Administration

Mission Statement

Office of Continuing Medical Education
College of Medicine
Medical University of South Carolina

PURPOSE

The purpose of the Continuing Medical Education (CME) Program at the Medical University of South Carolina, is to enhance the lifelong learning process of physicians and other health professionals by providing educational opportunities designed to advance the quality and safety of patient care in South Carolina. The Office of Continuing Medical Education acts in concert with the overall mission of the College of Medicine and the Medical University of South Carolina. Our activities are guided and supported by the College of Medicine.

CONTENT AREAS

The content of CME activities sponsored by the Office of CME includes primary care, specialty and subspecialty content areas across the disciplines of medicine. These educational activities are drawn from knowledge originating in basic medical sciences, clinical disciplines, public health, behavioral medicine and preventive medicine. The educational needs of the target audiences are obtained through a variety of methods to include evaluation of state and region health status indicators, evaluation results from prior activities, needs assessments of specific organizations, requests for information through our web site, review of regional or national CME activities, review of literature and new advances. The Office of CME is committed to continuous monitoring of content areas to provide educational content that is scientifically rigorous, balanced, objective and independent of commercial influence.

TARGET AUDIENCE

The primary constituencies of the Office of CME are licensed practicing physicians within the state of South Carolina, the clinical medical faculty of the College of Medicine of MUSC and physicians in Charleston and surrounding communities. Secondary constituencies of the Office of CME include physicians participating in regional, national and international activities sponsored by the College of Medicine. Several activities are designed for an interdisciplinary audience to include physicians, nurses, pharmacists and physician assistants. Although the majority of our activities are developed and presented by departments and divisions within the College of Medicine, the Office of CME also jointly sponsors activities with non accredited entities such as state, regional and national societies or associations of healthcare professionals.

TYPES OF ACTIVITIES PROVIDED

CME activities offered include lectures, conferences, workshops, symposia, regularly scheduled Grand Rounds and other recurring activities. During live activities methods used to encourage participant interaction with presenters include the use of our audience response system, breakout sessions, tabletop discussions and case discussions. Enduring materials are developed using a variety of media to include on-line activities (Internet) accessed through our web site and monographs.

EXPECTED RESULTS OF THE PROGRAM

The College of Medicine Office of Continuing Medical Education strives to enhance professional development and knowledge of physicians. Our activities are intended to improve physicians' knowledge, performance skills and to influence their behavior for the purpose of improving healthcare outcomes for citizens of our communities and state. The Office of CME has identified the development of tools to assess the educational needs of physicians and the impact of CME as a major objective. Continuous improvement of these tools is one of our goals. We continue to explore new methods of learning and strive to determine their effectiveness in changing physician behavior.

Approved February 2006
Associate Dean for Continuing Medical Education
CME Advisory Committee
Dean, College of Medicine