When was the last time you learned something in a CME course that was of real value to your practice? For many doctors, the answer could be “never.”
The Association of American Medical Colleges (AAMC) believes that this country's continuing medical education system needs a thorough overhaul.
Research shows that the lecture-based format of CME does not change physician behavior or, more important, change the health outcomes for patients. Five years ago, an Institute of Medicine report called for “retooling” the way physicians practice as a critical requirement for improving healthcare quality.[1]
CME's ineffectiveness is an open secret and a major obstacle to closing the nation's gaping quality chasm. To improve healthcare quality, CME must be based on an assessment of how physicians currently practice. Targeted educational interventions can then be directed at specific shortfalls and help physicians keep up with well-established, evidence-based standards of routine practice, as well as the rapid progress of science and technology.
As a start, this new vision for CME must use the traditional lecture format only for appropriate issues, such as a basic science breakthrough. The vast majority of CME should employ self-directed, interactive, and relevant learning experiences that enable physicians to acquire the knowledge and skills necessary to exceed minimum expectations.
Reforming the nation's entrenched CME system will be a tremendous challenge, requiring a concerted, collaborative effort across the entire medical profession.[2]
The AAMC is committed to ensuring that each generation of physicians receives the best education possible before entering practice. But medical education does not stop when residency ends. Practicing physicians need and deserve effective support for lifelong learning. Our country's CME system is failing to meet that need and must be fundamentally transformed if patients are to benefit from all that modern medicine has to offer.
That's my opinion. I'm Dr. Jordan Cohen, President of the Association of American Medical Colleges.
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Readers are encouraged to respond to George Lundberg, MD, Editor of MedGenMed, for the editor's eye only or for possible publication via email: glundberg@medscape.net
References
- 1.Institute of Medicine, Committee on Quality of Health Care in America. Crossing the Quality Chasm: A New Health System for the 21st Century. Washington, DC: National Academy Press; 2001. [Google Scholar]
- 2.Institute for Improving Medical Education. Report of the Ad Hoc Committee of Deans. Educating Doctors to Provide High Quality Medical Care: A Vision for Medical Education in the United States. Washington, DC: Association of American Medical Colleges; 2004. [Google Scholar]
