[citation needed] In 2014, the ACGME, the American Osteopathic Association (AOA) and the American Association of Colleges of Osteopathic Medicine (AACOM) announced an agreement to pursue a single, unified accreditation system for graduate medical education programs in the United States beginning in 2015.
Plans called for the ACGME to accredit all osteopathic graduate medical education programs, which went into effect on July 1, 2020.
[3] From July 1, 2015, to June 30, 2020, the American Osteopathic Association (AOA), American Association of Colleges of Osteopathic Medicine (AACOM) and the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education (ACGME) worked on a single accreditation system for all US residency programs.
[6] The ACGME introduced milestones in internal medicine, pediatrics, and surgery for assessing progress of residents toward the six identified competencies.
[7] Milestones can be evaluated by numerous methods ranging from direct observation of clinical encounters to medical simulation.