Initial Applicants Applying for Accreditation
October 15, 2008
For first time, or “initial” applicants, the
accreditation process takes approximately 6-9 months to complete.
If your organization is considering applying for accreditation, there
are several factors you should consider in determining if MMS
accreditation is right for you.
Purpose of Accreditation
Like ACCME, MMS accreditation is a mark of quality continuing medical
education (CME) activities that are planned, implemented and evaluated
by MMS accredited providers in accordance with MMS Essential Areas and
Elements Accreditation Policies. MMS accreditation assures
the medical community and public that such activities provide physicians
with information that will assist them in maintaining or improving their
practice of medicine. These activities are free of commercial bias
and based on valid content.
Purpose of MMS Accreditation Program
Expectations of MMS
- Eligible organizations that decide to apply for MMS accreditation
should be prepared to describe and furnish evidence that demonstrates
compliance with the Essential Areas. For this reason,
organizations considering application must plan, implement and evaluate
at least one CME activity prior to beginning the accreditation
process.
- MMS expects its accredited providers to monitor their overall CME
program for compliance with the Essential Areas and to fulfill annual
reporting requirements.
- Payment of certain fees is required to obtain and maintain MMS
accreditation.
- Accredited providers must appoint a physician (MD or DO) as the
Director of Medical Education (DME). This individual is
responsible for the oversight and management of the CME program and the
main contact for the organization’s CME program.
Eligibility
The following criteria must be met before an organization will be
considered for MMS accreditation:
The organization must:
- Be located in Massachusetts or one of its contiguous
states (organizations outside of these limits, should inquire about
accreditation with the ACCME or appropriate state medical society.)
- Be developing and presenting CME programs on a regular and
reoccurring basis.
- Present activities that have “valid” content.
(These would be activities that promote recommendations, treatment
or manners of practicing medicine that are within the definition of
CME.)
Survey Process
Once it has been determined that an organization is eligible to apply
for MMS accreditation, an application must be completed and returned to
the MMS Accreditation Program Manager. (an original plus 5
copies.) At this time, a non-refundable application processing fee
of $400 is due. The MMS Committee on Accreditation Review
(CAR) will review the application at its next scheduled meeting.
If the CAR deems it appropriate, an on-site survey will be
scheduled. (If a survey is deemed not appropriate at the time, the
accreditation manager will contact the applicant and explain the reasons
for denial and areas that need further development.) An applicant
may reapply once changes have been made to meet the accreditation
standards.
Once a survey date has been determined and confirmed, the MMS
surveyor team will attend a scheduled, live CME activity to evaluate the
presentation content as well the level of compliance with regard to:
attendance monitoring, faculty disclosure, evaluation, commercial
support and exhibits. In addition, a 2-hour interview will be held with
the DME, CME Coordinator, members of the CME Committee and Medical
Science Librarian (if applicable). During the interview
portion of the survey, the surveyor team will ask questions to help
determine, in combination with the application and CME activity, the
organization’s level of compliance with the Essential
Areas.
After the survey, the surveyor team members will write and submit a
report with their findings to the CAR. The CAR will review the report at
its next scheduled meeting and a decision will be made about
accreditation. At this time, an accreditation fee of $2500
(as of 6/1/05) will be due from the organization. The organization
will be notified in writing about the results of the survey. The
MMS will also notify the ACCME about the organization’s new
accreditation status, accreditation term and expiration date. The
maximum term an initial applicant can receive is 2 years. After
the initial term, the organization will repeat the accreditation process
for re-accreditation. At that time, the organization will be
eligible to receive a maximum term of 4 years.
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