WEB EXTRA!
In January 2002, the Academy launched its initiative to gradually incorporate evidence-based medicine into CME clinical content -- and from there, into physicians' practices. Since then, Nancy Davis, Ph.D., director of the AAFP Division of Continuing Medical Education, has investigated how to facilitate this process for AAFP members.
Her conclusion? It's hard to beat learning at the point of care. She calls it "the Nirvana of needs assessment."
"When you've got a patient in front of you, and you can go straight to the evidence and then apply it right there, that provides reinforcement," she says.
Various point-of-care decision support tools now available make the clinician's job easier by "predigesting" that evidence and presenting it in a readily usable format, says Davis.
The following options available by subscription and offer discounts or other perks to AAFP members (learn more at http://www.aafp.org/x20862.xml), and some can be loaded onto your personal digital assistant.
Stay tuned. The AAFP is well down the road to designating point-of-care learning activities as eligible for Prescribed CME credit. In fact, the Commission on Continuing Medical Education approved a motion on this topic at its June 19 - 20 meeting. Specifically, commission members recommended awarding 0.5 Prescribed credit for each point-of-care learning experience, up to a maximum of 15 credits per year.
The COCME recommended that the CME providers for such activities -- the decision support tool vendors -- obtain accreditation from the Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education. The providers would also need Academy accreditation to offer AAFP Prescribed credit for these activities.
To qualify for credit, physicians must document the three elements of the point-of-care learning process:
The AMA, said Davis, is working on a parallel project that would enable its members to earn AMA Physician's Recognition Award Category 1 credit for point-of-care learning activities using the same criteria as those specified by the AAFP.
The AAFP Board of Directors will consider the proposed changes at its August board meeting.
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Copyright © 2004 by
American Academy of Family Physicians.