EHA-CME Accreditation for Hematologists

Professor Miklós Udvardy and Gareth Evans-Jones

Chair EHA-CME Unit at the

European CME Forum, November 10, 2011, Amsterdam Session 3

EHA’s Mission

“The European Hematology Association (EHA) aims to promote excellence in clinical

practice, research and education in European hematology.”

About EHA

o  Founded in June 1992 o Over 3000 members from 100 countries o  Annual Congress - 9,000 participants o  Haematologica - Impact factor 6,500 o  Career Development Programme

incl. Research Fellowships o Morphology database o  Education

EHA Education 1

Live and on-line Education Programs: o  Annual Congress of EHA o  Webcasts of Annual Congress

All educational sessions Free access for Congress participants and EHA members Available to all after 6 months

o  Tutorials and Workshops in Europe o  Outreach programme

EHA Education 2

Outreach 2010 – 2011 o  Beirut, Lebanon (May 2010) o  Istanbul, Turkey (July 2010) o  Tel Aviv, Israel (February 2011) o  Tallinn, Estonia (May 2011) o  Prague, Czech Republic (November 2011) o  Kuwait City, Kuwait (November 2011) o  EHA 16th Congress Highlights, India

(November 2011)

EHA Education 3

On-line Education Programs: o  EHA-Tol (Tutorials-On-Line)

Self assessment tool Clinical cases of patients CME accredited test cases

o  Master Class (Pilot 2010-11) Peer-group Case-based Virtual learning environment To be repeated 2012 Good model for CME

Facilitating education 1

The European Hematology Curriculum The CV Passport

o Mobility tool for trainees in hematology o  Itemized description of the discipline of

Hematology o Minimum recommendation levels of competence o  Adaptable to national circumstances o  Updated regularly and endorsed by 26 national

societies

Facilitating Education 2

H-Net Project 2008-11 o  The European Network for Harmonization of Training in

Hematology o  30 partners, 26 national societies, EC grant funded o  Competence survey using Hematology Curriculum– to

address gaps o  Results used to draw European competence map, update

curriculum, provide a strategy for EHA targeted education o  Confolio – an on-line platform with ePortolios containing

the CV Passport with items tagged semantically to learning resources + continuous survey

Facilitating Education 3

o  Scientific Progress in hematology is much greater than the average in medicine

o  Knowledge expires more quickly in hematology than in other disciplines

o  Competence Survey in Confolio – gaps found o  Individual Portfolios in Confolio – gaps can be

addressed o  Congress - Scientific Programme Committee

identifies innovative ways to fill them o  Education Committee – evaluates events,

establishes topics, selects speakers

Facilitating Education 4

o  EHA-CME Accreditation EHA one of the first to introduce European CME accreditation

o  Procedure Pre-established quality standards Every application for accreditation reviewed

o  EHA-CME Unit - accreditation board Experts in hematology drawn from different countries and specialties

Facilitating Education 5

o  EHA-CME Promotion o  2011 Survey of national societies - credit

claiming habits , CME regime, CME credit value o On-site claiming and help at EHA Congress o  Practical flyers, EHA Newsletter interviews, e-

bulletins o  New certificates of recognition – 250 credits:

Gold, 500 credits: Platinum

Promotion

How does EHA maintain the quality of CME?

o  Highly regarded experts with the strong networks on its Education and Scientific Program Committees -

o  Improvement of tutorial, workshop, Congress and on-line education program from year to year

o  Planning educational activities 2-3 years ahead o  Regular revision of Curriculum o  EHA-CME Unit - ensuring quality of CME events o  EHA-CME Code of Conduct from 2008

How does the EHA-CME Unit maintain the quality of CME?

o  Accreditation process o  Checking for adherence to EHA-CME Standards and

Guidelines and Code of Conduct o  Formal review + peer-review by CME Unit o  Certification only possible after evaluation o  Independence of CME events o  Disclosures prior to event + possibility of audit o  Pharma may only sponsor by way of unrestricted

educational grant. o  Organiser may decide to subcontract, except where topic,

speaker selection and development of educational and promotional materials are concerned

Percentage of applications by applicant 2011

Current Status

EHA Only

EHA- ESH

Other organizers

11%

85%

4%

How does the EHA-CME Unit maintain the quality of CME?

o  The EHA-CME Standards & Guidelines:

“1. Only CME activities that exclusively benefit hematologists and their patients are eligible for accreditation.

2. Only academic or scientific organizations are eligible to apply for accreditation. Only a trained specialist in hematology or related field is eligible to apply for accreditation on behalf of the academic or scientific organization.

3. The academic or scientific organization and its representative (together called ‘the organizer’) are fully responsible for adherence to these standards and guidelines.”

EHA-CME and pharma support

o  2008 – Code of Conduct – in annex to every Corporate and Congress sponsorship contract. Signed by all parties

o  Strictness of regulations is not a reflection of quality of education provided by pharma, rather a means to avoid the perception of bias

o  Although limited to unrestricted educational grants, sponsorship from Pharma is welcome.

Thank you!