The ACPE Self-Assessment Report How Learning ExpressCE …

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The ACPE Self-Assessment Report for Comprehensive Review – How Learning ExpressCE Can Help

Terry Baker 8/22/18 Learning ExpressCE

Contents Introduction ..................................................................................................................................... 0Policies & Procedures ..................................................................................................................... 1

Policy 4.0 - CPE Activity Announcement Literature ................................................................. 1Policy 6.0 Record keeping .......................................................................................................... 4Policy 7.0 Awarding Credit ........................................................................................................ 5

CPE Standards ................................................................................................................................ 9Standard 2: Gap Analysis............................................................................................................ 9Standard 3: Continuing Pharmacy Education Activities .......................................................... 10Standard 4: CPE Activity Objectives ........................................................................................ 11Standard 5: Standards for Commercial Support (SCS)............................................................. 12Standard 7: Teaching and Learning Methods ........................................................................... 15Standard 8: Educational Materials ............................................................................................ 18Standard 9: Assessment of Learning......................................................................................... 19Standard 10: Assessment Feedback .......................................................................................... 21Standard 11: Evaluation of CPE Activity ................................................................................. 23

Conclusion .................................................................................................................................... 24

Using Learning ExpressCE™ to Streamline the ACPE Self-Assessment Report for Comprehensive Review

Introduction At Continuing Education Network, our mission is to simplify the management of continuing education. Learning ExpressCE can save you substantial time putting together a self-assessment report for your organization’s comprehensive review by ACPE. Many of the items required as supporting materials and documentation can be quickly and easily exported from our platform. This guide identifies the items Learning ExpressCE can provide for each relevant Policy and Standard, and walks you through copying or exporting the items for inclusion in your self-assessment. This Guide has a separate section for each Policy and Standard. For your convenience, each section includes the ACPE’s description of the Policy or Standard (excerpted from the ACPE Continuing Pharmacy Education Provider Accreditation Program Policies and Procedures Manual: A Guide for ACPE-accredited Providers Effective January 1, 2009 Updated July 2017, or the ACPE Accreditation Standards for Continuing Pharmacy Education Version 3: Released July 2017). We’ve also included the list of documentation ACPE requires for each standard (excerpted from the ACPE CPE Evaluation Form [Rubric]). Each section includes: 1) a description of how Learning ExpressCE can help you assemble the required documentation or supporting materials, and 2) step-by-step instructions for copying or exporting the relevant documents under the subheading “For Your Self-Assessment.”

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Policies & Procedures Supporting material for your self-assessment of compliance with ACPE Policies 4, 6 and 7 can be found in Learning ExpressCE. A description of where to find these materials is below.

Policy 4.0 - CPE Activity Announcement Literature From: ACPE Continuing Pharmacy Education Provider Accreditation Program Policies and Procedures Manual: A Guide for ACPE-accredited Providers Effective January 1, 2009 Updated July 2017:

“Adequate advance information should be provided to prospective learners in order to enable them to be well-informed regarding CPE activities. Procedures 4a. Activity announcement materials CPE Policies and Procedures Materials that offer the opportunity to participate, purchase, or register for a CPE activity must include the following informational items:

The learning objectives; The type of activity, i.e. knowledge, application, practice; The target audience(s) that may best benefit from participation in the activity; The faculty member(s) name, degree, and title/position; The fees for the activity; The schedule of the educational activities; The amount of CPE credit, specified in contact hours or CEUs; The official ACPE logo, used in conjunction with a statement identifying the

accredited provider(s) providing or joint providing the activity, according to the exact language of the prescribed statement:

“The [name of accredited provider(s)] is/are accredited by the Accreditation Council for Pharmacy Education as a provider of continuing pharmacy education.”

The ACPE Universal Activity Number assigned to the activity; The appropriate target audience designation (‘P’ and/or ‘T’) A full description of all requirements established by the provider for successful

completion of the CPE activity and subsequent awarding of credit (e.g., passing a post-test at a specified proficiency level, completing an activity evaluation form, participating in all sessions or certain combinations of sessions which have been designed as a program package, etc.).

Acknowledgment of any organization(s) providing financial support for any component of the educational activity, and,

For home study activities: the initial release date and the expiration date.

