Journal of Continuing Education in the Health Professions



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CURRENT ISSUE BACK ISSUES SUBSCRIBE ADVERTISE ABOUT JCEHP FOR AUTHORS JCEHP AWARD SEARCH (Members only) FULL-TEXT		Volume 29 (4) Volume 29, Issue 4, Fall 2009 J Contin Educ Health Prof 2009; 29(4): 259 ORIGINAL RESEARCH German ambulatory care physicians' perspectives on continuing medical education - A national survey Daniela Kempkens, Wilfried E. Dieterle, Martin Butzlaff, Andrew Wilson, Jan Böcken, Monika A. Rieger, Stefan Wilm, Horst C. Vollmar A b s t r a c t Introduction: This survey aimed to investigate German ambulatory physicians’ opinions about mandatory continuing medical education (CME) and CME resources shortly before the introduction of mandatory CME in 2004. Methods: A structured national telephone survey of general practitioners and specialists was conducted. Main outcome measures were opinions about mandatory CME, preferred CME media, and financial aspects of CME. Data analysis applied Pearson’s correlation coefficient for explorative analysis of correlations, analysis of variance for group comparison, and 2-test for investigation of distribution of 2 or more categorical variables. Results: Of the 511 participants, 73% felt that CME supported them in keeping up to date with new medical knowledge, yet only half believed in its ability to minimize medical errors or increase quality of patient care. Traditional ways of learning were preferred. Significant differences in CME behavior were found between primary-care physicians and specialists, the latter using more communicative media. Also, a small group of very skeptical physicians who do not agree with the need for CME in general was identified. Average expenditure for CME was estimated between 500 and 1000 Euros per year. A majority of physicians called for other parties, eg, health insurances or government, to share the financial responsibility for CME. Discussion: Mandatory CME was accepted as a necessity already before the new legislation took effect, with prevailing skepticism at the same time. Future research is needed on how to motivate physicians and especially certain subgroups of physicians to use CME methods shown to be effective in changing clinical behavior. Lessons For Practice German physicians preferred more “traditional” learning media such as medical journals, medical textbooks, or lectures. Subgroups of physicians (GPs, specialists, doctors in different practice setting) differ in their use of CME media: Doctors in group practice and specialists use more CME activities based on personal interaction, such as structured conversations with colleagues, but also more often the Internet. Doctors in single practice and general practitioners used scientific journals more often as CME sources. Germany has yet to adopt a system of CPD with adequate measure of changing clinical behavior, eg, including self-directed assessment.
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