Purpose
The mission of the Office of Continuing Medical Education (OCME) is to sponsor high quality evidence- and research-based educational and professional improvement activities for physicians, nurses, pharmacists, and other healthcare professionals that promote improvement in an individual practitioner’s competency, encourage incorporation of new knowledge and skills to improve performance resulting in enhanced patient care. We will work to promote an expansive multifaceted educational environment that leads to nurturing individual lifelong learning. The program will strive to develop educational inclusion of widely diverse cultural and geographic groups within the state of South Dakota. Working cooperatively, the program complements the mission of the Sanford School of Medicine in its expanded goal of education.
Content Areas
Reflecting the mission of the Sanford School of Medicine, the Office of Continuing Medical Education will emphasize professional improvement activities for primary care healthcare providers including family physicians, internal medicine physicians, pediatricians, obstetricians/gynecologists, psychiatrists, surgeons, nurses, pharmacists, and other allied healthcare providers working within the geographically diverse rural and urban centers of the state and region. Concurrently, the OCME provides assistance with local specialty program activities to fulfill specialty care practitioner’s needs. Activities are designed to expand on the practitioner’s existing capabilities, elucidate methods for self reflection, and facilitate transformation into a lifelong learner.
Target Audience
Situated within a rural state, the OCME strives to deliver educational experiences for the Primary Care and Specialty Care Practitioners inclusive of all healthcare providers who may benefit from appropriate educational activities. Working with the various groups of learners, establishing needs, objectives, and goals to develop meaningful learning activities, the OCME primarily emphasizes live activities with utilization of regional telecommunication facilities to distribute live activities within the networks of the state and healthcare systems to extend the delivery area.
Types of Activities
The OCME offers a variety of formats for learning activities including topic-specific specialty grand rounds, discipline-specific internal conferences, interactive, live audio and videoconferencing, faculty and professional improvement activities, enduring materials in print, audio, and video for traditional or internet distribution as well as joint sponsorship of state and regional activities.
Expected Results
To promote the mission of the Sanford School of Medicine, the Office of Continuing Medical Education is committed to designing educational activities that result in enhancing quality care for the people of South Dakota. Within the framework of the challenges of operating within a rural state, the OCME offers the physicians of South Dakota the opportunity to improve their essential clinical medical knowledge and competencies and by closing identified gaps, ultimately improving individual South Dakotan patient care.
