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Healthcare professionals, including physicians, nurses, physician assistants, pharmacists, and other healthcare providers, need years of education and training to learn their craft, obtain a license, and find a job or practice their profession.
However, their journey for knowledge doesn’t end after graduation. They need to learn more through continuing education (CE) or continuing medical education (CME) for good reasons.
If you are a medical professional, health care specialist, or pharmacology expert, continuing education is an important aspect of your professional journey.
It allows you to learn and discover new ways to treat and take care of patients and effectively steer your career to make it strive in the ever-evolving medical industry landscape.
The Lowdown
Continuing education plays a vital role in your life as a medical professional. The rapid and constant improvement of technology, the mutation of disease-causing microorganisms, and the emergence of new diseases make it necessary for doctors and other medical care providers to continuously learn about new medical developments, tools, practices, and procedures.
As someone whom patients trust with their health, you must always update yourself on the latest and most recent information about medical care and the treatment of diseases. CME doesn’t only make you more competent, it enables you to comply with state requirements to maintain your license and continue practicing your medical profession.
The 10 ACCME-accredited Free CME Courses
Severe Asthma: Reducing Disease Burden with Step-up Therapy
The Severe Asthma: Reducing Disease Burden with Step-up Therapy is an online case-based continuing education course. It covers the treatment and management of individuals suffering from severe asthma.
- Provider: Med Learning Group
- Delivery Format: Online Lecture
- Duration: 60 Minutes
- Sponsors: Multiple
- Target Audience: Pulmonologists, primary care physicians, allergists, pediatricians, and other health care providers involved in the care and management of patients with severe asthma
- CME Credits: Physicians earn 1.0 American Medical Association (AMA) Physician’s Recognition Award (PRA) Category 1, Nurses earn 1.0 Contact Hours
- Requirements: This CME program requires participants to register or log in at the host website to join the program
Best Features:
This CE program provides participants with knowledge and skills to:
- Assess the severity of the ailment and determine the intensity of the therapy to alleviate the symptoms and improve the quality of life for adult and pediatric patients with severe asthma
- Use asthma phenotypes and biomarkers to customize the treatment options for adults and children suffering from severe asthma.
- Successful participants will receive a downloadable CME certificate of participation at the end of the program.
IPF Management and Antifibrotic Therapy
This continuing education program focuses on patient adherence, care switching, and care coordination with healthcare providers in the community. It focuses on properly managing patients with Idiopathic Pulmonary Fibrosis (IPF).
- Provider: The France Foundation
- Delivery Format: Online Lecture
- Duration: 60 Minutes
- Sponsors: Multiple
- Target Audience: Pulmonologists, primary care providers, internists, and other health care providers who manage patients with Interstitial Lung Disease (ILD).
- CME Credit: Physicians earn a Maximum of 1.0 AMA PRA Category 1 CME credit and a Maximum of 1.0 American Board of Internal Medicine (ABIM) Medical Knowledge Maintenance of Certification (MOC) points. All other healthcare professionals completing this CE course are issued a statement of participation.
- Requirements: To join the program, CME participants are required to register or log in to the host website.
Best Features:
This free CME enables participants to:
- Appreciate the importance of and identify the challenges of antifibrotic therapy
- Relate ways to seek the participation of primary care providers, nurses, therapists, and advanced practice providers in providing care to patients with IPF.
- Successful course participants will receive a CME/CE certificate through email.
Point-of-Care Clinical Decision-Making: Test Your Skills in Evidence-Based HCV Management
This free continuing education course is a virtual activity that requires the participant’s interaction, decision, and feedback on the management and treatment of patients with hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection.
- Providers: Purdue University College of Pharmacy and Integritas Communications
- Delivery Format: Online, Lecture Recorded on Video
- Duration: 85 minutes
- Sponsors: AbbVie Inc., Gilead Sciences, Inc., Merck & Co. Inc.
- Target Audience: Infectious disease specialists, primary care physicians, gastroenterologists, physician assistants, hepatologists, nurse practitioners, and other health care providers who interact with patients with Hepatitis C.
- CME Credits: maximum of 1.25 AMA PRA Category 1, All other medical professionals completing this CME program will receive a statement of participation
- Requirements: Participants are requested to register or log in to the host website to join the CME program.
