WHAT IS CME?
Continuing Medical Education (CME) allows paramedics to maintain and enhance knowledge, skills and attitude, and to learn about different clinical situations that occur less frequently in the field. CPER strives to provide essential courses and new learning opportunities for paramedics through CME. In order for CME credits to be allocated, the educational activity must enhance the clinical practice of paramedicine at the certification level of the Paramedic and must be preapproved by CPER.
Our goal is to provide all Paramedics an opportunity to self-direct CME needs as much as possible. Our CME program provides a variety of options for Paramedics to acquire all CME credits within the CME deadline. PCPs are encouraged to engage in an as many CME opportunities as possible, to support continued growth and improvement of knowledge, skills and attitude.
WHAT CME CREDITS AND/OR ONLINE MODULES DO I NEED TO COMPLETE TO MAINTAIN CERTIFICATION?
The requirements for CME credit reflects the provincial mandate of 8 credits annually for PCPs and 24 credits annually for ACPs. As always, 8 of these credits are accumulated when paramedics attend an education session in the form of an Annual Practice Review (APR) CME in each certification year. This APR is a mandatory session for all CPER Paramedics.
In addition to successful completion of the 8 credit APR CME, ACPs are required to obtain a minimum of an additional 16 CME credits during each certification year.
All Paramedics must complete all mandatory online modules and CME requirements AND provide proof of completion when required to CPER by Thursday, January 23, 2025 at 1600hrs. It is the responsibility of the Paramedic to ensure that the deadline for completion of all requirements is met, in order to maintain certification.
Please keep in mind that the Certification Standard, specifically 10 patient contact, as per the ALS PCS Appendix 6, is a completely separate stream that may require the Paramedic to complete additional education and training, in order to maintain certification. Paramedics who are required to complete additional educational components relating to this will receive separate communication from CPER.
WHAT IS THE CME DEADLINE FOR 2021?
The deadline to acquire CME credits is Thursday, January 23, 2025 at 1600hrs.
WHAT HAPPENS IF I DO NOT COMPLETE MY CME REQUIREMENTS?
Paramedics who do not complete the CME requirement prescribed by CPER are not eligible for continued annual certification and are subject to administrative deactivation. If a Paramedic is administratively deactivated due to not meeting CME requirements, the Paramedic will remain deactivated until such time that all CME requirements are met (i.e. completion of required CME credits and successful completion of all online modules). Any Paramedic who has been administratively deactivated more than once over the past 5 years (including the current 2021 year) may be required to complete a remediation plan prior to reactivation. This remediation plan will be at the discretion of the Education Department.
CAN I CARRY OVER CME CREDIT FROM ONE YEAR TO THE NEXT?
Any CME credit earned in January 2025 only are eligible for carryover into 2025, as long as 2024 CME credit requirements are met by January 23, 2025. The maximum allowable carry over is 4 CME credits.
HOW CAN I OBTAIN PRE-APPROVAL FOR EXTERNAL COURSE/EDUCATIONAL ACTIVITY TO USE TOWARDS MY CME REQUIREMENTS?
If the event is not listed in this catalogue, please submit the CME Credit Request form to education@cper.ca at least 2 weeks prior to the CME. Your request will be reviewed and an appropriate amount of CME credit will be granted. The number of credits may or may not equal the number of hours actually spent completing the specified CME.
WHERE DO I FIND THE CME CREDIT REQUEST FORM?
CME Credit Request form can be found by clicking here: CME Credit Request Form
I AM A NEWLY CERTIFIED ACP. DO I NEED TO COMPLETE ALL 24 CME CREDITS FOR THE YEAR?
Newly certified ACPs are required to obtain CME credits, on a pro-rated basis, depending on the initial certification date. If full ACP certification is obtained mid-way through the year, please confirm with a Paramedic Educator as to the number of CME credits you need in order to meet your Maintenance of Certification requirements.
COVID-19 CONSIDERATIONS:
Due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, it is expected that the majority of in-person education events will be cancelled for 2021. Many of these events have moved online in some format and there will remain a large number of CME credits available. As always, it is the responsibility of the paramedic to complete the required CME.
The following suggestions of online-only content are a good place to start:
- Online EMS conferences
- DOC CME
- CPER-produced CME content
- Journal article reviews
- Reflective practice
- Distance education courses (all courses must be pre-approved by CPER Educators)
- WHO education portal (openwho.org)
- Many universities offer free, health care oriented online courses:
- Stanford (Online.standford.edu)
- University of Toronto (https://www.coursera.org/utoronto, https://www.edx.org/school/university-torontox)
- Harvard (https://online-learning.harvard.edu/catalog/free)
ANY OTHER QUESTIONS?
The full 2024 CME Catalogue is provided HERE. Please refer to it for details on types of CME, amount of CME credit granted and other information.
If you have any questions or require further details, please contact one of the Paramedic Educators at CPER at education@cper.ca