“We have a wonderful achievement – a full 4-year CME accreditation from the Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education (ACCME),” announces Dr. Christine Thatcher, associate dean for Medical Education and Assessment at the UConn School of Medicine. Thatcher oversees the medical school’s Continuing Medical Education team and programming for faculty, trainees, and students.
This July ACCME awarded UConn’s CME program a flawless, full accreditation with full compliance until July 2029.
“Success in the accreditation process is due to a team effort including our Curriculum Director, Christine McNally, our Medical Director Melinda Sanders, our Assistant Medical Director Sri Manickaratnam, and me all working together,” applauds Thatcher. “The staff in our office, Kim Person and Darice Schroeder are instrumental in how well the Office serves the UConn Health community.”
To achieve accreditation, the School of Medicine performed an in-depth self-study showing it meets its educational mission, complies with the ACCME’s Accreditation Criteria, Standards for Integrity and Independence, and policies, and demonstrated how well its CME program functions and performs, and shared its programming enhancements. In addition, it conducted a Performance in Practice (PiP) review of 15 ACCME selected activities with an abstract for each and supportive documentation showcasing how it meets all criteria and standards, plus it successfully completed online site visit interviews by ACCME representatives.
Since its last accreditation in 2021, UConn has expanded its CME programming access across six new departments, found ways to increase engagement with students and resident physicians, improved its communication, policies, and procedures, and introduced several innovations such as committee learning and test-item writing. It has also recently launched a new digital CME learning management platform called EthosCE to make continuing education easier and more efficient. Learners now have access in EthosCE to user-friendly dashboards, live activity calendars, and text-based attendance for regularly scheduled sessions. Additionally, the new platform allows users to manage their profiles and track their CME credits with ease.
“This CME upgrade streamlines operations and enhances engagement across our CME community,” reports CME Curriculum Director Christine McNally.
McNally adds, “Our learner survey data shows our CME program is having a strong impact.”
A survey of UConn’s CME users shows 77 percent have reported improved competence, with nearly half reporting it has changed how they treat patients.
Dr. Bruce T. Liang, dean, of UConn School of Medicine is proud of the CME program accreditation and the programming’s high impact upon the continuous learning of students, trainees, and faculty.
“Our full CME accreditation and successful program outcomes reflect our commitment to advancing clinical education and supporting professional growth,” says Liang. “Thank you to our CME team for their tireless dedication and hard work keeping all of us, including me, up to date on the latest advancements across the rapidly, ever-evolving world of medicine.”