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In addition to the informational items, promotional materials for Internet-based CPE activities should clearly and explicitly specify the following, with the exception of local or restricted communication networks (i.e., intranet):

Hardware requirements: The minimum hardware requirements including the minimum memory, storage, processor speed and multimedia components required by the learner;

Software requirements: The minimum software requirements including, where appropriate, the Internet Browser(s) and minimum version along with any Browser “Plug-Ins” that may be required;

Internet: The Internet connectivity and minimum connection speed the learner must have.

Provider Contact Information: The accredited provider must have a mechanism in place for the learner to be able to contact the provider if there are questions about the Internet CPE activity.

Policy on Privacy and Confidentiality: The accredited provider must have, adhere to, and inform the learner about its policy on privacy and confidentiality that relates to the CPE activities it provides on the Internet.

Copyright: The accredited provider must be able to document that it owns the copyright for, or is licensed or has received permissions for use of, or is otherwise permitted to use copyrighted materials within any CPE activity. 4b. Multiday conference brochures

Activity announcements that are for multiday conferences must include the following items: The learning objectives of the overall conference;

The target audience(s) that may best benefit from the conference; The fees for the conference; The schedule of the educational activities; The amount of CPE credit, specified in contact hours or CEUs; The official ACPE logo, used in conjunction with a statement identifying the

accredited provider(s) sponsoring or joint providing the activity, according to the exact language of the prescribed statement: “The [name of accredited provider(s)] is/are accredited by the Accreditation Council for Pharmacy Education as a provider of continuing pharmacy education.”

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4b. Multiday conference brochures (cont.) The ACPE Universal Activity Numbers assigned to the activities; The appropriate target audience designation (‘P’ and/or ‘T’); A full description of all requirements established by the provider for successful

completion of the CPE activities within the conference and subsequent awarding of credit (e.g., passing a post-test at a specified proficiency level, completing an activity evaluation form, participating in all sessions or certain combinations of sessions which have been designed as a program package, etc.); and,

Acknowledgment of any organization(s) providing financial support for any component of the educational activity.

The final conference program must also include:

The faculty member(s) name, degree, and title/position; The faculty member’s disclosures; and, The learning objectives of the activities. The type(s) of activities offered at the conference, i.e. knowledge,

application, practice; Notes:

“Save the Date” cards: Materials such as a ‘teaser’, save-the-date card, an advertisement or post cards to alert learners of a date of an activity, etc., does not apply to this policy. However, the provider may use the ACPE logo and provider statement as indicated above.

A Provider must not list any language alluding to or indicating that the Provider has applied for ACPE credit. The provider may use the following language, “This activity is eligible for ACPE credit; see final CPE activity announcement for specific details.””

How Learning ExpressCE can help:

When you create a new CE activity in Learning ExpressCE, the fields and boxes presented to you for entry of information about the activity include ALL the information the ACPE requires providers to give to prospective learners. This information automatically displays in Learning ExpressCE on the Information Page for the CE activity (which is viewable on the participant-facing site after clicking on the activity title in the Catalog). For Your Self-Assessment:

In the catalog on your participant-facing Learning Express CE site, click on the title of each CE activity you are using as examples in your self-assessment in order to display the Information Page for each. Take a screen shot of each Information Page and include it in your self-assessment to document that you meet Policy 4.0.

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Policy 6.0 Record keeping From: ACPE Continuing Pharmacy Education Provider Accreditation Program Policies and Procedures Manual: A Guide for ACPE-accredited Providers Effective January 1, 2009 Updated July 2017:

“The provider shall maintain and assure the availability of records adequate to serve the needs of the learners and others requiring such information for a period of six years. The provider should assure the security of its records by having appropriate backup systems and contingency plans. Note: The provider’s and ACPE’s records may be used by state boards of pharmacy to verify a pharmacist’s participation in an activity and, therefore any problems noted with record keeping should be corrected immediately.”


