Board Certification

Michelle Middleton, PA-C holds: (1) Active NCCPA certification — the national board credential for Physician Assistants, requiring initial PANCE examination passage and ongoing CME and recertification; (2) Menopause Society Certified Provider (MSCP) — the highest specialty credential in menopause medicine from The Menopause Society (formerly NAMS); (3) Obesity Medicine Association (OMA) membership — with clinical practice aligned to the obesity medicine framework; (4) American Academy of Anti-Aging Medicine (A4M) membership — informing longevity and peptide therapy practice; (5) Master of Health Science degree from Nova Southeastern University. This combination of national certification, specialty credentials, and clinical training directly maps to SPOKEmed's three primary service areas: hormones, metabolic health, and weight management.

Licensure is the legal minimum required to practice in a state — it confirms basic training completion and examination passage at the state level. Board certification is an additional, voluntary demonstration of specialty-specific competency — it requires passing a more rigorous examination in a defined clinical domain and maintaining that certification through ongoing CME and periodic recertification. A clinician can be licensed without being board-certified in any specialty. Board certification confirms domain expertise rather than just baseline training.

In telehealth, credentials provide the primary assurance of clinical quality since patients cannot rely on a hospital affiliation or in-person assessment of the practice environment. Board certifications from recognized national organizations confirm that a provider has been evaluated against nationally standardized competency criteria — not self-designated as a specialist. When a significant clinical decision (starting hormone therapy, a GLP-1 protocol, or a peptide regimen) is being made remotely, this verification matters.