CME OUTFITTERS IN THE NEWS

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Press Release CME Outfitters Makes Large Strides in Outcomes Research: Lipid Monitoring Study to be Published in Health Outcomes Research in Medicine CME Outfitters recent research and educational outcomes study on blood lipid monitoring and use of antipsychotic agents will be published in the journal, Health Outcomes Research in Medicine, in September 2012 POWELL, Ohio (July 18, 2012) – CME Outfitters, a leading accredited provider in continuing medical education, is proud to announce that its recent outcomes research article on lipid monitoring will be published in the Elsevier journal, Health Outcomes Research in Medicine (HORM).  The soon-to-be published article is entitled “Clinician Education Improves Lipid Monitoring in Patients Taking Second-Generation Antipsychotic Agents, Nationally and Locally.” The article is based on an educational research study that was conducted by CME Outfitters in collaboration with University of South Florida (USF) Health and The Lindner Center of HOPE of Cincinnati, Ohio. This article is now posted online as an “Epub ahead of print” version, and readers can access the article abstract at http://www.healthoutcomesresearch.org/article/S1877-1319(12)00029-8/abstract (article available with subscription), and  official publication is planned for September 2012.  The article was authored by CME Outfitters Medical Resource Group members: Sandra Haas Binford, MAEd; Monique D. Johnson, MD, CCMEP; Robert S. Kennedy, MS; and Joy Bartnett Leffler, MLA, NASW, CSE.  “One of the key features of CMEO’s study that is relevant to HORM is the explicit linking of research and practice.  One important dimension of HORM’s mission is to ensure that research is operationalized in clinical practice and that clinical practice and health care are informed by research. This linkage is quite explicit in CMEO’s manuscript and the value of this linkage was shown very well,” said Dr. Donald E. Stull, Editor-in-Chief at HORM, “CME Outfitters has demonstrated that continuing medical education is critical for quality health care, and part of that medical education involves understanding the importance of research in clinical practice.” CME Outfitters presented this initiative’s research findings as a poster display in January 2012 at the Annual Allianceeeting in Orlando, Florida. The poster, entitled “A Simplified Model for Educational Outcomes Measurements (EOMs): Change in Serum Lipid Monitoring Rates in Patients With Bipolar Disorder or Schizophrenia,” presented data at Moore’s direct Level 5, performance-based outcomes. CME Outfitters studied whether participation in CME improved clinicians’ rates of lipid monitoring in patients with major mental illness; the results rose to statistical significance regarding change in clinicians’ behavior for serum lipid monitoring in a population that was at risk for cardiometabolic syndrome. Activity participants nationwide increased their monitoring rates from 43% of patients by 18.0 percentage points—to more than 61% of patients. Further, they monitored significantly more patients than did clinicians who did not participate in related, certified, CME Outfitters educational activities on bipolar disorder and schizophrenia in the neuroscienceCME “Live and On Demand” multimedia format. Finally, clinicians at the Lindner Center of HOPE increased monitoring rates even more, by 28.0 percentage points (from 27.5% of patients to 55.5% of patients), or a 102% increase over pre-activity rates. Many patients will receive better care because of clinicians’ participation in this study’s related CME-certified activities. Changes among nationwide participants were most telling: after one year, more than one-quarter of participating clinicians were monitoring fully 100% of these patients, and clinicians increased their median monitoring rates by more than 50 percentage points—from 27.5% of patients to 80.0% of patients. Clinicians’ increased surveillance for hyperlipidemia increases rates of identification and improves time to treatment, potentially decreasing cardiovascular risk in patients taking second-generation antipsychotic agents, thus making changes that improve health outcomes. The co-sponsors, USF Health and CME Outfitters, gratefully acknowledge support from Janssen Pharmaceuticals, Inc., administered by Janssen Scientific Affairs, LLC, and Lilly USA, LLC, for the Change in Serum Lipid Monitoring Rates in Patients With Bipolar Disorder and Schizophrenia educational research study and the foundational educational activities upon which the original research article was based.  “It is an honor to have our work published in an outcomes journal such as HORM, not only because we have the opportunity to educate physicians about the need for ongoing assessment and monitoring of lipids in patients with major psychiatric disorders such as schizophrenia and bipolar disorder, but also because of the resultant outcomes. That is what we strive for here at CME Outfitters: exceptional results that improve patient health outcomes,” said Joy Bartnett Leffler, Senior Medical Program Director at CME Outfitters. Health Outcomes Research in Medicine is an online journal by Elsevier Inc. that provides compelling content to advance the field of research and medicine by connecting patient outcomes with evidence-based clinical practice behaviors. For more information about the journal, please visit http://www.healthoutcomesresearch.org/. Additionally, CME Outfitters proudly announces the launch of its new internal Outcomes and Educational Effectiveness Database. This newly developed database allows CME Outfitters to collect, analyze, and report on Moore’s Levels 1 through 6 for all its educational initiatives. With this advanced, integrated system, which functions as a content and learner management system as well as an accreditation engine, CME Outfitters’ educational analysis department can review participation and evaluation data, survey results, follow-up testing, learner feedback on multimedia case vignettes and video clips, and more—for each CME Outfitters or neuroscienceCME activity. “The development and launch of this Outcomes Database provides an extraordinary opportunity for CME Outfitters to stand out among our competitors,” said Ms. Leffler. “We now have the capability to collect, analyze, and report on Moore’s direct and indirect Levels 1 through 6.  We can now provide these data and report efficiently and effectively to our stakeholders and to our learners. One clinical behavior change at a time … our goal is to improve clinical behavior of physicians. The advanced functionality of this in-house database moves CME Outfitters light years ahead in the achievement of this goal.” About CME Outfitters, LLC CME Outfitters develops and distributes live, recorded, and web-based, outcomes- and evidence-based educational activities to thousands of clinicians each year and offers expert accreditation and outcome services for non-accredited organizations. CME Outfitters focuses on delivering education to specialty audiences, with strong expertise in neuroscience, autoimmune diseases, and cardiovascular disease. For a complete list of certified activities and more information, visit www.cmeoutfitters.com or call 877.CME.PROS (877.263.7767). About neuroscienceCME neuroscienceCME.com is an award-winning web portal serving clinicians, educators, and researchers in the neurosciences. Launched in October 2006, neuroscienceCME.com fills an identified gap in online resources for professionals around the world who practice in areas related to psychiatry, sleep disorders, pain, and neurology. The site’s primary mission is to be a central forum for accessing, debating, synthesizing, and implementing the latest findings and best practices in the neurosciences. Visit www.neuroscienceCME.com to learn more. “CME Outfitters … Improving Clinical Behavior … One Change at a Time”

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