The Faculty of Medicine’s Continuing Professional Development (CPD) Office was recently presented with the annual Innovation Award given by Le Conseil québécois de développement professionnel continu des médecins (CQDPCM). The prize, which recognizes innovation in medical professional development, was awarded for the Office’s “Self-Directed Learning Compass (SDLC): A free online continuing professional development tool.”
Each year one project is selected for the award based on the relevance of the subject to professional development, its originality, its results, its real or potential benefits to participants and its transferability. The evaluation committee noted they were particularly impressed with the transferability and self-learning aspects of the project, which was led by Professor Francesca Luconi, Assistant Dean, CPD Office at McGill’s Faculty of Medicine and was co-authored by Dr. Ivan Rohan, Associate Dean of the CPD Office.
“The CQDPCM is a unique consultative coordinating body in Canada representing a wide range of stakeholders in the continuing professional development and continuing medical education fields,” says Professor Luconi. “We are honored to receive this prestigious recognition from them.”
In response to increasing demands on the medical profession, life-long learning should be developed across the educational spectrum and applied in clinical practice. Launched in March 2015, the SDL COMPASS (SDLC) is a free, online CPD tool that promotes and supports the self-directed learning process of physicians.
The SDLC raises awareness and engages and trains learners on their unperceived needs, using a low-tech, inexpensive and instructionally sound tool adaptable to online environments. The SDLC is sustainable over time because of the close monitoring of effectiveness to meet CACME accreditation standards and the CPD Office’s 2015-2018 strategic plan.
The SDLC is a way of breaking the silos within the McGill University CPD community and has many implications from self-directed learners being better equipped to face increasing challenges of a complex healthcare system to assessing the target audience’s SDL to better tailor services to their needs. A research study will also be derived from this project, which, based on lessons learned, may be expanded to include residents and trainees and could also be adapted to other contexts across the Faculty.
Congratulations to Professor Luconi, Dr. Rohan and the entire CPD Office!