Establishing learning needs for continuing medical education (CME)
What are learning needs?
Learning needs are specific to an individual, and are identified by the individual through practical experience, reflection, questioning, practice audits, self-assessment, peer review and other sources. College Fellows and registrars are encouraged to identify their own learning needs and to seek CME to meet those needs.
As a CME provider, it is important that you take regular steps to establish the learning needs of the general practitioners (GPs) who attend your CME sessions. Most importantly, this should cover the topics to be covered in CME sessions. It is also important that you establish the specific learning needs of session attendees with regard to the actual session topic being presented – this is usually best achieved in the session itself, by means of interactions between the session presenter and the participants.
There is a wealth of evidence to suggest that GPs often select CME based on interest and not on need. Results of need surveys may reflect interests rather than needs, but there is no easy way to overcome this. In addition, individuals are aware of some needs and may not be aware of others. For example, a GP might be aware that there is a communication problem between them and a patient, but not be aware either that it can be corrected by a change in consulting style, or how this can be done.
As a CME provider it is important that you should try to ensure that CME activities encompass the full range of knowledge, skills, values, problem solving skills, and communication skills that occur day to day in clinical practice. CME should not be limited purely toaddressing information needs. A consideration of whether your CME sessions are covering the full range of the domains of general practice may help in this regard (see the document attached on ‘Using the curriculum domains in learning needs assessment’).
How do you determine the learning needs of the GPs in your region?
You may choose to use a questionnaire, survey, and/or focus groups to identify topics relevant to GPs. The RNZCGP Annual CME Needs Survey Form which is attached may be used for this purpose.
Other sources of information include other health professionals, consumer group representatives various expert bodies, such as University departments, government bodies such as the Health and Disability Commissioner, the ACC, or the Ministry of Health, or the local Primary Health Organisation and/or Independent Practitioner Association. Publications of research results in medical journals and reports are a further useful source.
You should aim to identify topics and specific aspects of the topic that should be covered in your CME session planning. Use your needs assessment to tell you which areas you will need to concentrate on, and consider what knowledge, skills, attitudes and behaviour are relevant to the topic (you may wish to use a survey or pre-test of individual participants to identify their specific learning needs with regard to a specific topic).
Develop learning outcomes for each session to ensure that there is alignment between the participants’ needs and the presenter’s aims for the session.
Using the Curriculum Domains for General Practice in Learning Needs Assessment
Domain One - Communication
This is about your effectiveness to communicate with the patient, family/whanau, the general practice team and other health providers and community agencies.
Ask yourself:
- What do you think are the main strengths and weaknesses of your communication skills?
- How have your communication skills changed? How have you effected a change in your communication skills?
- What would you like to do better? How could you achieve this change?
Domain Two - Clinical Expertise
This is about the quality of clinical understanding and your ability to apply this to competently manage patient health needs.
Ask yourself:
- What do you think are the main strengths of your clinical practice? In what areas of your practice do you have gaps in knowledge or skills?
- How do you monitor the quality of your clinical care? How have you managed significant events?
- What do you think your clinical care development needs for the future are?
Domain Three - Professionalism
This is about how you manage yourself and your practice, and foster the development of others.
Ask yourself:
- What do you consider are the main strengths of your personal and professional behaviours? What aspects could you get better at?
- What have you found particularly successful about the steps you have taken to enhance your practice?
- What strategies do you use to cope with the stresses of general practice?
- What professional or personal factors significantly constrain you in maintaining and developing your skills and knowledge?
- How do you see your job and career developing over the next few years?
Domain Four - Scholarship
This is about advancing and developing understanding in specific areas of general practice.
Ask yourself:
- How have you been involved in the advancement of general practice?
- How have you integrated scholarship into your practice?
- Is there something more you could be doing?
Domain Five - Context of General Practice
This section is about working inter-professionally, in a practice team, and across the continuum of primary and secondary care.
Ask yourself:
- What do you think are the main strengths of how your practice promotes the health care of individuals and the community?
- How have you effected change in your practice to respond to local and global changes in health care?
- What would you like to do better?
- What development goals do you have for your practice? (Consider factors such as your utilisation of resources and personnel, and your personal effectiveness and efficiency)
- What factors in your workplace or more widely, significantly constrain you in achieving what you aim for in your community? How could you address these?
Domain Six – Management
This section is about how as general practitioners you are required to manage a wide range of health and social problems taking into account individual, local and national health priorities.
Ask yourself:
- What do you think are the main strengths of how your practice governs, manages and coordinates health services?
- What would you like to do better?
- What development goals do you have for your practice?
- What business, information, practice and employment management strategies occur in your practice?
- How do you reconcile your needs as a practitioner with the needs of the wider health economy?
- What role do you see for yourself as a leader in developing an integrated team approach to primary health care?
RNZCGP Annual CME needs survey form
Why do we ask for your preference for CME in the coming year?
Knowing your preferences helps the CME Coordinator to select the most popular and relevant topics for the annual CME schedule. The more specific you are in what you want and/or need the more able the coordinator is to meet the group needs.
It is also useful for the CME coordinator to know your special interests, additional qualifications or areas of speciality/expertise. If you are willing to present a session in your special interest area please indicate this below.
Name______Date ______
OCCUPATION: GP/Practice Nurse/Other (please specify)______
Tell us about your interests
It would be useful to know your special interests, additional qualifications or areas of speciality/expertise to orient the CME session. And if you are willing to present a session in your special interest area please note below.
Special interests:______
Additional qualifications: ______
Areas of specialty expertise: ______
I'm willing to present or co-present: YES / NO (please circle one)
Do you have any suggestions forgood local presenter for any topic? If so,
please give their name and contact details:
______
______
Please return this form to: ______
______
By: ______(date)
CME TOPICS[1] / RATINGS:Only rate the topics
you're interested in:
1 = Will definitely turn up
2 = Very interested
3 = Mildly interested / Which DOMAIN would you most like to focus on within this topic:
1 – Communication
2 – Clinical expertise
3 – Professionalism
4 – Scholarship
5 – Context of General Practice
6 - Management / Is there anything specific you would like to get out of this CME session?
Acute Care
Addictions
Adolescent / Rangatahi / Youth Health
Cardiovascular
Dermatology
e-health
End-of-life care
Endocrinology
Ear, Nose and Throat
Eyes
Family Violence
Gastroenterology
Genetics
Health and work
Long-term conditions
Māori Health
Men’s Health
Mental Health
Musculoskeletal
Neurology
Older people
Oncology
Paediatrics and Immunisations
Population and Public Health
Renal and Urology
Respiratory Medicine
Rheumatology
Rural
Sexual Health
Travel Medicine
Women’s Health
Other suggestions (please list below):
[1]These topic areas are drawn from theRNZCGP Curriculum for General Practice which can be found on the College website at