Conference participants raced into Day 3 of the Alliance 2022 Annual Conference, taking place in Aurora, Colorado, and online via Alliance Live. Friday kicked off with the 5K Fun Run/Walk. After some morning cardio and fueling up with breakfast in the Exhibit Hall, attendees from near and far gathered for the Alliance Annual Business Meeting, where 2021 Alliance President Rebecca DeVivo virtually passed the gavel to 2022 Alliance President Jan Schultz. Then, we celebrated five more award recipients. Congratulations to the following individuals:
- Dr. Jann Torrance Balmer, PhD, RN, FACEhp, FAAN, Miller-Wentz Lifetime Achievement Award
- Riaz Baxamusa, MBA, CHCP, Distinguished Leader Award
- Eric Peterson, EdM, FACEhp, CHCP, Distinguished Leader Award
- Chitra Subramaniam, PhD, President’s Award
- Shelly B. Rodrigues, MS, CAE, FACEhp, FAAMSE, Frances M. Maitland Memorial Mentorship Award
Moving the Needle Toward Equity
Day 3’s educational sessions started with an impactful keynote from Breanna Lathrop, DNP, MPH, FNP-BC. Lathrop is the chief operating officer and nurse practitioner at Good Samaritan Health Center in Atlanta. In “Education to Advance Health Equity,” Lathrop explained the necessity for those in the healthcare space to move the needle toward equity.
Life expectancy gaps is a national problem, and health behavior change prevents 30–40% of premature deaths. Lathrop encouraged participants to consider social determinants of health and provided key ways that continuing education can allow all patients the opportunity to live a healthy life. Meeting social needs does not equate to addressing social determinants of health. Through advocacy, use of personal narrative and elevating health in all policies, continuing education can lead to more equitable care and treatment for patients across the country.
Morning Breakouts
After an insightful keynote presentation to kick off the morning, attendees divided up to listen in to the sessions that piqued their interests. In “Don’t Know JAC? Let Us Help! Lessons From the Inaugural Cohort of Providers Jointly Accredited With Commendation,” Bina George-Figueroa, MS, CHCP, FACEhp, and Lea A. Mabry, MEd, provided practical tips and real-life examples of how organizations around the country achieve commendation criteria. Plus, they outlined best practices for preparing for the interview, such as telling your story, prepping your team, admitting your strengths and weaknesses and having materials easily accessible.
Conversation, Q&A and audience interaction made up much of “Pupils in Focus: Introduction to Focus Groups.” James Morgante, PhD, discussed all aspects of focus groups, from strengths and weaknesses to tips for moderation and more. What’s one of the many key tidbits to take away from this session? Nonverbal communication can tell as much about a participant’s response as a verbal response. As a moderator, set expectations for audio and camera to stay on when conducting a virtual focus group.
In “Intercommunity Comprehensive Care to Address Public Health: Making the Connection,” Elizabeth Patterson stepped in to discuss strategies for developing IPCE interventions to target public health problems, modeled after initiatives at the University of Virginia. In this session, participants gathered with Patterson for close conversation and riveting discussion. Meanwhile, the morning Learning Collaborative focused on how organizational leadership approaches diversity, inclusion and access, posing the question: What have been the biggest barriers? Then, from calculating the cost-effectiveness of your continuing education to evaluating technology to maximize learner engagement and a look at the state of the PA profession, the healthcare CPD community had a busy morning full of thoughtful conversations and new ideas.
An Interactive Afternoon
After lunch in the Exhibit Hall, attendees headed toward another round of interactive breakout sessions. In this afternoon’s Learning Collaborative, participants discussed trends, practices and outcomes emerging from their collective experiences with interprofessional continuing education. In “Incorporating QI Project Elements Into Your CME/CE Activities,” participants dove into how QI project ideas can be incorporated to align with clinical content areas. Attendees participated in “real-time hallway conversations,” where Q&A and discussion of emerging CPD topics were encouraged.
Do you have best practices for managing a small CME program? Using their real-life experiences, Jennifer Alessi, MA, CHCP; Andrea Westmoreland, MEd; and Sabrina Stambaugh, BA, walked through their challenges, strategies, creative solutions and lessons learned from working with their own small programs. The panelists invited participants both in person and online to work through case scenarios together.
If you need to brush up on your microlearning video skills or were wondering how to start, Tina B. Stacy, PharmD, FACEhp, BCOP, CHCP, broke down the process of this “seemingly herculean” task. From following the steps of planning, producing and avoiding pitfalls to outlining six tips for getting microlearning right, Stacy prepared participants for their next microlearning endeavor.
Calling all podcasters! Are you a podcast producer or listener? Maybe you’re looking to start your own pod. In this how-to session, Tejuana TJ Baskerville and Myria Stanley, MS, DES, outlined strategy for podcast design. From planning to scripting and editing to publishing, this session prepared participants to grab their (wired) headphones and get to work on creating their show.
In a discussion with ACCME’s Kate Regnier, MA, MBA, participants heard and conversed about a variety of topics including transitioning activities to virtual and hybrid learning; addressing diversity, equity and inclusion through accredited CME/CE; implementing the new Standards for Integrity and Independence and more.
While completing an accreditation cycle can be exhausting, this is a prime time to assess current operations, think strategically and identify ways to elevate the quality of your program. In the live and livestreamed session “Moving From Meeting to Exceeding: 5 Case Studies for Provider Quality Improvement,” Rachel Barenie, PharmD, JD, MPH, and James Wheeler, PharmD, BCPS, reviewed case studies of QI initiatives completed in an academic provider setting. Then, they shared positive outcomes from their experiences of team collaboration, including meetings and accountability. Then, in “Survey Research in CME/CE,” Leanne Walker, MBA, and Sue Novak, MD, discussed how surveys serve many purposes for medical education research. Plus, good survey design is vital to obtaining high-quality data and maximizing response rates.
After one last refreshment break in the Exhibit Hall, the healthcare CPD community wrapped up the day with the panel discussion “Oh, the Mistakes I Have Made: Lessons Learned From the CPD Community.” No matter where you are in your career journey, chances are you’ve made a mistake or two. You’re only human! Moderated by Brian Thompson, this panel reflects on blunders that actually turned out to be learning opportunities. From replying to emails to how we budget and price outcomes and planning for hybrid meetings, these panelists shared relevant — and relatable — advice and takeaways for all listeners to keep in mind. Plus, session attendees even shared their own learning experiences with the group.
Thank you to all of our participants, both in person and via Alliance Live, for another great day at the Alliance 2022 Annual Conference. We’ll see you back here tomorrow for the final morning of sessions!
Read the Day 1 and Day 2 recaps on the Almanac.