ASCCP CONTINUING MEDICAL EDUCATION (CME) MISSION STATEMENT

Purpose
The educational mission of the ASCCP is to improve clinician competence and performance and patient outcomes through educational activities focused around the study, prevention, diagnosis, and management of lower genital tract disorders.

Content areas
ASCCP CME activities will educate the target audience in the clinical management of the spectrum of benign, premalignant, and malignant disorders of the female lower genital tract (i.e., cervix, vagina, and vulva) with an emphasis on disorders best imaged using colposcopy. Other disorders, including those of the male, will be addressed briefly as they relate to this primary content area.

Target audience
The intended target audience is licensed health professionals interested in colposcopy and disorders of the lower genital tract. This audience includes licensed physicians (e.g., gynecologists, family physicians, gynecologic oncologists, pathologists, and others) and advanced practice clinicians (e.g., nurse practitioners, physician assistants, and certified nurse midwives). The audience mix varies among activities, from novice clinicians learning basic concepts to experienced practitioners seeking to update and refine techniques and fund of knowledge.

Types of activities
CME will be provided to the target audience through a variety of activities. These will include traditional live meetings, comprised of lectures to large audiences, hands-on workshops, and interactive case-based seminars; a biennial meeting that incorporates debates, panel discussions, small-group seminars, case-based audience participation sessions, and lectures; print media, including clinical vignettes; and electronic media, including videotapes, CD-ROMs, DVDs, monthly case-based question-and-response vignettes, and full-length, self-directed Internet CME activities.

Non-CME functions designed to support these CME activities include a post-course mentorship training and assessment program; the Journal of Lower Genital Tract Disease, an international peer-reviewed publication listed in Index Medicus; Modern Colposcopy, a comprehensive textbook and atlas allowing clinicians to refresh and repetitively reinforce concepts as they encounter cases; a continually updated website with focused content; residency self-assessment and curriculum development modules; availability of online post-meeting clarification of concepts using experts through the ASCCP central office; a pathology review service for clarification of difficult diagnostic issues; and patient education pamphlets designed to improve communication of knowledge gained through CME activities.

Expected results
Expected results vary depending on the activity but focus on instilling new competencies that will allow clinicians to improve performance in managing lower genital tract disorders for improved patient outcomes. Specific competencies include the abilities to:

1. recommend tailored management to women with genital human papillomavirus infections, abnormal cervicovaginal cytology, and cancer precursors involving the lower genital tract. This includes the following skill components:
   1. perform colposcopy of the cervix, vagina, and vulva with graduated levels of skill, perform colposcopy of the cervix, vagina, and vulva with graduated levels of skill, including the ability to distinguish normal from abnormal anatomy and to define the colposcopic appearance of normal variants, low grade and high grade cancer precursors, and cancer.  (Medical Knowledge, Patient Care)
   2. describe the natural history of HPV and lower genital tract cancer precursors in order to distinguish women whose disease is likely to regress spontaneously from those whose disease is likely to persist or progress. (Medical Knowledge, Patient Care)
   3. understand cytology and pathology of the lower genital tract and the terminology used to communicate these findings. (Medical Knowledge)
   4. use HPV testing to identify women at risk for lower genital tract disease. (Medical Knowledge, Systems-based Practice)
   5. perform biopsies and treat cervical disease, including the ability to observe lesions with a high likelihood of spontaneous regression. (Patient Care)
   6. screen for, diagnose, and manage lesions involving the perianal skin and the anal canal. (Medical Knowledge, Patient Care)
   7. apply new diagnostic and treatment modalities to the management of lower genital tract disorders. (Medical Knowledge, Practice-based Learning)
   8. order the HPV vaccines to the appropriate populations following a thorough discussion of risks and benefits of the vaccine (Medical Knowledge)
   9. integrate these skills through the application of management guidelines developed by ASCCP and other national organizations. (Systems-based Practice)
2. recognize, evaluate, and treat disorders of the vulva and vagina, including vulvodynia, nonneoplastic epithelial conditions, preinvasive vulvar conditions, vulvar carcinomas and vaginitis. (Medical Knowledge, Patient Care)