Best Features:
This free CME program provides participants with the ability to:
- Apply current guidelines on universal screening and risk-based testing for hepatitis C.
- Provide medically prescribed care to individuals who are not well-informed about HCV treatment.
- Apply patient-centered care and harm-reduction principles in the treatment of HCV patients.
- Download a certificate of credit upon completion of the continuing education program.
Advances in the Management of Parkinson’s Disease-Related Psychosis in Long-Term Care
Advances in the Management of Parkinson’s Disease is a CME webcast that focuses on the practical, care-centered, and long-term approach to diagnosing and managing the delusions of individuals with Parkinson’s Disease.
- Provider: MedEdicus LLC
- Delivery Format: Online, Video Webcast
- Duration: 60 Minutes
- Sponsor: ACADIA Pharmaceuticals Inc.
- Target Audience: Attending physicians, medical directors, nurse practitioners, and physician assistants who are providing long-term medical care to patients with Parkinson’s disease.
- CME Credit: 1.00 AMA PRA Category 1, 1.00 ANCC contact hour
- Requirements: To participate in the CME program, learners should register or log in at the host website.
Best Features:
- This free CME program is created and presented by two practicing experts in geriatric psychiatry, Dr. Malcolm Fraser and Dr. George Grossberg. They provide course participants with information regarding new treatments and guidelines for state surveys.
- It provides participants with the ability to identify the symptoms of Parkinson’s disease.
- It teaches CME participants to develop personalized management plans for patients who experience psychosis due to Parkinson’s disease.
- Upon completion of this CE course, a certificate will be given to participants who can pass the test with a score of 65% or higher.
Parkinson’s Disease Today: Managing Off Symptoms
This free on-demand continuing education program for medical professionals is a webcast of the 2021 Movement Disorders Summit. It discusses four major topics:
– The underlying mechanisms of off fluctuations
– Different motor and nonmotor off symptoms and their impact on the sufferer
– Details of the safety and efficacy of therapies that lead to the improvement of the management of off symptoms, and
– Complementary therapies that help in the management of off-symptoms
- Provider: Clinical Care Options, LLC
- Delivery Format: Online, On-Demand Webcast
- Duration: 60 Minutes
- Sponsor: Sunovion
- Target Audience: Neurologists, nurses, primary care physicians, physician assistants, and other health care providers managing patients suffering from movement ailments.
- CME Credit: 1.00 AMA PRA Category 1, 1.00 American Academy of Physician Assistants (AAPA) Category 1 CME Credit, 1.00 Continuing Nursing Education (CNE) Contact Hour
- Requirements: Course participants can enter the CME program by creating a free account or logging in at the host website.
Best Features:
This free continuing medical education program enables participants to:
- Identify different motor and nonmotor off symptoms and their effect on the sufferer
- Identify the differences between different adjunctive therapies for the administration of wearing off symptoms
- Create a summary of the efficacy and safety data of novel therapies.
Ovarian Cancer: Mutations, Biomarkers, and Treatment with PARP Inhibitors and Immunotherapy
This free continuing education course for medical professionals focuses on the importance of determining the cancer susceptibility of women through the mutation of genes they inherited from their parents.
- Providers: Amedco, a CME/CE company, and MedNet
- Delivery Format: Online, Video Webcast
- Duration: 120 Minutes
- Sponsors: Merck Sharp & Dohme and AstraZeneca Pharmaceuticals
- Target Audience: Oncologists, pathologists, physician assistants, nurse practitioners, and nurses taking care of patients with ovarian cancer
- CME Credits: 2.00 AMA PRA Category 1, 2.00 American Nurses Credentialing Center (ANCC) Contact Hours
- Requirements: CME participants are given access to the program by creating a free account or logging in at the host website.
Best Features:
This CE course upgrades participants with the knowledge, awareness, and ability to:
- Create a summary of the DNA damage response (DDR) pathway and the role it plays in the transformation of normal ovarian cells into cancer cells (carcinogenesis), and trace the different mutations that trigger abnormalities
- Assess the most recent scientific recommendations on the genetic testing of ovarian cancer, and relate details about the possible impact of identifying mutations in the DDR
- Understand and relate the emerging clinical data about the efficacy of PARP inhibitors in patients with ovarian cancer
- Evaluate the combined roles of immunotherapy and PARP inhibitors in the treatment of ovarian cancer
- CE Certificates are given to participants who garner a score of at least 75% in the post-presentation assessment.
