AMA Impairment Rating
Certification for
Physicians Nationwide.
Impairment ratings end up in depositions, hearings, and court decisions. The physicians whose reports get challenged are the ones without credentials. We have been preparing physicians to produce defensible, statutory-compliant impairment ratings since 1996, before most certification programs existed.
Accidents
Happen.™
How do you measure the short-term and long-term effects of an injury? What are the financial ramifications? How is it calculated?
In most states, a physician must use the AMA Guides to the Evaluation of Permanent Impairment to calculate an impairment rating. That percentage, in turn, determines the financial implications of the injury. Each state has its own rules.
Check Our State-by-State Map →What Sets AAEME Apart in AMA Impairment Rating Education?
The American Academy of Expert Medical Evaluators (AAEME) provides a clinician-led approach to AMA Impairment Rating education. Unlike generic courses, AAEME offers credentials built on 30+ years of workers' compensation expertise, ensuring that certifications like CIRS™ and NIRSAT™ hold up in legal proceedings. Our curriculum is designed by practicing physicians for busy clinicians who require defensible, statutory-compliant reporting skills.
We offer a professional approach to impairment rating education. Every course, every exam question, and every credentialing standard at AAEME is developed by practicing MDs, DOs, and DCs who perform impairment evaluations in active clinical practice. The result is a curriculum that reflects how to assess injured persons regardless of the cause and arrive at a fair impairment rating.
Physicians who earn their CIRS (national) or NIRSAT (Nevada) credential through AAEME produce reports that are accurate, defensible, and legally sound. These exams established the gold standard for impairment rating education and testing.
Our programs are created for clinicians who want to expand their practice with solid credentials for performing or evaluating impairment ratings nationwide.
How Do I Earn My CIRS™ or NIRSAT™ Certification?
Earning your certification follows a streamlined three-step process outlined below. This structured path ensures physicians can master impairment ratings while maintaining a full-time practice. The CIRS (national) and NIRSAT (Nevada) certification prove the credibility and expertise that supports your practice.
What AAEME Courses Are Currently Available?
AAEME offers three paid courses, the AMA Guides 5th Edition Advanced, the Nevada IR Stress Disorders Seminar, and the Neuro-Psych IR Seminar, plus IR Eval Fundamentals, a free course library available to all registered physicians. All courses are online and self-paced.
What Certification Exams Are Currently Available?
Enhance your clinical expertise with an AAEME certification. Certification proves credibility and expertise.
AAEME offers three certification exams: the CIRS 5th edition and CIRS 6th edition exams and NIRSAT for Nevada-licensed physicians (required under NV Rev. Stat. 616C.110). NIRSAT also provides you with CIRS 5th Ed. The Certified Impairment Rating Specialist (CIRS) designation demonstrates your proficiency in producing accurate and quality impairment ratings.
What Do Physicians Say About AAEME's Education?
Physician testimonials for AAEME highlight the practical, defensible nature of our impairment rating certification. Practitioners across specialties consistently cite our 30-year legacy and clinical depth as the primary reasons for choosing AAEME over other education providers.
The NIRSAT course was clinically thorough and directly applicable to the cases I handle. I felt prepared for the exam and confident in applying the methodology from day one.
I have used AAEME's training alongside impairment rating software for years. The combination produces reports that consistently hold up in workers' compensation proceedings without challenge.
The 5th Edition course addressed methodology nuances I had not encountered in practice. The free training library has become a standard reference for my team between certifications.
How Do I Generate Defensible Impairment
Rating Reports After Certification?
Certification establishes your credential. WholePerson® software translates that credential into reports that hold up in legal proceedings. Built on 30+ years of clinical logic developed alongside AAEME's own educational methodology, WPIRS offers two versions of the WholePerson software, each addressing a different version of the AMA Guides (4th and 5th). Each program addresses all body regions, producing documentation that meets the defensibility requirements of workers' compensation and motor vehicle cases. Used by CIRS-certified physicians nationwide.
Learn more about WPIRS Software ProgramsNevada's PPD Rater Requirements.
Your state has specific certification requirements.
Learn about the law, your certification options, renewal rules for MDs, DOs, and DCs, and the new Stress Disorders requirements for psychological impairment ratings in workers' compensation cases.
Nevada physicians must adhere to specific statutory requirements for PPD ratings. AAEME provides a dedicated Nevada-compliant track that covers the mandatory law updates, renewal procedures, and the latest impairment rating standards required by the state.
From the AAEME Blog
Impairment rating requirements change. Stay ahead of them.
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