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JAMA. 1968;204(5):392.

	Since this article does not have an abstract, we have provided the first 150 words of the full text PDF and any section headings.

Each year a few "doctors" are discovered to be frauds. The most blatant fakes don't last long, but some pseudophysicians—especially those with previous hospital or corpsman experience—go undetected by their colleagues or the public for disturbingly long periods. What safeguards are there to prevent a dishonest person from impersonating a physician?

Probably the only method which is consistently reliable is a careful examination of credentials. Applicants for hospital staff membership, prospective members of clinic groups, and candidates for intern and residency programs are all required to provide data about their medical education and training. But too often those officials delegated to review applications will accept without further investigation any that seem plausible. And this failure permits fraud.

Checking credentials can be done in several ways. Probably the simplest is to write the American Medical Association and request a search of the detailed file maintained for every physician, whether AMA member . . . [Full Text PDF of this Article]

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