Staying up to date on industry trends can feel like an overwhelming task. Information is everywhere in our digital world: blogs, websites, podcasts, newsletters, social media. But with so much information out there, finding what you need can seem like the equivalent of looking for a needle in a never-ending haystack.
So, how can you keep up with the latest research, best practices, industry trends and cutting-edge technologies? One of the easiest ways to stay updated is to follow the influencers who are shaping these trends. These are thought leaders, experts, organizations and groups who share their insights, opinions, experiences, useful — and sometimes even entertaining — content. So, who is creating content relevant to understanding continuing professional development, medical education, and adult learning, and who is worth following? Here is a list of content creators to keep an eye on.
The Curbsiders Teach
If you’re a podcast enthusiast, you have probably already heard of The Curbsiders (an internal medicine series started by a group for clinician educators with a passion for medical education). The Curbsiders Teach is their medical education offshoot that focuses on teaching medicine. Topics range from bedside teaching, ambulatory precepting, feedback conversations, mentorship, learner mental health and more.
What we like about it: This is medical education created by and for physicians. Although guests on the show include adult learning experts, the primary focus overall is physician medical education experts talking about adult learning.
WriteMedicine
This is a weekly podcast run by Alex Howson, PhD, CHCP, a CME/CPD expert with a rich background in healthcare and education writing. Guests on the show include CME/CPD experts who bring a wealth of knowledge and experience to the discussion. The goal of the podcast is to help listeners learn and grow as a CME/CPD professional. Although designed for medical writers, the content is applicable wherever you are in the content creation process: planning, designing, delivering or evaluating education for health professionals.
What we like about it: Guests on the show are the worker bees of CME/CPD. These are the people who are rolling up their sleeves and doing the work. Discussions are practice based with real-world examples.
CMEpalooza
CMEpalooza is a free, biannual, online conference geared toward individuals involved in the development and implementation of continuing medical education for healthcare professionals run by Derek Warnick and Scott Kober. There’s also a blog with funny updates.
What we like about it: You can always expect there to be a fun session at these conferences. Whether it’s playing “Family Feud” or pop quiz, Derek and Scott combine gamification with creative session titles. And their blogs, which often aren’t even medical education related, will have you laughing out loud.
Karl Kapp
Karl M. Kapp, Ed.D., is an international speaker, scholar, writer and expert on the convergence of learning, technology and business with a focus on game-thinking, games and gamification for learning. He is basically the Dr. Fauci of gamification in learning. You’ll find lots of resources on his website, including links to his LinkedIn, X (formally Twitter) and YouTube.
What we like about him: Most videos are short and easily digestible, although there are some longer videos.
Learning Scientists Blog — The Learning Scientists
This website is run by a group of cognitive psychological scientists interested in research on education. Resources include blogs, videos, podcasts and downloadable tools. Although the main focus is K–12 learning, the topics of discussion are applicable to all types and levels of learning.
What we like about it: We like looking outside our industry for ideas, and this is a great resource, as it is very similar to what we also do.
Brian S. McGowan
Brian is the chief learning officer and co-founder at ArcheMedX, Inc. He has been talking about and using online technology long before many of us even clearly understood what a hashtag was. His social media posts on X and LinkedIn not only include highlights of great publications, but also commentary on critical issues happening in our industry. Check out past episodes of the Alliance Podcast, particularly the Legends Interview Series, for Brian’s conversations with many thought leaders you ought to know about.
What we like about him: Brian does not hesitate to say what many of us are afraid to say out loud. He doesn’t just repost good content others have created; he also provides original commentary and discussion points.
Tagoras
Founded by Jeff Cobb and Celisa Steele, Tagoras focuses on issues in the market related to continuing education, professional development and lifelong learning. They focus on both the business and the learning sides of the learning business through several channels on their website.
What we like about it: I enjoy that Tagoras breaks down and stays current on several aspects of the industry. The Leading Learning website features information from industry leaders on topics such as learning strategies, content creation and industry trends via podcast, blog and a newsletter. Also, ReviewMyLMS is another Tagoras channel that accomplishes just what you’d imagine: Candid and thorough reviews of Learning Management Systems by users from the continuing education industry, as well as others.
DR MERL
No, not an actual doctor, DR MERL stands for Dependable Reviews of Medical Education Research Literature. This website offers insightful reviews of the latest research in medical education. Various physicians and school educators are tasked with writing 150–200 word reviews on literature from top research journals, covering topics such as assessments, learning strategies and issues important to medical educators.
What we like about it: DR MERL provides important insight into medical education issues which impact educators on the front lines in both undergraduate and graduate medical education. We find it interesting to stay current on the issues facing the professionals we are, in turn, educating.
Final Thoughts
This list contains some of our favorite resources, but we know there’s even more out there! Our goal is to give you a place to start while making the most of your limited time.
Sapana Panday earned her bachelor’s degrees in biochemistry from Mount Holyoke College and a master’s in public health, socio-medical sciences, from Columbia University. She brings a unique perspective from her upbringing in the developing nation of Nepal where education was a privilege afforded by the few, to her days as a health educator in the troubled schools of New York City. Over the years, she’s designed innovative educational formats, often leading the charge in introducing new concepts to medical education. She is a frequent speaker at many conferences and an advocate for integrating DEI efforts in CME.