Continuing Medical Education (CME) Mission Statement and Rules and Regulations

Mission Statement

The purpose of the CME Section is to promote excellence in the education of physicians throughout their careers and thereby contribute to the health of the public. The CME Section fosters:

1. The development and continued improvement of programs of continuing medical education to enhance physician learning;
2. The professional development of the teachers of continuing medical education;
3. The advancement of research in continuing medical education and the dissemination of the results of that research;
4. The development of policies that recognize the fundamental importance of continuing medical education.

A primary function of the CME Section is to advocate the enhancement of continuing medical education by:

• Promoting communication between the AAMC and members of the Section about professional development issues including: regional and national faculty development programs; collaborative research projects; the management of curricula, etc.
• Promoting communication among members of the CME Section
• Contributing advice and input from informed Section members to the AAMC on matters related to continuing medical education

For further information on the Continuing Medical Education Section contact Nancy Ryan Lowitt, M.D., Ed.M., F.A.C.P., nlowitt@som.umaryland.edu, CME Section Chair, University of Maryland School of Medicine.

Rules and Regulations

Approved September 2002

Article I: Name

The name of the section shall be the Section on Continuing Medical Education (CME Section) of the Group on Educational Affairs (GEA) of the AAMC.

Article II: Purpose/Mission Statement

The purpose of the CME Section is to promote excellence in the education of physicians throughout their careers and thereby contribute to the health of the public. The CME Section fosters:

1. The development and continued improvement of programs of continuing medical education to enhance physician learning;
2. The professional development of the teachers of continuing medical education;
3. The advancement of research in continuing medical education and the dissemination of the results of that research;
4. The development of policies that recognize the fundamental importance of continuing medical education;

A primary function of the CME Section is to advocate the enhancement of continuing medical education by:

• promoting communication between the AAMC and members of the Section about professional development issues including: regional and national faculty development programs; collaborative research projects; the management of curricula; etc.;
• promoting communication among members of the CME Section;
• contributing advice and input from informed Section members to the AAMC on matters related to continuing medical education.

Article III: Organizational Structure

The organizational structure of the CME Section shall parallel that of the GEA. There shall be a national steering committee and a constituent group in each of the GEA regions: Northeast, Central, Southern, and Western. Each region shall be represented on the CME Section National Steering Committee by an elected representative from that region.

Article IV: Membership

A. Membership Categories

1. Decanal Appointee: The GEA decanal appointee, identified by the dean of each member medical school as associated with CME, is also designated a member of the GEA/CME Section.
2. Individuals who work for one of the following organizations are also eligible:
   1. Boards responsible for the licensure of physicians in the US or Canada
   2. American Medical Association and Canadian Medical Association
   3. AOA accredited osteopathic medical schools
   4. Hospital based programs for CME which are accredited by the Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education (ACCME)
   5. Other individuals to be considered on a case by case basis
3. Individual Member: Faculty and staff of member medical schools and others as identified by the GEA Bylaws, Article IV.B, who are not decanal or COTH appointees, and who are interested in CME, may join as individual members.

B. Membership Criteria

As defined by the GEA Bylaws, Article IV-B.

C. Listserve

All new members shall be added to the CME Section's listserve.

Article V: Steering Committee

A. Purpose of Steering Committee

1. Conduct the business of the CME Section;
2. Coordinate activities and projects with the other constituent sections (i.e., UGME, GME, RIME) and with the GEA Steering Committee;
3. Provide a forum for discussion of the education of physicians;
4. Periodically review and revise the bylaws of the CME Section.

B. Composition of the Steering Committee

Voting members

1. Current National Chair of the CME Section;
2. Immediate Past National Chair* of the CME Section;
3. National Chair-elect of the CME Section;
4. Four Regional CME Section Chairs - one from each of the four geographic regions;

*Past Chair in odd-numbered years; Chair Elect in even-numbered years

Non-voting member

5. Ex-Officio member: an AAMC staff person will be appointed to provide liaison and administrative support to the CME Section Steering Committee.

Quorum

A quorum of the CME Section Steering Committee shall be declared a majority of the membership in attendance. The Chair of the Section has the authority to create subcommittees to accomplish the mission of the section.

C. Terms of Office

1. National CME Section Chair - four years total (one year as chair-elect, two years as chair, one year as past chair). Term as Chair-elect begins at the AAMC National meeting in the fall, following the election by the membership in the summer
2. Chair-elect, Past-Chair - one year. Term begins at the AAMC National meeting in the fall, following the election by the membership in the summer.
3. Four Regional CME Section Chairs - 2 years (elected in alternate years by the membership of the respective regional sections). Term begins at the regional spring meeting following the election by the regional membership in the previous winter. An individual may hold only one position on the Steering Committee at a time.

