CME Do's and Dont's
Do ...
- Get approval from the Department of Continuing Professional Development for all brochures, flyers, electronic announcements, and other materials before distribution.
- Before you apply for commercial support ...
- Notify the Department of Continuing Professional Development if you are pursuing financial support. All financial support must be in the form of an educational grant and preceded by a letter of agreement. If you are completing the solicitation letter or grant application (hard copy or online), ACOG must be listed as the accredited provider. Forward the draft application or provide the CME team with the online access code for review before completion.
- Have the letter of agreement signed by the commercial supporter, the nonaccredited educational partner, and the ACOG Department of Continuing Professional Development (as the accredited provider). Checks should be made payable to ACOG Department of Continuing Professional Development or our approved designee. Return a fully executed copy of the letter of agreement to ACOG's Department of Continuing Professional Development.
- Ensure that the content, planning, and selection of speakers for a CME activity is free from commercial interest and influence. The planning committee for the activity must ensure that presentations are not promotional, are evidenced based, and hold no commercial bias and that potential conflicts of interest have been resolved.
- Announce a speaker’s commercial relationships (or lack of relationships) and method of resolution to the audience prior to the presentation. If the disclosure form is not received prior to the event, the presenter can not participate in the CME activity.
- Ensure that the Disclosure of Relationships and Declaration Form is completed by each planning committee member and submitted with the CME application.
- Ensure that the Disclosure of Relationships and Declaration Form is completed by and forwarded to each speaker at least four to eight weeks prior to the activity.
- Have an evaluation process for all CME activities.
- Collect, tabulate, and submit evaluations to the Department of Continuing Professional Development.
- Provide a financial report (program budget summary) and copies of sponsor checks to the Department of Continuing Professional Development.
Don't ...
- Allow commercial supporters or marketing representatives to select the content, topic, or speaker for accredited CME events.
- Allow CME events to be promotional.
- Allow commercial supporters to directly pay the speaker honorarium or any other program-related expenses.
- Allow commercial supporters or marketing representatives to drop by with lunch for or during a CME-accredited activity. All financial support must be in the form of an educational grant to the Department of Continuing Professional Development.
- Allow the commercial supporter, the marketing representative, or the speaker to determine the amount of the honorarium.
- Allow any commercial marketing material in the room where the educational activity takes place.
- Forget to update the Department of Continuing Professional Development when there are changes to your CME administrative staff.