Advanced Diabetes Technology – Conversations and Collaborations
The Advanced Diabetes Technology – Conversions and Collaborations is a self-paced two-part CE course designed to boost your competence and provide you with evidence-based awareness on the use of diabetes technology and devices.
- Providers: American Association of Clinical Endocrinology and the American Association of Nurse Practitioners
- Delivery Format: Online, Self-Paced Video Recording of a Live Webinar Session
- Duration: 120 Minutes
- Sponsors: Abbott Diabetes Care, Dexcom, Lilly, Medtronic, and Novo Nordisk
- Target Audience: Endocrinologists, clinicians, pathologists, physician assistants, nurse practitioners, and other medical professionals involved in endocrine care.
- CME Credits: 2.00 / AMA PRA Category 1, 2.00 ABIM MOC Points, 2.00 CE for Nurse Practitioners
- Requirements: CME participants are encouraged to register or log in at the host website to access the program
Best Features:
This free CME program provides participants with the confidence and capability to:
- Learn about the best uses of insulin pumps, continuous glucose monitors (CGMs), and related devices
- Learn the different settings for insulin pumps, connected pens, CGMs, and related devices
- Know the interventions that can enhance the importance of measuring blood sugar levels to attain “in target” glucose values as a measure to minimize the occurrence of dysglycemia.
- Identify diabetes technologies that work effectively in the management of diabetic patients with special needs.
Clinical Research From Idea to Publication: Part 1
This free CME program is a user-friendly two-session course that provides participants with a good understanding of the conduct, substance, and characteristics of clinical research.
- Provider: Haymarket Medical Education
- Delivery Format: Online Video Webcast
- Duration: 60 Minutes
- Sponsor: None
- Target Audience: Physicians, Long Term Care Clinicians, Pharmacists, Nurse Practitioners, Emergency Medicine Clinicians, Physician Assistants, and other medical care providers involved in the prevention, management, and control of infections
- CME Credits: 1.00 AMA PRA Category 1, 1.00 American Academy of Physician Associates (AAPA) Category 1, 1.00 ANCC Contact Hour
- Expiration Date: June 30, 2025
- Requirements: Participants of this CME can access the program by registering or logging in at the host website.
Best Features:
This free CME updates participants with additional knowledge and awareness to :
- Define different types of clinical research studies
- Master the steps involved in the conduct of clinical research
- Gain added awareness of the methods used for analyzing study results
- Explore the sources, characteristics, challenges, and uses of research questions in research studies
- Participants obtain CME credit by achieving a score of 100% on the assessment conducted upon completion of the program.
Novel Strategies for Improving Outcomes in Children with Uncontrolled Moderate-to-Severe Asthma – Patient Simulations
This free online CE course is a two-part activity focusing on managing moderate-to-severe chronic asthma in the pediatric population. It aims to educate clinicians about the availability and administration of new biologic therapies for this ailment.
- Provider: Horizon CME
- Delivery Format: Online, Lecture Recorded on Video
- Duration: 90 Minutes
- Sponsors: Regeneron Pharmaceuticals, Inc. and Sanofi Genzyme
- Target Audience: Allergists, primary care clinicians, respiratory clinicians, pediatric pulmonologists, internal medicine clinicians, nurse practitioners, physician assistants, and other health care professionals involved in the management of pediatric patients with asthma
- CME Credits: Maximum of 1.5 AMA PRA Category 1 CME credits, All other healthcare professionals completing this CME course will receive a statement of participation
- Requirements: To access the program, CME participants should register or log in to the host website.
Best Features:
- This free CE course enables participants to evaluate their competency in the treatment and management of pediatric asthma.
- It provides them with the confidence to apply new knowledge in managing diverse situations.
- This CME makes learners more comfortable in applying new knowledge in their medical practice
- Participants who complete the course and pass the evaluation will earn a downloadable/printable certificate of credit
Emerging Approaches and Patient‐Centered Care for Narcolepsy
This free continuing medical education is a webcast panel discussion of sleep specialists. It is designed to educate participants on the early recognition of the symptoms of narcolepsy. The CME also focuses on the identification and discussion of the factors that cause delays in the early detection of the disorder.