Your Learning ExpressCE administrative website keeps records of all CE programs managed in the platform for the duration of your use of the platform. Should you decide to stop using Learning ExpressCE, your records can be downloaded as excel files and/or PDFs. For your self-assessment:

Various reports in Learning ExpressCE can be used to substantiate record keeping for a period of 6 years. For example, to display a record of all participants who received CE credit for a program you offered 6 years ago: click on the Programs tab in the navigation bar, find the program title, and click on it. Then click “Participants” to view a list of program participants and the status of each (eg, “registered” or “CE completed”). Click “choose an action” to export the list to excel. Include this list in your self-assessment.

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Policy 7.0 Awarding Credit From: ACPE Continuing Pharmacy Education Provider Accreditation Program Policies and Procedures Manual: A Guide for ACPE-accredited Providers Effective January 1, 2009 Updated July 2017:

“Providers are required to submit activity and participant information online via CPE Monitor®. CPE Monitor®, the collaborative service from the Accreditation Council for Pharmacy Education (ACPE) and the National Association of Boards of Pharmacy (NABP), allows CPE Providers to authenticate, store, and streamline data reporting and compliance verification for participating boards of pharmacy. The CPE tracking system creates a direct link for sending CPE data from ACPE-accredited providers to ACPE and then to NABP, ensuring that all reported CPE units are officially verified by ACPE-accredited providers. Pharmacists and pharmacy technicians may obtain a unique identification number from NABP (www.nabp.pharmacy) to be used when registering for a CPE activity from an ACPE-accredited provider. For a given Universal Activity Number, the provider will be offered a variety of mechanisms to upload each participant’s NABP e-profile ID number, month and date of birth, and date of participation within 60 days of the learner engaging in the CE activity via CPE Monitor®. After CPE units are processed by ACPE and NABP, pharmacists and pharmacy technicians will be able to login to a comprehensive electronic profile to access information about their completed CPE. Procedures

7a. Technical Specifications Guide for CPE Monitor® The provider is asked to reference the Technical Specifications Guide to assist in the upload process for participant information. 7b. Statements of Credit for Health Care Professionals Other than Pharmacists/Pharmacy Technicians For other health care professionals, the provider shall give evidence to each learner, in the form of a statement of credit of successful completion of the CPE activity within 60 days of participation in the CPE activity. Completed and signed statements of credit are distributed only following the completion of the activity within the time frame stated by the provider (e.g. on promotional materials). Incomplete or blank statements of credit must not be distributed. All statements of credit must include the following informational items:

The name of the learner; The title and date(s) of the activity; Type of activity: knowledge, application, practice; The appropriate target audience designation (“P” or “T”) o Separate

statements of credit must be issued to either pharmacists or pharmacy

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7b. Statements of Credit for Health Care Professionals Other than Pharmacists/Pharmacy Technicians (cont.)

technicians o If non-pharmacist attends the activity, a statement of credit with a “P‟ designation should be issued;

The accredited provider sponsoring or joint providing the activity; The official ACPE logo; The amount of credit awarded; The assigned ACPE Universal Activity Number; The date the CPE Administrator signed the original statement of credit

(either hand-written or electronically generated). The provider is instructed not to use the term “certify” or “certification” on its statements of credit to prevent any confusion with certification processes.

7c. Administrative Warning If providers do not submit activity and participant information online via CPE Monitor®, the provider will be placed on Administrative Warning, probation or an adverse action, defined as withdrawal, denial or removal of accreditation may be taken. Administrative Warning is an accreditation status assigned administratively when a provider does not comply with administrative requirements for maintaining accreditation. If staff determines that a provider has failed to meet its administrative obligations as listed above, the provider will be notified in writing of each delinquency and given ten (10) days to fulfill all outstanding requirements, after which continued failure to comply will result in the imposition of Administrative Warning. Administrative Warning will be removed once all administrative requirements have been met. Failure to cure any such delinquency within the designated time period will result in a review for Board action at the next regularly scheduled Board meeting and may result in the provider being subjected to an adverse action. Administrative Warning is an administrative classification and is not subject to reconsideration or appeal. During a period of Administrative Warning, a provider continues to be recognized as being accredited according to the last status decision and is maintained in the Directory listing of accredited providers. In addition, the provider will be listed as being on Administrative Warning in all published documents that specify accreditation status. If the provider’s accredited status is not restored, the education activities produced during the provider’s term of accreditation will not be recognized as accredited when offered to new audiences. At such time, the provider will be notified in writing and removed from the ACPE directory of accredited providers.

