Office of Professional Education

Award-Winning Education

Professional Education Receives Award at 2023 CACME Meeting

At the 2023 Colorado Alliance for Continuing Medical Education (CACME) Annual Conference in Denver in August, the Office of Professional Education was presented with the 2023 Outstanding Healthcare Education Activity for the project "Treating the Hospitalized COVID-19 Patient: Applying the Evolving Evidence to Your Practice.”  National Jewish Health’s James H. Finigan, MD, and William J. Janssen, MD, served as program chairs. Recognized for this award was Director Andrea Harshman, MHA, CHCP, CMP-HC; Associate Director of Accreditation and Programs, Meghan Brenner, MA; and Project Lead Elyce Bowron, MEd.

Facilitated by the Office of Professional Education at National Jewish Health and supported by an independent educational grant from Gilead Sciences, Inc., the program provided the current evidence-based best practices for the management of hospitalized patients with COVID-19. Education included the pathophysiology of the disease and how understanding of this guides therapeutic decisions, communications strategies with patients and the value of multidisciplinary teams, American and European guidelines for the in-patient treatment of COVID-19, including supportive therapies and strategies for special populations, as well as management of patients post-hospitalization, and emerging data from clinical trials.

National Jewish Health Receives 2021 National Award for Outstanding Education Collaboration

Congratulations to our Office of Professional Education for receiving the 2021 Outstanding Educational Collaboration Award from the Alliance for Continuing Education in the Health Professions (ACEhp) for the program “It Takes a Village: Addressing National Priorities Related to COPD through Collaboration and Education."
The core of this project was the COPD Assessment in Primary Care To Identify Undiagnosed Respiratory Disease and Exacerbation Risk Study (CAPTURE COPD Study), aimed at training clinical teams to better diagnose and treat COPD, as well as evaluate the effectiveness of a new tool designed to better identify the estimated millions of people at risk for COPD and improve patient outcomes.

The key collaborative partners of this educational initiative included 14 principal investigators of the CAPTURE COPD Study, funded by the National Institutes of Health; 110 primary care clinics within five Practice-Based Research Networks; National Jewish Health, the accredited provider of the CME activities; and AstraZeneca Pharmaceuticals LP, through an independent educational grant to supplement the education developed in support of the CAPTURE COPD Study Aims.

“Educational outcomes from this collaboration reveal significant improvements in clinician knowledge related to COPD that will invariably translate to improved patient outcomes,” said Barry Make, MD, of National Jewish Health who served as one of the principal investigators for the study. “This initiative demonstrated to providers of COPD that through careful collaboration and an emphasis on inter-professional education, independent medical education can support larger research goals that may change practice standards and impact population health,” he said.

Other National Jewish Health team members who contributed to the project included Bruce Bender, PhD, who also served as a principal investigator, and from the Office of Professional Education, Lauren Rieck, Emily Lewis, and Andrea Harshman, MHA, CHCP, CMP-HC.

This ACEhp award acknowledges the collaborative work of an educational endeavor that embodies the spirit of advancing the field of continuing education in the health professions. See the outcomes poster (PDF) presented at the Alliance 2021 Annual Conference related to the CAPTURE COPD study.

The ACEhp is a community of continuing education professionals who share and implement best practices across healthcare settings and professions, validating the value and impact of continuing education for healthcare professionals.

National Jewish Health Receives National Award for Excellence in Educational Design 

Congratulations to our Office of Professional Education for receiving the Excellence in Educational Design Award at the 2019 Alliance for Continuing Education in the Health Professions Conference for the program “Improving Assessment, Referral and Treatment of RA: Streamlining Processes for Better Patient Care within Our Community.

This was an 18-month quality improvement initiative aimed at streamlining processes for improved access to specialty care for individuals diagnosed with RA. This novel program reduced the time, by an average 76 days, from referral of early RA patients to initial rheumatology consult and initiation of appropriate treatment. It included partnerships with four primary care clinics in the Denver area.

Team members who contributed to the project include Stephanie J. Corder, ND, RN, Emily Lewis, and Andrea Harshman, MHA, CHCP, CMP-HC, of the Office of Professional Education (pictured above), and Isabelle Amigues, MD, Emilie Minarcik, NP, Pearlanne Zelarney, MS, Naomi Birdsong, MA, and Samantha Maxwell, MA, who are all with National Jewish Health. Read more about this program in the outcome summary here (PDF).

