In this chapter, the following terms have the meanings indicated. Terms Defined. “ABMS or other equivalent specialty board” means the American Board of Medical Specialties or equivalent boards in other countries. “Applicant” means an individual applying for initial licensure as a physician in Maryland. “Application period” means the time between the filing of an application and the issuance of a license or denial of the application. “Board” means the Board of Physicians. “Conceded eminence and authority in the profession” means significant teaching, research, and achievement in a field of medicine recognized by the Board. “First author” means the first named author of a publication such as a research article or the author who served as the principal investigator for a research project. “Index Medicus” means an international list of periodicals concerning the practice of medicine. “Last author” means the last named author of a publication such as a research article or the senior author who served as the principal investigator for a research project. “LCME” means Liaison Committee on Medical Education of the American College of Medical Education and the American Medical Association. “LMCC” means Licentiate of the Medical Council of Canada, or its successor. “Malpractice history” means a list of claims filed against a health care provider for damage due to medical injuries as described in Courts and Judicial Proceedings Article, Title 3, Subtitle 2A, Annotated Code of Maryland, or adverse action reports made to the National Practitioner Data Bank of the federal government, or both. “Medical licensing examination results” means scores or results of examinations such as the: Educational Commission for Foreign Medical Graduates (ECFMG), or its successor; Federation Licensing Examination (FLEX) designed by the Federation of State Medical Boards; National Board of Medical Examiners (NBME); United States Medical Licensing Examination (USMLE) designed by the Federation of State Medical Boards; and Special Purpose Examination prepared by the Federation of State Medical Boards (SPEX). “Postgraduate training” means, for the purpose of conceded eminence applicants, clinical and medical training for medical school graduates, including but not limited to, internships, residencies, and fellowships. “Speech impairment” means a disorder of the voice, in articulation of speech sounds, or nonfluency in the speaker's native language. “World Health Organization directory” means the World Directory of Medical Schools, an international list of recognized medical schools compiled by the World Health Organization agency of the United Nations.