How to Get Ahead of CEU and CME Requirements at Your Practice
With cold and flu season winding down, now is a great time to schedule classes, webinars, or conferences that will count towards the CEU and CME requirement for the providers and staff in your practice.
First, let's define some of these terms. CE is continuing education, something that applies to all medical professionals. CME stands for Continuing Medical Education, which applies primarily to physicians. CEU is a continuing education unit equivalent to ten hours of continuing education.
Why do primary care leaders need to worry about continuing education?
Studies have shown that the effect of educational meetings alone can improve the healthcare outcome for patients. It's important to not just think about continuing education as something your team has to check off the list every couple of years. It is your providers,' and licensed staff's responsibility to give the best care possible, and continuing education is a way to ensure that their idea of the best care stays up to date.
CEU resources for physicians
Each state has different hours requirements for continuing education licensure needed every year or every two or three years. Therefore, it is essential to ensure you know your state and medical board's requirements.
These resources can help you understand the specific requirements and get providers started on where to find the best education opportunities.
CECentral.com has a state-by-state list of continuing education requirements for physician licensure re-registration.
The American Medical Association (AMA) has a number of CME resources.
CMEList offers a database of CME opportunities.
The American Academy of Family Physicians has a comprehensive set of CME courses for family and primary care physicians.
Don't have time for in-person or live courses? There are a number of app-based continuing education resources that allow you to complete your continuing education requirements on your phone:
RealCME allows you to take courses and track your progress. It's rated 4.3 stars on the app store. The UI is a little dated, but it's free!
MyCME has 4.8 stars on the app store with an up-to-date, intuitive UI. It costs $94.99/year.
If you're the podcast type and learn best by listening, Audio Digest has a 4.7 star rating with varying annual subscription levels based on total credit hours ($399 and $1199).
If you're looking for a fun way to complete your CE requirements, you can earn credits during a cruise through University at Sea. They offer education for physicians, physician assistants, nurse practitioners, and nurses (talk about practice culture!).
Empower your staff for their continuing education.
As a primary care leader, you should not only think about your continuing education requirements but also focus on setting up your team with cost-effective options. There are many options available for free or at a very low cost.
Make it easier for your staff to complete their continuing education by offering flexible hours, providing a stipend toward CEUs, or providing access to a CEU platform that your team can use for free. This offering can improve overall practice culture and help with employee retention. (Read more on the importance of practice culture here.)
Provide your team with easily accessible resources like the following:
Connect with your local Medical Group Management Association (MGMA) chapter
Questions? Contact your state medical board.
For your licensed nursing staff, these requirements occur every two years. Many nurses have switched to the multistate license opposite from the regular RN license. Ensure your teams remain compliant:
RN.com has a quick overview of CE requirements by state
CEUfast is an app that offers online CE course offerings for nurses with unlimited access for only $39 a year.
Nurse.org has a robust guide for completing nursing CE requirements.
One of our goals at the Business of Primary Care is to assist you in running your clinic and your day-to-day activities. You are running an incredibly busy clinic - we are here to help.
