The Basic Elements of Continuing Medical Education

AMA/ACCME Definition of CME
Continuing Medical Education consists of educational activities which serve to maintain, develop, or increase the knowledge, skills, professional performance and relationships that a physician uses to provide services for patients, the public or the profession.  The content of CME is the body of knowledge and skills generally recognized and accepted by the profession as within the basic medical sciences, the discipline of clinical medicine, and the provision of health care to the public.

Why Do Physicians Need CME?

  • State licensure
  • Specialty board certifications/recertification
  • Membership requirements for professional organizations
  • Hospital credentialing
  • Physician recognition awards
  • Professional growth and competency of technical skills

Major Players in CME in the United States

  • ACME - Alliance for Continuing Medical Education
  • ACCME - Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education
  • AMA - American Medical Association
  • AAFP - American Academy of Family Physicians
  • AOA - American Osteopathic Association

ACME

  • Membership organization for CME professionals
  • Mission is professional development and advocacy
  • Not an accreditor

ACCME

  • An agency which accredits national CME providers
  • An agency which recognizes state medical societies as accreditors
  • Not a membership organization for individuals
  • 686 nationally accredited provider
  • 1639 state accredited provider

AMA

  • Professional membership organization for physicians
  • Mission of advocacy and education
  • Not an accreditor
  • Offer a “credit” certification program – AMA PRA Category 1 & 2 credit
  • One of seven ACCME member organizations

AAFP

  • Professional membership organization for family physicians
  • Mission is advocacy and education
  • Offer a “credit” certification program, i.e., prescribed and elective credits
  • Accredit individual activities
  • In 2001 added a new Evidence Based CME credit option

AOA

  • Professional membership organization for osteopathic physicians
  • Mission is primarily education with limited advocacy
  • Accredit osteopathic CME sponsors
  • Offer a “credit” certification program, i.e., AOA – Category 1-A, 1-B, 2-A, 2-B
  • Approve activities for AOA credit

Definition of Accreditation

  • The recognition accorded eligible institutions which meet national standards
  • Institutions are accredited, not activities
  • Accreditors include the ACCME, AOA, state medical societies

Definition Exception

The AAFP uses the terms accredit and accreditation when approving an individual activity for AAFP Prescribed and Elective credit.  The AAFP accredits individual activities, not institutions.

Definition of Certification of Credit

  • The designation of a specific number of credits to an educational activity is commonly referred to as certification.
  • Activities are certified for credit in accordance with standards set by agencies that own or offer credit systems.

Universal Credit

  • The majority of licensing and credentialing bodies recognize “AMA PRA – Category 1 Credit” as evidence of participating in CME.

Other CME Players

  • Other organizations, such as some specialty societies, have membership requirements attached to proprietary systems of credit.  Reciprocity agreements between the AMA and these groups are listed in the AMA PRA Eligibility Requirements booklet or on the AMA web site.