New Services by Independent Company Address Bias and Validate CME Content

New Services by Independent Company Address Bias and Validate CME Content

Greencastle, PA—An independent peer review company announced today the launch of two new services to help ensure that continuing medical education (CME) activities are free of drug company influence and to address the recent regulatory criticism of the Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education (ACCME).

CME Peer Review, LLC, introduced its VerifyCE™ service that uses independent physician specialists to verify compliance of live CME activities and its CEFactCheck™ that verifies scientific accuracy of educational materials certified for CME credit. These new services, together with the flagship ValidateCE™, evaluate content at critical points in the development process and during delivery for compliance with current regulatory and accreditation standards. CME Peer Review services help assure the delivery of the balanced and objective information required to improve patient health or outcomes.

“We offer objective and standardized evaluation – without conflict of interest – that only a third party can provide,” said Jane Ruppenkamp, founder and President of CME Peer Review.  “Internal reviews conducted by employees of accredited providers and contractors are often fraught with inherent conflicts that affect reviewers’ objectivity?be it personal income, job security, organizational revenue, or internal politics.”

The new services provided by CME Peer Review follow the July 10 release of the revised
PhRMA Code on Interactions with Healthcare Professionals, June 11 policy clarifications from
ACCME regarding interactions between accredited providers and commercial interests, and the April 2007 US Senate Committee on Finance that criticized ACCME’s accreditation standards for failing to ensure that educational programs funded by drug companies are devoid of commercial influence.

The PhRMA Code revisions provide more detailed standards regarding the independence of continuing medical education (CME). ACCME clarifications state that “industry will have no presence in the CME planning process, industry will not prepare or provide any meeting materials, and industry will not review or suggest modifications to CME content.”

The CEFactCheck™ service of CME Peer Review verifies the scientific accuracy of educational content and references. A complete review of underscored full-text references provides verification and documentation of a good faith effort to provide accurate information to healthcare learners.

The second service, VerifyCE™, an objective third-party on-site audit of live CME activities, bridges the gap between the regulatory requirements of CME accredited providers and those of commercial supporters. VerifyCE™ evaluates and documents compliance with regulatory and accreditation standards. A network of over 300 independent physicians, pharmacists, and nurses who meet rigorous standards and are vetted for conflicts of interest with drug companies evaluate for compliance in such areas as balance, objectivity, commercial bias, and scientific rigor.

“The addition of VerifyCE marks the first service we are making available to commercial supporters, as well as CME providers. While, commercial supporters have no role in the review of content prior to the certified activity, our on-site audit is a way for either party to verify compliance during the live event. We believe using these services will enhance independence,  reduce or eliminate commercial bias, and document compliance,” said Ruppenkamp.

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CME Peer Review was founded in January 2006 to enhance the quality and credibility of continuing education for the healthcare professional by offering CE providers and commercial supporters objective, transparent and standardized evaluation of continuing education activities for educational integrity and regulatory compliance. Through a cost-effective, independent evaluation of educational activities clients receive feedback on the alignment of CE content with the public interest and compliance with ACCME, ACPE, and ANCC criteria.

Sources:

CME Peer Review home page. CME Peer Review: Content Validation – without Conflict [Web site]. Available at: http://cmepeerreview.com. August 5, 2008.

ACCME press release June 11, 2008. Available at: http://www.accme.org/index.cfm/fa/news.detail/news_id/c7b2d7ee-854d-4440.... August 5, 2008.

US Senate Committee on Finance. Senate Committee on Finance Responds to ACCME [press release]. May 3, 2007. Available at: http://finance.senate.gov/press/Gpress/2007/prg050207a.pdf