From a cancer survivorship-focused continuing medical education course to practice change implementation: results of a provider survey
摘要
To assess whether a virtual, cancer survivorship-focused continuing medical education (CME) course affected awareness of cancer survivorship care and examined barriers to implementing practice changes.
MethodsWe surveyed medical professionals caring for patients and survivors of cancer before, during, and after online course participation from 2021 to 2024. Pre- and post-course test scores across four modules addressing care for patients with various cancer types, cancer and treatment effects, and survivors’ psychosocial and general health were analyzed using paired samples t-tests to determine participant knowledge. Post-course evaluations were analyzed using descriptive statistics and Fisher’s exact tests to measure perceived barriers in implementing practice changes.
ResultsThree hundred fifty-seven medical professionals registered for the CME course; 193 (54.1%) completed all modules (21 CME hours). Most were physicians (42.9%) or nurses (30.8%), 65.3% from the United States. Across all topics, post-course test median scores were significantly higher than median pre-course test scores with 94% course satisfaction. Among 198 who completed the post-course evaluation, 86.9% reported ≧1 barrier to practice change implementation: lack of provider time (34.3%), institutional (30.8%) or insurance/financial barriers (28.3%), and/or challenges in care team members’ communication and/or collaboration (23.7%). Implementing new skills (83.3%), seeking more information (47.0%), and creating/revising practice policies (45.5%) were the most endorsed goals post-CME.
ConclusionsThis CME course presented awareness across cancer survivorship topics; however, multiple barriers exist to clinical practice implementation. Future CMEs should include guidance on overcoming barriers within institutional clinical settings.
Implications for cancer survivorsAn online CME course could strengthen providers’ knowledge of survivorship care.