D. Responsibilities

1. National CME Section Chair
   0. convenes the CME Section Steering Committee (most commonly through conference calls and electronic communications during the year and at the National AAMC meeting each fall) and meeting(s) of the general membership of the section (i.e., the CME Section Meeting at the National AAMC meeting each fall);
   1. serves as the constituent representative on the national GEA Steering Committee and attends the meetings each year (usually January, May, November);
   2. provides written and verbal reports on CME Section activities to the national GEA Steering Committee (at each meeting);
   3. provides a report for the GEA Correspondent (twice a year)
   4. appoints subcommittees, advisory or working groups to accomplish the mission of the CME Section: requests the chairs or the designees of these groups to attend the CME Section Steering Committee meetings as appropriate;
   5. provides timely reports to the membership.
   6. provides other reports as directed by the AAMC;
   7. orients the Chair-elect;
   8. notifies the GEA of the results of the Nominating Committee's decisions.
2. Past-chair or Chair-elect (depending on the year)
   0. attends the national CME Section meetings and CME Section Steering Committee meetings;
   1. assists the Chair with responsibilities noted above;
   2. in the absence of the Chair, convenes the meetings of the CME Section Steering Committee and general membership;
   3. the past-chair serves as Chair of the Nominating Committee.
3. Regional CME Section Chairs (constituent representatives) - each chair:
   0. attends the respective regional Spring meeting and the AAMC National meeting;
   1. attends the national CME Section meetings and CME Section Steering Committee meetings;
   2. represents the agenda of the national CME Section to the region;
   3. acts as liaison from the region to the national CME Section Steering Committee;
   4. assists the National CME Section Chair to develop the program for the national CME Section meetings;
   5. provides written reports of regional CME Section activities to the GEA Chair of the Region and to the National CME Section Chair (usually twice a year); communicates to members of the regional CME Sections.

Article VI: Nomination and Election Process

0. Nomination Procedures:
   1. Shortly after the annual meeting of the GEA held on even numbered year, the Past-chair convenes the Nominating Committee.
   2. The Nominating Committee is composed of the Past-chair and at least two of the Regional CME Section Chairs;
   3. The Past-chair serves as the Chair of the Nominating Committee.
   4. The Nominating Committee shall solicit nominations from the constituent membership, collate the nominations, and identify candidates for the position of Chair-elect.
   5. The constituent members shall be polled by mail ballot in the summer (even-numbered year), and the results of the election shall be announced at the national CME Section Meeting in the fall
   6. The Chair-elect shall assume his/her seat on the CME Section Steering Committee at the annual meeting in the even numbered year, at which time the Past-chair will step down.
   7. In the event the term of office of chair cannot be fulfilled by the elected official, the chair-elect will assume the role. In the event the term of office for the chair-elect or past-chair cannot be fulfilled by the elected official, the chair of the CME Section will appoint someone to fulfill the term.
   8. The Past-chair may run for reelection as Chair-elect following a minimum five-year hiatus.
1. Chair-elect:
   1. Any member of the CME Section may be candidate for Chair-elect.
   2. Candidates will be selected and a ballot prepared by the Nominating Committee according to the procedure noted in A above
   3. The Chair-elect shall be elected by a simple majority of voting members who vote in response to a mail ballot.
2. Regional CME Section Chairs (Constituent Representatives):
   1. Any member of a regional CME Section may be a candidate for Regional CME Section Chair.
   2. The Regional CME Section Chairs are nominated and elected by each region, according to their bylaws.

Article VI: Meetings

1. The national CME Section meeting, which includes a business meeting, shall occur annually and is open to anyone interested in attending.
2. The National CME Section Chair shall be the presiding officer.
3. An agenda for the meeting will be prepared and distributed prior to the meeting.
4. Additional meetings of the membership may be called by the CME Section Steering Committee or upon the petition of at least one decanal appointee from a minimum of 25 member institutions.
5. Between annual or special meetings of the membership, the CME Section Steering Committee is authorized to carry out the business of the CME Section.
6. Roberts Rules shall govern the conduct of all meetings.

Article VIII: Amendments

These Bylaws may be altered, repealed or amended or new Bylaws adopted by a two-thirds vote of the membership who vote, provided that 30 days' notice has been given, in a mail ballot. The vote should be limited to those ballots returned within 45 days of receipt of the proposed amendments. There are three means by which amendments to the bylaws may be brought to the Steering Committee:

1. A member circulates a petition and receives at least 25 signatures from members of the CME Section signifying that they wish to see the amendment subjected to a vote of the membership. This petition is presented to the CME Section Steering Committee for consideration by the entire membership.
2. The CME Section Steering Committee proposes an amendment to the Bylaws for review and approval by the membership.
3. An appointed subcommittee of the CME Section Steering Committee recommends changes in the bylaws.

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