Medicine changes rapidly with new scientific information and technology. To keep up with these changes, doctors learn all through their professional lives. Studying and educational experiences do not end for doctors after medical school and residency training. This lifelong learning is called continuing medical education (CME).
In order to examine patients, prescribe treatments, or perform medical procedures or surgery, all medical doctors must have a current license to practice medicine. Because CME is so important, almost all of the states in the United States include CME as a requirement for renewal of a doctor's medical license. Participation in CME may involve a variety of educational experiences to keep doctors up to date in their area of medicine.
Because research may change how doctors practice, it is important for doctors to learn about research results through CME. Evidence-based medicine is medical practice that is guided by the results of research studies. New ways to take care of patients, especially those with chronic diseases like diabetes, asthma, or heart disease, are developed from large research studies. Doctors and patients alike benefit from learning about evidence-based medicine guidelines. This is best done through CME activities that focus on what each doctor needs to learn to take better care of his or her patients.
The September 23/30, 2009, issue of JAMA is a theme issue on medical education. This Patient Page is based on one published in the September 4, 2002, issue of JAMA.
Doctors find CME activities in several different ways: meetings, lectures, classes, workshops, video, audio, and computer learning. Doctors can also participate in CME activities based on reading scientific journals (like JAMA) or books.
Studies show that interactive learning (where the student gets immediate feedback on his or her progress) may be particularly helpful in teaching new concepts and ideas. Newer techniques using computers, including online courses, may improve learning because they can be used at any time, can provide feedback right away, and can be geared for each doctor's own interests and needs. Medical meetings are also important sources of CME for doctors because they provide a way for doctors to be presented with new information and research and allow this new information and research to be discussed and criticized.
Grahic Jump Location
Patients can ask their doctors about new health information. Web sites associated with medical societies and government health agencies have CME and health information for both patients and doctors to use. Doctors may ask about the health information that patients bring to the office visit or to the hospital. Sharing this information may help both the patient (to understand the health information better) and the doctor (to understand what kinds of medical information can benefit patients).
Accreditation Council on Continuing Medical Educationhttp://www.accme.org
American Medical Association (Medical Education) CMEhttp://www.ama-assn.org
Alliance for CME: The International Association of CME Professionalshttp://www.acme-assn.org
National Library of Medicine http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus
To find this and previous JAMA Patient Pages, go to the Patient Page link on JAMA's Web site at http://www.jama.com. They are available in English and Spanish. A Patient Page on medical education was published in the September 6, 2000, issue and one on evidence-based medicine in the September 6, 2006, issue.
Sources: American Medical Association, Accreditation Council on Continuing Medical Education
The JAMA Patient Page is a public service of JAMA. The information and recommendations appearing on this page are appropriate in most instances, but they are not a substitute for medical diagnosis. For specific information concerning your personal medical condition, JAMA suggests that you consult your physician. This page may be photocopied noncommercially by physicians and other health care professionals to share with patients. To purchase bulk reprints, call 312/464-0776.
TOPIC: MEDICAL EDUCATION
Country-Specific Mortality and Growth Failure in Infancy and Yound Children and Association With Material Stature
Use interactive graphics and maps to view and sort country-specific infant and early dhildhood mortality and growth failure data and their association with maternal
Instructions
Comments are moderated and will appear on the site at the discretion of the Journal of American Medical Association editors. Comments should not exceed 500 words of text and 10 references.
Do not submit personal medical questions or information that could identify a specific patient, questions about a particular case, or general inquiries to an author. Only content that has not been published, posted, or submitted elsewhere should be submitted. By submitting this Comment, you and any coauthors transfer copyright to the journal if your Comment is posted.
* = Required Field
Disclosure of Any Conflicts of Interest* Indicate all relevant conflicts of interest of each author below, including all relevant financial interests, activities, and relationships within the past 3 years including, but not limited to, employment, affiliation, grants or funding, consultancies, honoraria or payment, speakers’ bureaus, stock ownership or options, expert testimony, royalties, donation of medical equipment, or patents planned, pending, or issued. If all authors have none, check "No potential conflicts or relevant financial interests" in the box below. Please also indicate any funding received in support of this work. The information will be posted with your response.
Register and get free email Table of Contents alerts, saved searches, PowerPoint downloads, CME quizzes, and more
Subscribe for full-text access to content from 1998 forward and a host of useful features
Activate your current subscription (AMA members and current subscribers)
Some tools below are only available to our subscribers or users with an online account.
Download citation file:
Customize your page view by dragging & repositioning the boxes below.
and access these and other features:
Register Now
Enter your username and email address. We'll send you a reminder to the email address on record.
Athens and Shibboleth are access management services that provide single sign-on to protected resources. They replace the multiple user names and passwords necessary to access subscription-based content with a single user name and password that can be entered once per session. It operates independently of a user's location or IP address. If your institution uses Athens or Shibboleth authentication, please contact your site administrator to receive your user name and password.