Broadcast television for Doctors-a first evaluation

Medicine and television

1997 is the 50th anniversary of the first use of television for medical teaching and the 40th anniversary in Britain of an experimental 2-hour demonstration of pre-clinical teaching by colour television, of the use of large screen television for medical conferences, and of the presentation on national television of programmes aimed at modifying the public attitude to mental illness and to medicine.

Effectiveness of continuing medical education: a review of the evidence

Evidence regarding the effectiveness of continuing medical education (CME) is reviewed in terms of three possible end- products : physician competence, physician performance, and patient health status. Results of this review are presented in the context of recent increases in mandatory CME policies and the corresponding cost of such policies to the nation. The number of CME activities is evidently on the increase. Yet, according to conventional wisdom, CME is not effective. To the contrary, about half of the 47 evaluation studies published since 1960 reported demonstrable improvement in at least one of the three end-products following CME. However, methodological shortcomings in many of these studies make it impossible to conclude that the improvements were caused by the CME. The authors discuss the need for more research surrounding the subject of CME and its effectiveness.