM Examination Committee subjected this pool of questions to a series of refinements, with technical assistance from consultants such as the Department of Psychiatry and behavioral sciences at the University of Nevada School of Medicine, the Department of Medical Education at University of Southern California School of medicine and the National Board of Medical Examiners. Each item was edited, tested for validity, and field tested on both naive and expert groups. After analyzing those results, some questions were deleted and others changed. From the questions which remained, an examination was drawn with topics balanced for proportional emphasis on alcohol and other drugs, and basic science and clinical areas. New questions are added to the pool each year, old questions are retired and each question is subjected to the same rigorous process during each test cycle.

This examination is a test of knowledge. While it does not certify clinical skill or competence, it does identify a physician who has demonstrated the degree of knowledge in the diagnosis and treatment of alcoholism and drug dependencies commensurate with expertise in the field as defined by ASAM. The examination is not a Board examination. ASAM is not a member of the Board of American Board of Medical Specialties, and ASAM Certification does not confer board Certification.

The ASAM board has established that ASAM recertification is required after 10 years in order for certification to remain valid.