32 Onward and, Eventually, Upward A DETOUR IN THE ROAD RECONCILING WITH THE AOA As ACOFP progressed toward independent certification, some members believed the process would be in direct conflict with one of the basic tenets on which ACOFP was founded. The ACOFP Articles of Incorporation stated that one of the purposes of the college was, “to contribute to the interests of the Osteopathic profession by affiliating and cooperating with the American Osteopathic Association.” Unwilling to poison or dissolve relations, leadership felt they were obligated to try to reach a consensus with the AOA. ACOFP leadership attended the February 1968 AOA Board meeting in Hot Springs, Arkansas, to inform the AOA of their intention to form an independent certifying board. The springs in that small Arkansas town were not the only hot places that wintry day, as intense debate over the future of certification of ACOFP members ensured emotions remained elevated on all sides. In the end, a consensus was reached and a majority of attending AOA board members voted to allow the certification of general practitioners and the formation of general practice residency programs. Although the AOA agreed to certification in 1968, it took until February 4, 1972, for it to become a reality. BACK ON THE ROAD TO FAMILY PRACTICE CERTIFICATION The plan for certification was laid out by Dr. James Rowland, who would turn to the Conclave of Fellows as the foundation for the inaugural members of the newly created American Osteopathic Board of General Practice. Most of the fellows of ACOFP at that time were officers and past presidents familiar with the workings of the college. But to be qualified to oversee the certification of general practitioners, ACOFP officers and past presidents would first have to be certified. To accomplish this certification, the future members of the general practice specialty board would be given an examination developed by the National Board of Osteopathic Examiners. Upon passing that examination, they would then become eligible to form the American Osteopathic Board of General Practitioners. This was a bold move, considering the future board members were agreeing to take a test designed by the very people who had opposed the formation of a general practice examining board. Records show that some general practitioners who sat on the National Board of Examiners wrote questions for the exam. Mary Burnett, DO, FACOFP, future secretary of the American Osteopathic Board of General Practitioners, reports that this historic examination took place aboard a jumbo jet en route to an AOA meeting in Hawaii. As a result of the examination, on February 4, 1972, 17 physicians were awarded certification in general practice. The names of those individuals, the city they resided in, and their certificate numbers are listed on the following page. Nine of these 17 newly certified general practitioners would become the founding members of the American Osteopathic Board of General Practitioners.
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