How doctors can earn Continuing Medical Education credits

Learning is an ongoing process and doctors and other medical practitioners are no exception to this.

Today, earning Continuing Medical Education (CME) credits is mandatory for any doctor to keep practicing in private or public healthcare centers.

In India, all practicing doctors below 65 years of age have to complete 30 hours of CME every 5 years to get their license renewed.

Doctors can earn CME credits through seminars and workshops offered by Medical Institutions in India. Of late, doctors can even pursue CME from various online CME education providers.

Across the world, Medical Universities are offering CME certification courses through 4 different modes.

Free CME

As the name suggests these CME credits can be earned from various bodies without paying any fees. Seminars, Webinars, Conferences, and various online delivery modes are employed to train the practitioners.

In-person CME

This is CME training that requires the physical presence of Doctors and other Medical Practitioners. They are usually conducted in conference halls and hotels.

Online CME

This is one of the most popular modes of CME delivery that has picked up importance across the globe. In India, players like Omnicuris and Medvarsity are offering these training programs that can be attended from the comfort of your living rooms.

Hybrid CME

These CME require few modules to be attended physically and the remaining modules can be pursued via online mode.

Rules & Regulations in India

All the doctors and medical practitioners below the age of 65 years are directed to gain 30 credit hours every five years (acquiring a maximum of 6 credit hours/year is allowed). Those professionals who are over 65 years old are not required to gain CME credits.

In India, CME via online mode is in the nascent stage. The Medical Council of India (MCI) has not recognised some of these courses, which is a big drawback.

Some private players like Omnicuris offer CME courses that are approved by the MCI. Their portal lists around 209 CME courses and claim that they have tied up with 12+ State Governments and more than 10+ Medical Councils in India.

Interestingly, CME India is an initiative that started as a WhatsApp group by medical practitioners from Jharkhand, has done a commendable job on the pan India scale in CME delivery. They have a collection of around 45 research findings by various experts in a section called CME repository and around 25 valuable case studies called CME India Case study to educate practicing physicians and doctors on new developments in their sphere.

The Karnataka Medical Council offers online CME courses for Medical, Nursing, Dental, and Ayurvedic professionals through its portal https://www.emed.co.in/.

But unfortunately, the site is in its nascent stage with only a few courses offered currently. The Karnataka Medical Council says it has tied up with Omnicuris to offer the Online CME courses.

A digital future

According to experts in the field, online CME should be embraced by the MCI of India soon to upskill the practitioners in this sphere. Statistics say we have 1 doctor per 1000 patients and this disparity in doctor to patient ratio suggests an online mode of CME can help the medical practitioners to stay ahead in the developments happening in their field.

Besides, expecting all practitioners to attend in-Person conferences and seminars to upskill themselves is a daunting task.

Given the acute shortage of medical professionals, the loss of 35 working hours for a million doctors could be huge and from this perspective, embracing online CME looks like a promising proposition.