Physicians’ Continuing Medical Education Activities and Satisfaction With Their Ability to Stay Current in Medical Information and Practice: A Cross-sectional Study

Health Science Reports (02/10/23) Jayas, Amy; Andriole, Dorothy A.; Grbic, Douglas; et al.

A cross-sectional study analyzed demographic, career and experiential factors impacting physicians' satisfaction with their ability to keep up with medical information and practice through different continuing medical education (CME) activities. The authors examined data from 5,926 of 6,000 respondents to the 2019 Association of American Medical Colleges' National Sample Survey of Physicians. Respondents participated in 11 CME activities in the past year, and 90% reported satisfaction with their ability to stay current. Having a surgery specialty (vs. primary care), an academic affiliation, and participation in professional meetings and journal-based CME were strong predictors of satisfaction. Gender, board certification status and medical degree type were not independent predictors of satisfaction. "Our observations regarding various CME activities associated with satisfaction with the ability to stay current may be particularly relevant to CME/CPD [continuing professional development] providers and educators in future planning and strategies for CME/CPD offerings in the current context of COVID-19 pandemic-related restrictions and limitations of face-to-face activities," the authors note. Further analysis is necessary for interventions to resolve the disparities in satisfaction and to correlate clinicians' satisfaction to their ability to stay current on medical information, practice and quality of care.

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