- Providers: Global Education Group, PlatformQ Health Education, LLC, and American Sleep Association
- Delivery Format: Online, Discussion of Sleep Medicine Experts Recorded on Video
- Duration: 60 Minutes
- Sponsor: Avadel Pharmaceuticals
- Target Audience: Sleep Specialists, Neurologists, Physician Assistants, Nurse Practitioners, Internists, Nurses, and Pharmacists
- CME Credit: Maximum of 1.0 AMA PRA Category 1, A statement of participation will be issued to other medical care professionals completing this CME course
- Requirements: Professionals who want to take part in this CME program are required to register or log in at the host website.
Best Features:
The Emerging Approaches and Patient-Centered Care for Narcolepsy is an accredited CME program that provides participating medical care professionals with the awareness, ability, and confidence to:
- Identify and describe the symptoms of narcolepsy with or without cataplexy.
- Perform tests to discover disorders that can cause narcolepsy.
- Understand the adverse effects of excessive daytime sleepiness (EDS) and interrupted sleep on a person’s quality of life and overall health
- Evaluate the efficacy, safety, and tolerability of investigational therapies for narcolepsy.
Understanding the Importance of Free Continuing Education (CE) Courses for Physicians
Health and medical care are primary human needs. They create a high demand for healthcare professionals. Since competence plays a big part in the effectiveness of medical care practice, doctors and medical care providers must take continuing education courses to be aware of the latest developments and practices in the field.
To address the demand for continuing education courses for medical professionals, several continuing medical education providers were established in the United States. The Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education, or ACCME, the premier CME accrediting agency in the country, recognizes these CEs.
Each of these CME providers offers hundreds of free continuing education courses to keep doctors and allied medical professionals updated on the latest trends and practices in different areas of the medical field.
As a medical care practitioner, you wouldn’t have much problem finding continuing education programs. Your main concern would be choosing the right CME or CE program that complements your specialty, increases your medical knowledge and skills, and boosts your professional performance.
Choose a continuing education program that not only makes you more effective as a medical professional but helps you achieve your career goals.
Frequently Asked Questions
What’s the difference between continuing medical education (CME) and continuing education (CE) Courses?
Here’s what makes CME and CE different from each other:
Continuing Medical Education is primarily intended for physicians, although other allied healthcare professionals may participate. Continuing Education, on the other hand, applies to all medical professionals, including physicians, nurses, physician assistants, psychologists, medical technologists, and pharmacists.
What is AMA PRA Category 1 Credit™?
Firstly, AMA PRA stands for AMA (American Medical Association) Physician’s Recognition Award (PRA). The AMA PRA Category 1 CME Credits™ signifies that a physician has taken part and complied with all the requirements of a CME activity accredited by the Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education (ACCME).
How do physicians earn AMA PRA Category 1 Credit™?
Physicians can earn AMA PRA Category 1 Credit™ in three ways.
- Participate in certified live or online CE activities conducted by ACCME-accredited US-based CME providers.
- Participate in valid CME activities recognized by the American Medical Association (AMA).
- Take part in AMA-recognized international CME activities.
Summary Points
As a professional, you are aware that continuing education plays a crucial role that goes beyond re-certification and licensing. It helps to mold your career and makes you more effective as a health care service provider.
Continuing medical education or CME is a priceless asset that you must earn because it can provide you with a myriad of benefits such as:
- CME makes you aware of the latest research and discoveries in your area of specialization.
- It refines your skills and makes you more effective in providing patient care.
- Continuing education keeps you aware of real-world problems and how to address them.
- It boosts your potential for professional growth.
- CME qualifies you for membership in organizations of medical professionals.
Despite the presence of parties wanting to repeal it, the benefits of mandatory continuing education for physicians and allied medical professionals are real and undeniable.
As a professional medical care provider, you can’t ignore the fact that despite its hassles, continuing education for medical professionals is a dire necessity because it fulfills two of the most important goals of human existence: It works to relieve human pain and suffering due to illness and enhances the quality of people’s lives.
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