Caitlin Gillan1,2; David Wiljer1,2; Nicole Harnett1,2; Emily Lovrics1; Pamela Catton1,2

1 Radiation Medicine Program, Princess Margaret Hospital. 2 Deptartment of Radiation Oncology, University of Toronto.

Synopsis

In 2005, Princess Margaret Hospital’s Radiation Medicine Program launched its Accelerated Education Program (AEP) to foster development of continuing education initiatives to guide implementation of innovative technologies. The scope of the AEP and its approach to course development and delivery, engagement, and evaluative research provides a framework that allows it to evolve to meet changing needs of interprofessional teams.

Purpose

Radiation Medicine (RM) is constantly evolving with technological and practice innovations. The Accelerated Education Program (AEP) was designed to ensure integration of new advances in radiation medicine into practice through high quality continuing education (CE).

Methods

Princess Margaret Hospital’s Radiation Medicine Program (RMP) launched the AEP in 2005, adopting a progressive approach to guide implementation of innovative technologies within the interprofessional RM team. A series of interprofessional CE courses were developed under this umbrella. Multiple evaluative formats (including pre— and post-Course surveys, course content and speaker evaluations, and follow-up interviews) were employed to measure course impact and relevance.

Results

Over 6 years, the AEP has become a foundation for CE, with 32 courses having been offered to over 1000 RM professionals locally and around the world. In 54.2% of cases, self-perceptions of technological competence improved between pre— and post-Course evaluations. Post-Course evaluations suggested that 62.3% of participants planned to alter their practice based on what they had learned. IPE was a noted highlight of the AEP, and heightened learning in many areas.

Applications

The scope of the AEP and its approach to course development and delivery, engagement, and evaluative research provides a framework that allows it to evolve to meet changing needs of interprofessional teams.

Future Directions

The AEP continues to translate innovation into clinical benefits through collaborative CE and knowledge translation, facilitating rapid improvement of the quality and safety of RM globally. A more formal evaluation of the benefit of IPE on practice is being pursued.

Funding Sources

The AEP is funded through unrestricted educational grants from Elekta North America & Varian Medical Systems.