Performance Improvement – The new CME
For many years physicians have been asked, even required, to participate in formal CME activities and use the credits earned from that participation to retain their medical license, maintain practice privileges, be accepted as part of third party payer panels, and as an attestation to the public that they are staying current in their field. While formal CME has its place among the learning resources physicians should access to help them in their efforts to maintain their competence and improve their performance, there are much more reliable forms of CME to depend on to assure the care a physician s providing is leading to good patient outcomes. These are is Performance Improvement CME (PI CME) and Practice Based Learning.
I recently did a podcast with Norman Kahn, MD, Executive Vice President and Chief Operating officer of the Council of Medical Specialty Societies focused on PI CME. There appears to be a convergence of interest in PI CME that may soon make PI CME the dominant form of learning across a physicians career. You might find this brief conversation with Dr. Kahn very informative. Click here to listen.
If , in the coming years, PI CME emerges as the “New CME” , it will change the CME profession. It will change how physicians approach learning in their own care environments. The importance of consensus on medical evidence supporting clinical decisions will be critical. Physicians will engage in evidence based learning that provides the highest probability to impact the care they provide their patients. And they will have data from their practice to show how well it is working with their patients.
Thoughts?
