Newswise — New Brunswick, NJ -- Alfred F. Tallia, MD, MPH, professor and chair of the Department of Family Medicine and Community Health at Rutgers Robert Wood Johnson Medical School, has been elected chair of the Composite Committee, which is the governing board of the United States Medical Licensing Examination (USMLE) program. Dr. Tallia has served as a member of the committee since April 2015.
The USMLE series of examinations is the single pathway for licensure in the United States for all medical school graduates, both foreign and domestic. It is a joint program of the National Board of Medical Examiners (NBME), which develops the tests, the Federation of State Medical Boards, whose individual state members grant licenses to practice medicine, and the Education Commission for Foreign Medical Graduates, which certifies foreign medical school graduates as eligible to take the USMLE. Dr. Tallia's election was unanimous among the leaders of all three organizations.
“This is an honor for Dr. Tallia, our school and university, and a measure of the high regard in which he is held nationally for his life's work in improving the quality of our healthcare system,” said Sherine E. Gabriel, MD, MSc, dean of Rutgers Robert Wood Johnson Medical School.
Dr. Tallia has been associated with NBME since 1996 and has served in many roles, most recently on the executive board. He chaired the Committee to Evaluate the USMLE Program, the national group which recommended substantive changes to the United States Medical Licensing Examination, influencing licensure and medical education across the country. Dr. Tallia also has served on the Finance, Audit, and many test development committees of the NBME, as well as recently co-chairing the Centennial Steering committee.
In addition to his research and teaching responsibilities at Robert Wood Johnson Medical School, Dr. Tallia conceptualized and has led the development of Robert Wood Johnson Partners©, the integrated delivery system of Rutgers Biomedical and Health Sciences and the Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital and Health System. This integrated delivery system provides clinical services across a broad segment of the population of New Jersey, and serves as a national model for aligning academic health sciences centers with community resources.
A graduate of Fordham University, Dr. Tallia earned his medical degree from Rutgers Robert Wood Johnson Medical School. He completed his family medicine residency and fellowship at Thomas Jefferson University in Philadelphia, and earned a master’s degree in public health from Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey. Dr. Tallia’s practice-based research focuses on the organization and quality of the healthcare system. He is the editor and primary author of a popular medical review textbook, and multiple abstracts, book chapters, and scientific publications.
Dr. Tallia is a member of the Rutgers Biomedical and Health Sciences Master Educator’s Guild, and a Fellow in the Rutgers Center for Organizational Development and Leadership.
About Rutgers Robert Wood Johnson Medical School As one of the nation's leading comprehensive medical schools, Robert Wood Johnson Medical School, part of Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, is dedicated to the pursuit of excellence in education, research, health care delivery, and the promotion of community health. In cooperation with Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital, the medical school's principal affiliate, they comprise New Jersey's premier academic medical center. In addition, Robert Wood Johnson Medical School has 34 other hospital affiliates and ambulatory care sites throughout the region.
Robert Wood Johnson Medical School encompasses 19 basic science and clinical departments, and hosts centers and institutes including The Cardiovascular Institute, the Child Health Institute of New Jersey, the Center for Advanced Biotechnology and Medicine, and the Stem Cell Institute of New Jersey. The medical school maintains educational programs at the undergraduate, graduate, and postgraduate levels for more than 1,500 students on its campuses in New Brunswick and Piscataway, and provides continuing education courses for health care professionals and community education programs. To learn more about Robert Wood Johnson Medical School, visit rwjms.rutgers.edu. Find us online at facebook.com/RWJMedicalSchool and twitter.com/RWJMS.
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