#ACGME2026 Session Summary: Reflection and Future Directions – A Decade of Single Accreditation
At the 2026 ACGME Annual Educational Conference, one of four Featured Plenary sessions, “Serving the Public and GME Community: A Decade of Single Accreditation,” offered attendees a meaningful opportunity to reflect on one of the most transformative shifts in US graduate medical education (GME), as 2025 marked 10 years since the beginning of the transition to a single accreditation system.
Richard J. LaBaere II, DO, MPH, FAODME, FNAOME, assistant dean for GME and designated institutional official (DIO) at A.T. Still University, Kirksville College of Osteopathic Medicine, opened the session with an overview of the goals and challenges of this transition. He highlighted several positive outcomes, including an increased number of DO program directors, greater specialty access for DO graduates, continued growth in ACGME Osteopathic Recognition of GME programs, and development of a shared, co‑creator culture between osteopathic and allopathic GME. He also acknowledged ongoing challenges identified by DO programs, such as faculty requirements, continuity expectations, program director qualifications, coordinator full‑time equivalence, and remote supervision.
“We don’t want you to become us, we want you to change us,” Dr. LaBaere said, quoting former ACGME President and Chief Executive Officer Thomas J. Nasca, MD, MACP, who was in the audience and who led the ACGME throughout the transition to a single accreditation system. “That’s been a resonating call for me.”
Addressing a room made up of a balanced mix of MDs and DOs, Daniel L. Dent, MD, FACS, chair of the Department of Medicine at the Joe R. and Teresa Lozano Long School of Medicine at University of Texas Health-San Antonio, provided data illustrating the evolution of osteopathic programs and residents from 2015 to 2025. Notable changes since the transition include an increase in program directors with DO degrees from 2.5 to approximately 8.5 percent, and growth in residents with DO degrees from about 11 percent of graduates to around 25 percent. Family medicine and emergency medicine remain the specialties with the highest percentages of DOs.
A panel of GME leaders offered varied perspectives on how the transition has influenced education and training at their institutions. Panelists highlighted innovations such as workforce development efforts in rural programs, and space to exchange ideas and knowledge between DOs and MDs about what the other does at their institution. They also discussed persistent barriers, including systemic biases and continued focus on driving standards through measurable outcomes.
To conclude the session, audience members participated in a pulse poll designed to identify priority areas they hope will be addressed at a summit planned for later this year to continue reflecting on the transition and looking at future developments and opportunities. Program director education and licensing exams emerged as top areas of interest.
Read about the history of the transition to a single GME accreditation system on the ACGME website.