CME Goals
The Society seeks to improve clinician competence and performance and patient outcomes in the field of lower genital tract disorders through the education of health care professionals and others in colposcopy and related strategies. We intend to provide physicians and other licensed healthcare providers with the knowledge and skills necessary to fill gaps in practice. Specifically, we intend to offer educational opportunities that will allow clinicians to:

1. achieve expertise in performing colposcopic examinations including an understanding of normal and abnormal cervical anatomy, cytology, histology, and colposcopic findings;
2. recognize, evaluate, and manage premalignant and malignant diseases of the cervix, vagina, and vulva;
3. recognize, evaluate, and treat related diseases of the vulva and vagina including vulvodynia, nonneoplastic epithelial conditions, preinvasive vulvar conditions ,vulvar carcinomas and vaginitis;
4. understand the natural history of premalignant cervical disease to allow more directed therapy;
5. describe the role of human papillomavirus (HPV) in the pathophysiology of lower genital tract neoplasia and use HPV DNA testing in its evaluation and management;
6. understand the risks and benefits of the HPV vaccine and know how to access new information on the use of the HPV vaccine;
7. become familiar with new diagnostic modalities for lower genital tract diseases; and,
8. provide women and their partners with appropriate patient education materials.

CME Objectives
The Society intends to meet its CME goals through the following educational objectives to:

1. conduct medical education postgraduate courses teaching colposcopy and other screening techniques;
2. conduct a biennial scientific meeting to disseminate new ideas, conduct debates and panel discussions on screening, triage, and management issues;
3. provide self-study educational resource materials including Internet CME activities and case studies, textbooks, CD-ROMs, videotapes and DVDs, the quarterly Home Study Course, and other products;
4. publish the Journal of Lower Genital Tract Disease, an international peer-reviewed journal;
5. support residency training in colposcopy and other skills related to lower genital tract disorders through a national online residents’ assessment program, assistance with program curriculum development, and other means;
6. facilitate colposcopy education via a mentorship training and assessment program;
7. optimize providers’ knowledge on the risks and benefits of the HPV vaccine and provide them with easily accessible information on the use of the HPV vaccine; and,
8. produce patient education pamphlets on lower genital tract disease issues.

CME Needs Assessment, Planning and Evaluation Processes
The initial development of any CME program, whether a postgraduate course or enduring material, begins with the Accreditation and/or Program Committee(s) through the identification of performance and practice gaps or through the identification of new modalities to address previously identified gaps. Appointed Program Directors and/or Authors, working under the direction of the Accreditation and Program Committees, then identify appropriate target audience(s) and then develop the educational activity objectives, curriculum content, format of delivery, and evaluation methods to include appropriate measurement tools. The appropriate committee chairpersons and staff ensure the educational planning and evaluation of a particular program are handled according to the Society’s internal CME protocols and adhere to the ACCME’s Essential Areas and Elements and 2006 Updated Criteria. It is the Accreditation and Program Committees, working under the governance of the Board of Directors, who oversee the CME program. CME administration is overseen by the relevant Society staff in conjunction with the appropriate Committee chairpersons or Program Directors.

The overall needs assessment and evaluation of all CME and non-CME educational activities are conducted by the Accreditation and Program Committees 2-3 times annually. The Board of Directors then reviews and approves the planning and evaluation reports, as well as the production and administration reports of any program or enduring material. The Society undertakes a long-range planning retreat every 5 years. The next scheduled retreat will be held in February 2009. These retreats serve to set the main strategic thinking and planning processes for the overall mission of the society, to identify its 5-year goals and priorities, and to align these with existing programs, CME activities, and member services. Retreat outcomes are then built into term committee goals and strategies by the 3 incoming presidents and are shared with the membership at the biennial business meetings.

Specific ASCCP policies regarding faculty selection, corporate sponsorship of programs, etc., may be found in the Society’s education and program files at the national office.

Revised: June 2008