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BALTIMORE, Md.—January 10, 2013—The Alliance for Continuing Education in the Health Professions has awarded the distinguished 2013 Felch Award for Research in CE to Med-IQ, an ACCME-, ACPE-, and CBRN-accredited provider of continuing education for its research initiative, Evaluating the Clinical Effect of Performance Improvement Interventions on Type 2 Diabetes Patient Care. The award-winning research activity was conducted to more fully elucidate the effects of Med-IQ’s diabetes-focused Performance Improvement Continuing Medical Education (PI CME) on patient outcomes. This activity was supported by an educational grant from Sanofi-aventis U.S. Inc., A SANOFI COMPANY.
Care for patients with type 2 diabetes is becoming increasingly complex. Educational initiatives focused on improving performance must also improve clinical outcomes. Med-IQ sought to examine the: (1) impact of completing all three stages of PI, (2) impact of clinician participation in only traditional CME-certified activities (ie, those without self-assessment or improvement plans), (3) value of the process of completing a final chart review, and (4) representativeness of PI completers relative to those who did not complete the PI activity.
By examining linked chart-review data (ie, data from the same patient in the pre- and post-education period), Med-IQ was able to evaluate key clinical indicators of patient health (HbA1C, LDL, HDL, BP) 1 year before and after clinician participation in either PI CME or a traditional CME activity. Changes in each clinical indicator of patient health were evaluated using paired t-tests, and repeated measures. ANOVA was used to assess the effect of CME type on patient health.
Participants were also assessed for actions taken in response to clinical indicators of health before and after PI CME participation. Actions were categorized as optimal, suboptimal, or negative based on clinical indicator values and were compared using chi-square tests.
Results from this groundbreaking research demonstrated significant changes in indicators of patient health for the 44 clinicians in this study who completed the entire PI process. Improvements in mean HbA1C (8.42% to 7.46%, P < 0.001), LDL (111 mg/dL to 94 mg/dL, P < 0.001), HDL (45 mg/dL to 47 mg/dL, P < 0.001), and the percent of patients achieving BP < 130/80 mm Hg (20% to 40%, P < 0.001) were observed (n=44 physicians who completed the entire PI process).
For the 68 patients cared for by 9 clinicians who participated in stages A and B of the PI CME program, but who did not complete the final chart review stage (C), there were demonstrated improvements in each clinical measure: HbA1C (8.3% to 7.49%), LDL (120 mg/dL to 98 mg/dL), HDL (43 mg/dL to 46 mg/dL), BP < 130/80 mm Hg (27% to 41%).
Regarding clinical decisions made in response to patient data, PI CME completers were more likely to provide optimal treatment when BP exceeded 134/84 mm Hg than traditional CME activity participants (70% vs. 66%, P = 0.005). Compared with completer participants, clinicians who completed most but not all of the PI CME program took more optimal actions when HbA1C exceeded 9% (64% vs. 100%, P = 0.048).
Finally, in the evaluation of the alignment of PI completers to national standards compared with non-completers, results showed significant differences in 16 of 29 of patient-care practices. Participants who did not complete the PI CME activity were more likely to perform appropriate tasks related to general diabetes care, such as providing sick day instructions to patients requiring insulin and conducting nutrition counseling (P = 0.038 and P < 0.001, respectively). PI CME completers were more likely to perform appropriate processes related to preventing and detecting disease-related complications (73% vs. 9%, n = 11) and maintaining glycemic control (36% vs. 9%, n = 11).
“To our knowledge, this is the first in-depth analysis demonstrating improved patient outcomes attributed to clinician participation in a PI CME activity in diabetes care. Our data suggest that this education strategy plays a valuable role in clinician practice improvement, which translates to improved patient health” said Allison Gardner, PhD, Director, Educational Strategy and Content.
Med-IQ will be recognized at the Alliance for CEHP’s Awards Ceremony on Thursday, January 31, 2013, from 11:30 AM to 1:00 PM.
Med-IQ Award Team:
Scott E. Weber
Sara C. Miller, MS
Stephanie A. Stowell, MPhil
Amy Sison
Kenny Khoo, MBA, MS
Ali Bennett
LaWanda Stone Abernathy
Lisa R. Rinehart, MS, ELS
Carolyn A. Berry, PhD, New York University School of Medicine
About Med-IQ
Med-IQ, America's most respected provider of continuing medical education (CME), inspires healthcare professionals through award-winning activities that deliver sophisticated outcomes-based educational designs with measurable results in professional competence and performance. Med-IQ is accredited by the Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education (ACCME), the California Board of Registered Nursing (CBRN), and the Accreditation Council for Pharmacy Education (ACPE) as a provider of continuing medical education to physicians, nurses, and pharmacists, respectively.
Med-IQ, a leader in the development of performance improvement (PI) and quality improvement (QI) CME initiatives, has been recognized by the Alliance for Continuing Education in the Health Professions for our excellence in CE research (William Campbell Felch Award 2013, 2011), educational collaborations (2013), outstanding CME outcomes assessment (2012), and exceptional leadership (Leadership Award 2013, President’s Award 2012). To learn more about Med-IQ, visit www.Med-IQ.com, like us on Facebook, follow us on Twitter, connect with us on LinkedIn, and visit our YouTube channel.
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