While college lays the foundation, graduation does not mark the end of professional development. Keeping up to date on medical advances and compliance requirements is vital. Many healthcare professionals are discovering the importance of continuing education due to its positive impact on patients and organizations.
Continuing education is an activity that develops, maintains or builds the knowledge, skills and professional acumen of a nurse, physician or other practitioner. The importance of continuing education for healthcare professionals includes both meeting standard requirements set by governments, individual facilities and licensing boards, plus any elective professional development.
Types of CME
The importance of CME is reflected in the wide variety of courses available. There are three broad categories of CME and these can either be mandated or recommended by various regulatory bodies and professional associations. The first involves a clinical development curriculum that can be recommended or required by licensing organizations like the AMA or AAPA. This type of professional development can range from advancing core medical knowledge to promoting leadership in the healthcare workplace. Healthcare organizations, associations and accreditation bodies sometimes incentivize credit-earning opportunities to improve participation and knowledge retention.
Another type of CME consists of standard healthcare policies such as emergency protocols in the event of a power outage or fire. These are set at the facility level. The third type is set at the state or federal level, requiring practitioners to remain up-to-date on critical protocols like COVID-19 safety and OSHA incident-reporting guidelines. Running afoul of these requirements can result in major consequences for healthcare organizations, their administrations, patients and employees.
Why CME Matters
Learners engage with CME for a variety of reasons. These motivations can be used to design better methods for delivering and retaining CME courses. Ambitious health practitioners will use CME as a means to build their resumes and develop in-demand skills. Busy health professionals will benefit from flexible CME schedules or courses available on-demand. CME can boost employee confidence by reinforcing previously learned skills and providing timely feedback can improve performance metrics.
Nearly all practitioners want to be reliable members of a workplace and a trusted source of information for their colleagues. These motivations can be better incorporated into a CME regime by creating multiple avenues for earning credentials. CME Seminars does this by providing a variety of online and live training options.
Importance to Healthcare Organizations
Health organizations are taking up the mantle of educators as well as employers. They are increasingly responsible for deploying healthcare continuing education tools in ways that ensure their workforces meet the rigors of delivering care and meet healthcare facility goals. Training must meet state and federal guidelines and employee progress must be reported to relevant agencies.
This process can be simplified by easy-to-use Learning Management System (LMS) software and digital reporting tools. The benefits can be felt immediately by new employees and getting off on the right foot during onboarding can increase worker retention and job satisfaction down the line.
CME and Learning Management Systems
The benefits of CME can not only be found in its content but also in the way that content is delivered. Modern LMS software offers both healthcare administrators and learners an easier way to upload, manage and distribute courses. The introduction of advanced technologies on LMS software such as AI into the healthcare workplace are helping find and fill gaps in workforce skill sets. Newer LMS platforms are now able to make content more personalized and dynamic, providing administrators and learners rapid feedback on employee preparedness and knowledge for maximum ROI on learning. This has the potential to lead to an overall reduction in regulatory violations.
Choosing the Right CME for You
The influence of CME on the health and economic outcomes experienced in health environments has facilitated major industry-wide innovation. As a result, CME programs now offer a growing number of formats learners can take advantage of to fulfill requirements and advance their careers. CME Seminars is here to help you capitalize on those innovations to make learning as productive as it is convenient. Learn more about the benefits of live webinars, online courses and destination conferences featuring vacation-friendly locations.