The purpose of the pre-application is to provide your organization with an opportunity to explain its eligibility for ACCME accreditation, as well as to demonstrate that you have mechanisms in place to fulfill the ACCME’s Accreditation Rules and Accreditation Policies (Accreditation Requirements) when producing CME activities.
There are five steps to the pre-application process:
- Review the requirements and processes.
- Submit the Request for an ACCME Pre-Application.
- Complete and submit the Pre-Application for ACCME Accreditation.
- Pay the pre-application fee.
- Begin the process for achieving Provisional Accreditation.
The first step in becoming accredited is for your organization to gain a thorough understanding of the accreditation requirements and processes. The ACCME offers a range of resources to support accreditation applicants, and recommends that you take the following steps:
- Review Information for First Time Applicants, found here.
- Become familiar with the ACCME accreditation requirements, including the ACCME Accreditation Criteria (including the ACCME Standards for Commercial SupportSM) and ACCME policies.
- Review the ACCME’s Examples of Compliance and Noncompliance to review actual performance of ACCME-accredited CME providers that have come through the accreditation process. These examples will help you understand the intent and expectations of the ACCME Accreditation Criteria.
- Keep up-to-date regarding ACCME developments by signing up to receive our newsletter, The ACCME Report, and other e-mail announcements.
- Contact ACCME staff via info@accme.org with your questions.
Once an organization has reviewed the requirements and processes, and believes it is eligible to apply, the next step is to initiate the pre-application process, This begins with the completion of the online Request for an ACCME Pre-Application form.
Upon submission, an email will be sent to you confirming that the request has been received. (Note: Save this message for future reference when completing the pre-application.) The ACCME will reply within five business days regarding the status of your request. A Pre-Application for ACCME Accreditation will be made available to organizations permitted to proceed with the pre-application process.
Once you have completed and submitted the Pre-Application for ACCME Accreditation and paid the pre-application fee, the ACCME reviews the pre-application materials to determine your organization's eligibility and to verify that your organization has mechanisms in place to meet ACCME requirements. However, the ACCME does not review the materials to determine if your organization has complied with ACCME accreditation requirements. The ACCME determines compliance based on three data sources: the self-study report, performance-in-practice review, and accreditation interview. Therefore, if the ACCME approves your pre-application, it is not a guarantee that your organization will receive Provisional Accreditation.
The ACCME will notify your organization of the pre-application review outcome and whether or not you are eligible to continue with the process for achieving Provisional Accreditation. The ACCME sends this notification in writing, usually within four weeks of receipt of a pre-application.