The Alliance is a community of continuing education professionals who share and implement best practices across healthcare settings and professions, validating the value and impact of continuing education for healthcare professionals.

Professional Education Receives Two Awards at 2018 CACME Meeting

Congratulations to our Office of Professional Education for receiving two awards at the 2018 Colorado Alliance for Continuing Medical Education Annual Conference. Team members received the Outstanding CME/CPD Collaboration Award for the project “Improving Assessment, Referral and Treatment of RA: Streamlining Processes for Better Patient Care within our Community: A Sustainable, Interdisciplinary Performance Improvement & Quality Improvement Initiative.” They also received the Outstanding Research in CME/CPD Award for the project “Optimizing Management of Idiopathic Pulmonary Fibrosis through Effective Healthcare Provider-Patient Communications.”

RA-CVD Program Earns Award for Outstanding CME Research

Congratulations to our Office of Professional Education who received the 2017 Outstanding CME Research Award at the Colorado Alliance of Continuing Medical Education (CACME) Annual Conference in July. Their project, “Advocating for Rheumatoid Arthritis and Cardiovascular Health,” was recognized for its broad reach between multiple divisions within National Jewish Health.  Drs. Darlene Kim (pictured right) and Barbara Goldstein served as the primary investigators of this project and led a team including Sarah Meadows, MS, CHCP, and Matthew Stern from The Office of Professional Education (pictured center), Pearlanne Zelarney, MS from Research Informatics Services (pictured left), and Carmen Egidio, RN from the Clinical Research Unit.

The goal of this initiative was to implement a sustainable rheumatology-focused cardiology consultation service and intervention program for rheumatoid arthritis patients with increased risk for cardiovascular disease.  From the appointment with a cardiologist, patients were then referred to many other services at NJH including Pulmonary Rehabilitation, Quitlogix, and Fitlogix.  At the completion of this program, nearly 400 patients were identified as candidates for a referral to cardiology due to their increased risk factors.

Professional Education Receives Award at 2016 CACME Meeting

At the 2016 Colorado Alliance for Continuing Medical Education (CACME) Annual Conference in Keystone in August, the Office of Professional Education was presented with the Outstanding CME Research Award for the project  “Inhaled Corticosteroids in Asthma: The Balance Between Safety and Efficacy.” Recognized were project managers Mandy Comeau, Ayndrea Patterson and Matthew Stern.

Facilitated by the Office of Professional Education at National Jewish Health and supported by an independent educational grant from MEDA Pharmaceuticals Inc., the program addressed identified gaps in physician understanding and comfort related to the efficacy, safety and bioavailability of inhaled steroids in asthma. National Jewish Health’s Rohit Katial, MD, FAAAAI, FACAAI, FACP, served as program chair, and also featured Anthony Gerber, MD, PhD, as faculty speaker. The live presentations addressed each discussion topic with data and case studies that were modified based on the presenter and learner feedback over the duration of the 10 dinner meetings.

This activity was implemented in three parts with the first meeting of experts coming up with a consensus on the safety and efficacy of ICS, which was the basis for all other parts of the initiative. The recommendations from this consensus panel were then submitted as multiple articles and were featured in the December 2016 issue of Annals of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology.

Professional Education Team Member Honored at 2016 ACEHP Meeting

Sarah Meadows, MS, CHCP, Manager, Accreditation and Programs in the Office of Professional Education, received the Distinguished Member Award from the Alliance for Continuing Education in the Health Professions (ACEHP) at their Annual Meeting in January 2016 in Washington DC. This award recognizes her active participation in ACEHP programs and events and it awards distinction that affirms her commitment to advancing the profession.

"She is such a wonderful representative of National Jewish Health and the work that Professional Education does," said  Andrea Harshman, MHA, CHCP, CMP-HC, Director of the Office of Professional Education. "She has been a significant reason for our great reputation in the continuing professional development field."

Professional Education Receives 2015 Award for Excellence in Research

The Journal of Continuing Education in the Health Professions Award for Excellence in Research is presented annually and recognizes exemplary research works in health professions education. The 2015 award has been given to Lisa Cicutto, RN, PhD, ACNP (Cert), CAE; Meg B. Dingae, MHSA, CCMEP; and Esther L. Langmack, MD, FCCP, CCMEP for their article Improving Asthma Care in Rural Primary Care Practices: A Performance Improvement Project.

For more information about this award please read the article published in JCEPH, Fall 2015, Volume 35, Number 4.

