University of California San Francisco
UCSF School of Medicine UCSF Medical Center

Accreditation and Educational Development

Exciting News for Spring 2024!

As of May 1, 2024, the Office of CME is accepting new requests to accredit Regularly Scheduled Series (RSS) only. Below are the steps to accredit RSS to offer continuing education credit:  

Initial inquiry: Start by considering the questions in the New Idea practice form. Send a copy to yourself by selecting the ‘send me a copy of my responses’ option on the bottom left. Since the New Ideas forms must be filled out in one sitting, the practice form allows you to acquire a copy of the questions in advance. You can take the time you may need to share and discuss these before you submit an inquiry to the Office of CME (OCME).

To submit your idea or first-time request to offer credit to OCME for an RSS activity (only), use this New Idea Inquiry form. Please note that your initial inquiry must be submitted with sufficient time for preliminary screening and development of your full credit request application before the credit request submission deadline (>120 days for a new RSS credit request).

  • OCME Screening: Once the initial inquiry is submitted, it will be screened by the Office of CME within 1-2 weeks, with more information to follow about how to proceed with the full credit request application. The screening process may take time to complete, especially for complex programs. Inquiries that have not cleared the preliminary screening before the first-time credit request submission deadline must either move the program start date forward or proceed without accreditation (e.g., may not award continuing education credit until after the date the credit request is approved.)
  • Credit Request Submission and Review: Once submitted, each credit request is reviewed by the OCME staff and members of the Governing Board Accreditation Review Committee. Requests are processed in the order received. The Office of CME will notify Program Directors and Administrative Contacts of feedback and approval decisions within the review period.

Important notes

  • Deadlines for first-time requests are longer than those for renewal requests. Please see a schedule of credit request submission deadlines at the bottom of this page.
  • The UCSF Office of CME is not yet accepting first-time inquiries for live, enduring, and mixed format programs.

New policies posted on the UCSF Office of CME Website: OCME credit policies are now posted at: https://meded.ucsf.edu/cme/information-planners-and-coordinators/ucsf-cme-policies

The posted policies are intended to clarify the following:

  • Learners have 30 days after the end-date of an activity to claim credit. Late requests will not be granted.
  • Educational activities may grant credit to learners ONLY after the date of credit request approval.
  • Formal deadlines for credit request submissions for renewal of previously accredited educational activities have been established.
  • It is the responsibility of the Program Director and planning committee to ensure timely credit request submissions.

 

How to Prepare for Credit Request Submission

Take preliminary steps to ensure a smooth accreditation process.

  • Attend an accreditation orientation / CE Training session with any/all administrators who will support your course.
  • Plan a start date far enough in advance to have your initial inquiry screened and to then submit a comprehensive Credit-Request before the submission due date. (A request will normally take several hours to write the first time around, and substantially less time upon subsequent renewal.)
  • Recognize that accredited CE must be designed to change competence and/or performance and must document factually based practice professional practice gap(s) it is designed to address. A professional practice gap is evidence in the current profession which suggests that improved patient outcomes or performance is achievable compared to the current level.
  • A professional practice gap can apply to any aspect of a learner's current profession, including clinical care, research, teaching, administration, or leadership.
  • Identify evidence in literature or data that suggests that practice can and should improve with education and the best practices or changes or systems or strategies shown to improve patient outcomes. Evidence could be literature citations, variable patient outcomes, guideline adherence, or other sources, for example.
  • Be prepared to describe how any why you think the education should change the practice and/or behavior of the learner or team.
  • Ensure the planning committee is clear from the outset about how the education should change the practice and/or behavior of the team and/or learner.
  • Make sure you have a least one planner who has no financial conflicts of interest with any content in the entire Activity. (This person will need to mitigate conflicts of interest once your program is approved to offer Continuing Education (CE) credit.)
  • UC or affiliated planners on the planning committee are a requirement. Make sure a UCSF faculty member is integrally engaged in the planning process. (UCSF Office of CME does not certify 3rd party events.)
  • Take steps to ensure your planning committee is comprised of members whose professions reflect those of your learners.
  • Consider whether the education is appropriate for team-based learning, AI topics, and how you might incorporate the principles of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion in your content.
  • Prepare and advise your authors/speakers of any important messages early on, including pre-screening for relationships that are prohibited in accredited Continuing Education (Owners and employees of ineligible organizations).
  • Be prepared to submit your credit request on time by confirming all your presenters, moderators, and facilitators, in a program schedule.
  • Upon clearing the screening phase, anticipate needing resources to collect disclosures from every speaker, author, and planner, i.e., everyone who is in a position to control the content of the education.
  • Upon clearing the screening phase, anticipate needing to review and sign a Memorandum of Understanding that includes the Accredited Provider (UCSF) and the Educational Partner, if any.
  • Make sure your timeline is adequate to promote your activity with accreditation language. You will need an approved credit request to promote your program with the required accreditation language. If you will be charging learners to register and/or if you will have commercial grantors or exhibitors, you will need to prepare a budget with your best-guess projections and strategically set registration fees so that you can break or generate a profit.
  • Think about how you will promote your educational activity. You will want to do this as early as possible. You may want to begin with a Save-The-Date and/or offer early-bird discounts for those who register early for an accredited course. (Advertising your program early is important. However, you CANNOT advertise Continuing Education (CE) credit until the credit request is approved.)
  • If your course requires registration payments, determine who will manage the registration process (OCME or external).

 

CE Portal Link and Types of Credit

Link to CE Portal: https://ww2.highmarksce.com/ucsf 
The Office of CME is currently accredited to offer multiple types of credit:

  • Continuing Medical Education (CME) Credit
  • American Nurses Credentialing Center (ANCC) Credit
  • American Psychological Association (APA) Credit
  • Accreditation Council of Pharmacy Education (ACPE) Credit
  • Association of Social Work Boards (ASWB) Credit

As of July 2024, we anticipate being able to accredit education for:

  • Board of Certification (BOC) credit
  • American Dental Association’s (ADA) Continuing Education Recognition Program (CERP) Credit

Credit Request Submission Deadlines

First Time Requests

  • Regularly Scheduled Series (RSS) and Enduring Material Activity Types
    Deadline: 4 months prior to start
  • Live, Hybrid, and Other Activity Types
    Deadline: 9 months prior to start

Renewal Requests

  • Regularly Scheduled Series (RSS) and Enduring Material Activity Types
    Deadline: 3 months prior to start
  • Live, Hybrid, and Other Activity Types
    Deadline: 6 months prior to start

Accreditation and Educational Development

In support of improving patient care, the University of California, San Francisco Office of CME is jointly accredited by the Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education (ACCME), the Accreditation Council for Pharmacy Education (ACPE), and the American Nurses Credentialing Center (ANCC), to provide continuing education for the healthcare team. UCSF offers over 400 CE activities annually, in most medical specialties serving over 50,000 participants each year.

 

Still have Questions?

Please contact us:
https://meded.ucsf.edu/cme/about-office-continuing-medical-education/contact-us