New COVID-19 Resources; Update on Proposed Standards for Integrity and Independence in Accredited CE; ACCME 2020 Online
12
3
News
NEW COVID-19 RESOURCES: ARCHIVED WEBINAR; UPDATED WEBPAGES
We’re continuing to update our resources to help accredited continuing education providers and clinicians respond to COVID-19.
Archived webinar: We’ve posted the recording of our March 26 webinar, Continuing Education and Action: Strategies for Accredited Providers in Challenging Times. Topics included: how to virtualize an existing live meeting, rapidly accredit a continuing education activity, facilitate workplace-based learning, and provide directed training to individuals and teams. Many thanks to the 1,000 participants and to the providers who joined us as panelists to share their experiences and offer advice to their colleagues: Rani S. Gereige, MD, MPH, FAAP, Director, Medical Education, Nicklaus Children’s Hospital; Julie White, MS, Director, CME, Boston University School of Medicine; and Suzanne Ziemnik, MEd, Chief Officer, Learning and Educational Research, American Society for Clinical Pathology; and Vice Chair, ACCME Board of Directors.
- Webinar: Continuing Education in Action: Strategies for Accredited Providers in Challenging Times
- Webinar slides (PDF)
COVID-19 Educator Resources Webpage: Tips and tools to help educators and faculty design and deliver education in response to COVID-19, including a planning form to expedite activity accreditation, virtual meeting resources, and more.
COVID-19 Clinician Resources Webpage: Accredited continuing education activities and other resources for clinicians, organized by topic.
Coronavirus Resources Submission Form: Use this form to submit your activities and resources for posting on the Clinician Resources webpage.
UPDATE: PROPOSED STANDARDS FOR INTEGRITY AND INDEPENDENCE IN ACCREDITED CE
Thank you for your responses to our call for comment about the proposed, revised ACCME Standards for Integrity and Independence in Accredited Continuing Education. We will publish a summary of the responses on our website within the next month.
The ACCME Board of Directors reviewed the responses at its March 2020 meeting, reaffirmed its agreement with the principles described in the Standards, and came to consensus about modifications to make in response to the community’s comments.
Opportunity for Alignment
The ACCME is working to create harmonization of the disclosure expectations with other stakeholders in the regulatory community. Respondents to our call for comment encouraged us to pursue this alignment as it would greatly simplify the disclosure process for continuing education providers, faculty members, researchers, and authors. Toward that end, the Board decided to delay adoption and implementation of the revised Standards while the discussions about alignment are taking place. We expect those discussions to conclude in the fall, facilitating release of a final version of the Standards before the end of the year.
Transition Plan
After the Board adopts the revised Standards, the ACCME will release a transition plan for the accredited continuing education community. This plan will include:
- Transition phase to give accreditors, accredited educational providers, faculty, volunteers, and other stakeholders time to prepare to meet the expectations of the revised Standards.
- Education and resources to support the continuing education community’s successful adoption of the revised Standards.
Current Standards Remain in Place
The current Standards for Commercial Support remain in place and accredited continuing education providers should continue to comply with them, in addition to complying with other accreditation requirements.
If you have questions, please contact us at info@accme.org.
Reminders for Accredited Providers
EXTENDED DEADLINE FOR PARS REPORTING
As we announced previously, we extended the deadline for submission of 2019 activity and overall program data by ACCME-accredited providers to April 30, 2020 to support you during the COVID-19 pandemic. Thanks to those of you who have already completed your year-end reporting. If you are accredited by a state medical society, please confirm your annual reporting deadline directly with your accreditor.
We have also received a number of questions related to activity reporting, as you change live activities to other formats. We’ve posted new PARS FAQ to answer your questions. If you have additional questions, please contact us at info@accme.org.
Upcoming Educational Opportunities
UPDATE: ACCME 2020 MEETING
The in-person ACCME 2020 Meeting: Driving Change, which was scheduled to take place on May 6-8 in Chicago, has been cancelled in response to COVID-19. Instead, we will offer ACCME 2020 Online on the afternoon of May 7 and the morning of May 8 to support the rapidly expanding and evolving needs of our CE community. Watch for more details soon at www.accme.org/accme-2020-online.
CME for MOC Updates
NEW ARCHIVED WEBINAR; OPTIONS FOR VIRTUAL MEETINGS; UNIFIED PROGRAM GUIDE 
We know how valuable it is for your learners to be able to earn both CME and MOC for your activities, and we offer the following resources to help you plan and deliver CME activities that count for MOC:
New Archived Webinar: We’ve posted the recording of our March 24 webinar, Planning and Evaluation in Support of CME for MOC. ACCME staff and participants took a collaborative look at the steps for planning a CME activity that also counts for MOC and explored how ACCME and MOC requirements are aligned. You can view the webinar recording at URL to come
Options for Virtual Meetings: We understand that as a provider with a live CME activity that is registered for MOC in the next few months, you may be facing the difficult decision to change the format of your activity and explore other options. Read our blog post with examples of evaluations and tips for changing activity formats in PARS.
New, Unified CME for MOC Program Guide: This unified guide replaces the individual guides for each certifying board. You will now find requirements that are common across all of the boards collaborating with the ACCME in one main section, followed by sections for board-specific requirements. We’ve also included tables giving you a quick overview of the terminology used by the different boards.
Collaboration and Engagement
NEW JOINT ACCREDITATION LEADERSHIP SUMMIT REPORT; CELEBRATING 10 YEARS OF JOINT ACCREDITATION: SHARE YOUR STORIES
New Report: Let's Go, Team! Planning Education for Maximum Impact! explores best practices and strategies for effective team-based education. The report captures the highlights from the 2019 Joint Accreditation Leadership Summit, which brought together more than 100 Interprofessional Continuing Education (IPCE) professionals, representing 60 organizations, focused on maximizing the impact of IPCE.
Celebrating 10 Years: This year, Joint Accreditation is celebrating our 10th anniversary and we invite IPCE providers and learners to join us in observing a decade of growth and success. We want to recognize your accomplishments by publishing your stories on the 10th anniversary webpage and sharing them in upcoming events and publications. Send your stories, photos, memories, and more to info@jointaccreditation.org.
Connect with Us
COFFEE WITH GRAHAM: INTERPROFESSIONAL CONTINUING EDUCATION (IPCE)
Now streaming on all podcast apps!
In episode five of the Coffee with Graham podcast, Graham McMahon, MD, MMSc, President and CEO, ACCME, explains how interprofessional teams are developed and details the importance of individual professions learning together to meet the needs of the team and optimize patient care. Listen to full episodes at, www.accme.org/coffee-with-graham.
CAREER OPPORTUNITIES
COMMUNICATIONS SPECIALIST
The Communications Specialist supports the implementation of communication strategies designed to promote the value of accredited continuing education for health professionals and to build engagement with the accredited continuing education community, clinicians, healthcare leaders, and other stakeholders. The Specialist is responsible for managing, monitoring, and improving the ACCME’s communications via multiple channels including social media, website, newsletters, articles, and reports. Key responsibilities include writing, editing, preparing graphics, sending email blasts, and identifying strategies to achieve communications goals.