Professional Education Receives Award at 2015 CACME Meeting

At the 2015 Colorado Alliance for Continuing Medical Education (CACME) Annual Conference in Vail, the Office of Professional Education was presented with an award for the Most Outstanding CME Activity for the project – “Best Practices for Medication Reconciliation at an Academic Medical Center: A Sustainable, Multidisciplinary and Interdepartmental PI/QI Initiative.”

For more information about this award and the continuing medical education activity that was involved, please see our October 2015 issue of Professional Education Matters.

Professional Education Receives Award at 2015 ACEhp Conference

At the 2015 Alliance for Continuing Education in the Health Profession’s (ACEhp) Annual Conference, the Office of Professional Education received the Award for Outstanding Storyboard in recognition of showcasing innovations in CE/CPD that highlight the intersection of high-impact education and quality improvement leading to improved patient care.

The storyboard was titled Academic Medical Center Collaborative Initiative to Better Patient Care With Improved Medication Reconciliation Processes for Patients With Increased Risk of Polypharmacy. Authors on this project were Sarah Meadows, MS, CHCP; Gary Cott, MD; Elizabeth Kern, MD; and Mandy Comeau.

For more information about this award and the other Professional Education projects that were chosen for presentation at the national conference, please see our March 2015 issue of Professional Education Matters.

Professional Education Receives Two Awards at 2014 CACME Meeting

At the 2014 Colorado Alliance for Continuing Medical Education (CACME) annual meeting, the Office of Professional Education at National Jewish Health was presented with two awards.

National Jewish Health won the Best Practice in Collaboration Award for a partnership with the North American Quitline Consortium on the Beyond the 5 A’s: Improving Cessation Interventions through Strengthened Training to improve the frequency and effectiveness of smoking cessation interventions delivered by healthcare professionals.

Additionally, the institution received the Best Practice in Research Award for the research conducted in year one of The Wellbeing Campaign. This is a three-year initiative to build sustainable weight management programs in two primary care clinic networks with a goal of replicating them nationwide.

For more information about these awards and the continuing medical education activities that were involved, please see our September 2014 issue of Professional Education Matters.

Professional Education Receives Award at 2012 CACME Meeting

At the 2012 Colorado Alliance for Continuing Medical Education (CACME) annual meeting, the Office of Professional Education at National Jewish Health was presented with the 2012 Best Practice in Collaboration Award for their CME program titled Making the Right Diagnosis: The Need for Spirometry. The award recognizes the program’s innovative quality, creativity, and the significance of stakeholder collaboration within the continuing medical education profession.

National Jewish Health, the National Medical Association (NMA), the nation’s oldest and largest organization representing African American physicians and health professionals in the United States, and the COPD Foundation, a non-profit patient advocacy and education group, jointly developed the program for the NMA’s member physicians.

The concept for the program originated in 2010 when Barry Make, MD and Professional Education collaborated with Michael Foggs, MD, a physician leader at the NMA, to produce an educational activity on chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). The collaboration, along with Dr. Make’s leadership, and NJH’s reputation as the nation’s #1 respiratory hospital, led to a strong partnership with the NMA’s leadership team. A review of outcomes from the activity identified gaps in spirometry utilization in the practices of the NMA’s member physicians. Based on those practice gaps, Making the Right Diagnosis: The Need for Spirometry was developed and presented at the 2011 NMA Annual Convention & Scientific Assembly in Washington, DC.

Professional Education immediately saw the opportunity for further collaboration on this initiative, and involved the COPD Foundation, a not-for-profit group that brings needed resources to the COPD community, making the program a unique collaboration between an academic medical center, a national association and a patient advocacy organization. The activity received collaborative funding through educational grants from Merck, Pfizer, and Forest Pharmaceuticals.

For more information about this continuing medical education activity, please visit our newsroom.

Aster Award for Asthma Toolkit Patient Materials

The Aster Awards is a medical marketing awards program, allowing health care organizations and advertising agencies to compete against similarly sized competitors from across the nation and world.

Each year the Aster Awards has an annual contest allowing entries designed, printed and/or distributed the previous year to be scored, judged and recognized for excellence in healthcare marketing and advertising. National Jewish Health received a Silver medal for the creation of Patient Education materials for the Metro Community Providers Network Asthma Toolkit continuing medical education activity. Learn more about the Asthma Toolkit.

This Elite program is hosted by Creative Images, Inc., an internationally recognized firm that has specialized in strategic health care marketing for more than 20 years.