Guidelines for Regularly Scheduled Conferences (including Grand Rounds, Tumor Boards, M & M's, Journal Clubs) and Series

The brief guidelines below suggest the overall process for applying, conducting and documenting a Regularly Scheduled Conference (RSC) or a Series. An RSC is an activity that meets at a specific time and place on a regular basis such as weekly or montly while a Series is an activity that meets at least twice annually and less often than montly, often on an irregular schedule. Reference materials for Activity Directors and Coordinators include all CME forms, policies and procedures and Learning Resources.

• To request a Sponsorship Agreement for an RSC, contact Karen Hill, RSC Manager, at 216-983-3139 or via email.
• To request a Sponsorhip Agreement for a Series, contact Joan Farmer, Assistant CME Director, at 216-983-3152 or via email.

1. Important Considerations When Applying for Sponsorship

• Regularly Scheduled Conferences and Series sponsored by the Case/UHHS CME Program offer AMA Category 1 credit. The primary audience for RSCs and Series must be physicians who are Case School of Medicine faculty or affiliated with UH and the VA Medical Center.
• Residents and Fellows do not need this credit as they fulfill their requirements through their Residency or Fellowship Program. Residency and fellowship attendance should be maintained at the department level.
• A completed sponsorship agreement includes all required signatures, all requested attachments, and signed financial disclosure and agreement forms for the activity director, planning committee members and faculty members.

2. Financial Disclosure Process and Forms
The Commercial Support Policy of the CME Program requires that the Activity Director, all planning committee members and all conference faculty members provide disclosure of financial relationships and that conflicts of interest are resolved. A Financial Disclosure and Agreement Form must be signed. A sponsorship agreement cannot be approved until ALL disclosures are submitted from the Activity Director and Planning Committee.

3. Approval
You will be notified of approval verbally and in writing. An invoice for sponsorship fee and guidelines for conducting the activity will be included with the approval letter.

4. Commercial Support Agreement
Where financial or in-kind support from a commercial interest is involved, a Commercial Support Agreement must be completed and authorized prior to the commencement of the activity.

5. Written Materials, Syllabus or Handouts
Written education materials are not a requirement for an RSC. However, education providers are encouraged to have learning resources such as a syllabus or handout available to their participants. When a syllabus or other handout are provided, a copy should be included in your session packet. For a Series, presenters' or authors' written materials should be presented to the responsible department or the CME Program at least two weeks prior to the conference to ensure that all materials are appropriate to be reproduced and prepared for distribution.

6. Disclosure to Activity Participants
At the time of the conference, faculty required to disclose their financial relationships to activity participants verbally and/or in writing. We recommend having the speaker include this in this handout to the participants.

7. Evaluation Process
Evaluation of the course is an annual requirement. Evaluation should occur at the completion of the course but may occur as often as the Activity Director requests. Sample evaluation instruments are available under forms. For a Series, evaluation is essential to every session.

8. Post Conference Submissions
After each session, the Session Cover Sheet, Disclosure and Sign-In Sheet should be sent to the CME Office within 30 days of the meeting. A checklist of required documentation is provided.

9. CME Credits
Participants in an RSC or Series must use the Transcript Request Form to request their credits. A $25 fee is required with each request. Participants of series will automatically receive a transcript from our office after the series is completed. Where a department pays the transcript fees for its participants, a separate invoice for the certificate/credit maintenance fee will be submitted to the sponsoring department following the conference.