Creative Perspectives on CME Content Development

Panelists (from L to R) included Andrew Bowser, ELS, CHCP; Annette Schwind, MS, CHCP; and Ruwaida Vakil, MSc.

"Beyond the Needs Assessment: Creative Perspectives on CME Content Development" was the title of a 2-hour educational program that took place Thursday, November 21 in Harrisburg, PA. The program was planned, publicized, and financed with help from the Delaware Valley Chapter of the American Medical Writers Association (AMWA-DVC).

Our program consisted of a lecture followed by a panel discussion. It took place immediately following the annual conference of the Mid-Atlantic Alliance for Continuing Medical Education (MAACME) at the Sheraton Harrisburg/Hershey Hotel. Event co-chairs were Ruwaida Vakil, MSc and myself. In addition to Ms. Vakil, panelists included Andrew Bowser, ELS, CHCP, and Annette Schwind, MS, CHCP.

Prior to the event, more than 20 AMWA members who could not attend expressed interest in receiving any handouts or recorded materials that might be available. Selected materials have been uploaded to Google Drive and are accessible here, at no charge, for those who expressed interest. Here is a guide to what's available:

1) The complete PowerPoint slide deck. This deck contains 71 slides and includes my overview lecture as well as slides from each of the panelists, in alphabetical order. Be sure to download the actual PowerPoint file to your desktop - the preview version shown by Google Docs distorts many of the slides.

2) The video recording. You may need a software application such as QuickTime to play the video. I am a rank amateur when it comes to videography, so please be forewarned: This MP4 file is raw and unedited and it includes some long pauses as we wrestle with technology. The video begins with my overview lecture and ends after about 65 minutes. (Partway through the panel discussion, the laptop battery lost all charge.) Viewing tip: The slides projected onto the screen are not legible, so you may wish to watch the video on one computer screen while manually advancing the slides on another screen. 

3) Handouts. These include a pocket tutorial on writing needs assessments, a synopsis of an earlier AMWA roundtable about publishing outcome reports as journal articles, a collection of resources related to reporting outcomes, and brief bios of our panelists.


I'd like to thank Andy, Annette, and Ruwaida for their help and support producing this program. In addition, I'd like to thank the members of our live audience for driving to Harrisburg to attend, and for asking such insightful questions. Finally, I'd like to thank the staff and management who hosted our dinner at the Dog & Pony Restaurant. They did a fine job accommodating the varied needs of our group.


Access the materials below:

SLIDE DECK

VIDEO RECORDING

HANDOUTS

• Panelist biographies
• Tutorial on writing needs assessments
• Roundtable synopsis (from AMWA in 2018)
• Outcomes reporting resources
  

If you are interested in learning even more about CME writing, especially paid freelance  opportunities at a variety of CME companies, be sure to check out CME Writer's Marketplace. It's your trusty guide to finding an enjoyable gig. The 2020 edition is scheduled for release in February. You can reserve a copy and receive a 10% discount by visiting the Smashwords website.

Calling All CME Storytellers

Are you interested in CME?
Do you think it's cool that creativity and innovation are now explicitly encouraged by the main organization responsible for awarding continuing education credit to physicians?

Do you have a knack for using storytelling and narrative to craft an entertaining yet educational message?

If you answered "yes" to any of the above, you will be interested in the dog & pony show we are preparing in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania later this month. I call it that because event co-chair Ruwaida Vakil and I have reserved the private dining room inside the Dog & Pony Restaurant of the Sheraton Harrisburg/Hershey Hotel. 

The curtain will rise at 5 PM on Thursday, Nov. 21, immediately following the annual meeting of the Mid-Atlantic Alliance for CME. The main event will be a panel discussion where each panelist describes his or her approach to a different CME writing assignment. Details are shown on the agenda. I'll set the stage with a brief introductory lecture, and then I'll moderate the discussion with plenty of time for questions from the audience. 

To keep expenses modest, a Dutch treat dinner will follow. Appetizers, handouts, and registration are all free, courtesy of AMWA's Delaware Valley Chapter. But space is limited. So if you'd like to join us, send an email to don(at)hartingcom.com. We still have some room. Deadline to RSVP is Monday, November 18. Hope to see you there!

Calling All CME Writers

THE ANNUAL CME WRITING SURVEY IS NOW OPEN

Graphic courtesy of The AMWA Journal

The sixth annual survey of best practices for writing continuing medical education (CME) needs assessments opened September 16 and will close September 30. This year we focus on how writers use learning outcomes data, avoid plagiarism, and marshal evidence to support statements of need. These topics will interest many readers of this blog.

Everyone who completes this survey and provides a valid email address will receive a summary of results by the end of November. Results will be used to develop posters, articles, and training materials for members of the American Medical Writers Association. Results will also be presented as a poster at the annual conference of the Alliance for Continuing Education in the Health Professions (ACEHP) in San Francisco, California in January 2020. We will also display a poster showing trends from 2014 to 2018. Readers of this post should feel free to share the survey link with other experienced needs assessment developers who may wish to participate. Here's the link:


https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/TR2TPWM

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