Continuing medical education. The next step
P. R. Manning
Traditional continuing medical education (CME) keeps physicians aware of
the state of the art. It has limitations, however, as a quality-assurance
tool: it is memory based, involves a group endeavor with diffuse goals,
often unrelated to practice, is an inappropriate remedy for many problems
in patient care, is hampered by poor-quality evaluation, and is governed
more by market factors than educational outcomes. The self-study of
practice and practice-linked CME offer rich potential for development. The
physician's monitoring of his work, with appropriate improvements in
performance, is valuable CME. Computers provide facts and guidance at the
time and place the physician is developing diagnostic plans, diminishing
reliance on memory. The next step in CME is for hospitals, societies, and
medical schools to perfect methods of self-study of practice and
practice-linked CME.
