Mentoring an office of life long learning

CPD recently shared its accreditation expertise through a new mentorship program with the University of Alberta. Partnering with the Office of Lifelong Learning at U of A, CPD assisted this new office in developing processes for accreditation of its continuing medical education programs. As part of this mentorship, CPD entered into a “buddy” peer review relationship with U of A for joint accreditation of its CPD programs. The peer review process for academic programs ensures that curricular development is rigorous, scientifically sound, and meets administrative, educational and ethical accreditation standards as defined by the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada, College of Family Physicians of Canada and other governing bodies.

This will allow the U of A Office of Life Long Learning to fulfill requirements to become an accredited provider as defined by the Committee of Accreditation for Continuing Medical Education (CACME). Accredited programs and conferences qualify for maintenance of certification credits which add value for healthcare providers pursuing CPD. Furthermore, this partnership provides an opportunity for the fusion of knowledge and skills of individuals as well as providing opportunities for teamwork, increased output, optimal use of resources and enhancement of health professional learning.

For CPD, the buddy system allowed us to mentor and coach a new office in best practices in accreditation. Our extensive experience working with health professional and patient populations were also of value as they helped to inform processes that should be implemented to support this new team.