Thomas Jefferson University Department of Health Policy Partnered with GEF to Study the Effectiveness of Continuing Medical Education Related to Everyday Practice

Collingswood, NJ – Graduate Education Foundation (GEF), a non-profit organization dedicated to improving medical education and patient outcomes, has announced the successful completion of an outcomes study in conjunction with Thomas Jefferson University Department of Health Policy in Philadelphia.

Continuing Medical Education (CME) is an important factor in the improvement of the quality of health care. With the development of new and innovative methods of delivering CME such as CD-ROMs and Internet based programs, CME has never been so easily accessed. These new developments in the educational field provide great potential for an increase in physician knowledge which will in turn increase the quality of care patients receive.

The study performed by Thomas Jefferson University Department of Health Policy set out to determine the effectiveness of internet-based CME and the outcome this type of education has on a change in daily practice. The study included 113 physicians, who were randomized to one of 2 study groups. Each group viewed online lectures related to two different diagnoses. Then both groups answered questions related to clinical vignettes featuring both diagnoses. The purpose was to determine the impact of online CME on clinical practice.

The study was completed in September of 2006 and the data collected is currently being reviewed and will be published.

For more information, visit www.cmelectures.org, or call 1-877-263-5400.

About Graduate Education Foundation (GEF)
GEF is a not-for-profit organization, founded in 2002 to enhance the training of a new generation of healthcare providers by improving both the quality of and access to Continuing Medical Education. Its CMElectures.org division is the only group that dedicates 100% of its programming to original medical lectures for online learning. Their mission is to better prepare providers to meet the challenges of a dynamic and constantly changing healthcare environment by offering a timely, unbiased, evidence-based lecture series available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 365 days a year.

###