Identifying the essential knowledge and skills for Neonatal-Perinatal Medicine: a systematic analysis of practice.

The knowledge and skills expected for board certification in Neonatal-Perinatal Medicine (NPM) should reflect the clinical practice of neonatology. First, a 14-member panel of practicing neonatologists, convened by the American Board of Pediatrics (ABP), drafted a practice analysis document which identified the practice domains, tasks, knowledge, and skills deemed essential for clinical practice. NPM fellowship program directors provided feedback via online survey resulting in revisions to the document. During the second phase of the project, the panel organized testable knowledge areas into content domains and subdomains to update the existing ABP NPM content outline. All ABP board-certified neonatologists were asked to review via online survey, and results were used to guide final revisions to the content outline. The NPM practice analysis document and the updated NPM content outline should serve as helpful resources for educators, trainees, and practicing neonatologists.