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7d. Awarding Late Credit All pharmacists and pharmacy technicians maintain their own license and/or certification and it is their responsibility to follow up with the provider if any CE credit discrepancies are found. It is then at the provider’s discretion to award or deny credit to a late claiming participant, i.e. after 60 days from engaging in the CPE activity, as it is the provider’s CE activity and the provider needs to ensure the requirements necessary for credit are successfully completed. A provider may request access to CPE Monitor® if the activity in question occurred within the previous 6 months and with an appropriate reason for access, i.e. power outage, etc. Providers who request access to CPE Monitor® to upload late ACPE credit will incur a late fee as follows:

Provider’s first three (3) requests: the provider will receive a waiver and will be provided with education and guidance.

Upon the fourth request and thereafter, the provider will incur a late fee. If a provider requires both a retroactive ADF change in the Provider Web

Tool and override to amend a credit, only the ADF change fee will be charged. The provider will not be charged twice.

Providers will be given five (5) business days to submit late credits to CPE Monitor® to allow time to rectify credit information if needed.

Providers will be required to fill out the CPE Monitor ® Post-60 Day Credit Request Form in order to request an override:

o Once a user submits this form, an email will be sent to the current CPE Administrator who is listed in the Provider Web Tool. Once the CPE Administrator submits the associated fee, ACPE staff will implement this request and the provider will be notified. This request cannot be granted unless payment is received.

o This automatic form will allow for tracking of override data, managing the number of override requests given to each provider, and application of fees.

A provider may charge a fee to participants wanting to claim late credit. This is a business decision that is entirely up to the provider to implement a fee policy for late credit. ACPE does not have a policy denying the ability to charge participants attempting to claim late credit.

For all CPE Monitor® and Provider Web Tool related questions, overrides, or additional information, providers may contact [email protected] or [email protected].”

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Learning ExpressCE automatically generates statements of credit; these are stored in each participant’s account and can be printed. Learning ExpressCE has 4 features that greatly reduce the chance that you’ll need to report credit late:

1) Learning ExpressCE automatically reports credit to CPE Monitor. 2) You can use the filters under the Participant tab in the navigation bar to identify any

participants registered on your Learning ExpressCE site who are missing NABP ID numbers or the month and day of birth -so you can notify them.

3) If the NABP ID number or the month and day of birth fields are blank in a participant’s profile and later filled in, Learning ExpressCE will recognize the addition and within 24 hours, will auto-report any credit that has not been reported and accepted by CPE Monitor.

4) Learning ExpressCE provides a report of submissions to CPE Monitor and the results (eg, accepted or rejected); you have the option to manually re-submit credit for participants listed in this report.

For your self-assessment:

A statement of credit for a specific non-pharmacy participant can be printed to include in your self-assessment by logging in as the participant, then clicking “View/Print CE Credit” in the navigation bar. Simply click “view certificate” for the CE program of interest, then click “print.” To identify a non-pharmacy participant for whom you’d like to print a statement of credit, click the Participants tab in the navigation bar, filter for non-pharmacy professions, select a participant, and click “Login” on the far right, under the Action column.

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CPE Standards

Standard 2: Gap Analysis From: ACPE Accreditation Standards for Continuing Pharmacy Education Version 3: Released July 2017

“The provider must develop CPE activities based on a knowledge, skill, or practice gap. The provider should identify gaps between what pharmacists and pharmacy technicians currently know or do and what is needed and desired in practice. Guidance: An identified knowledge, skill, and/or practice gap should guide content development and delivery of CPE activities. These may include legislation change, evaluation from a regulatory or accrediting body (i.e. Joint Commission), release of new or updated evidence-based treatment guidelines, self-report from practitioners, etc. Providers should identify the root of the identified gap (i.e. the specific knowledge, skill, attitude, experience) which should inform the activity type, learning objectives, active learning exercises, and outcomes”

From: ACPE CPE Evaluation Form (Rubric):

Requested evidence: Attach evidence of gaps identified for pharmacists and/or pharmacy technicians


Learning ExpressCE includes a Survey Tool to assist you in gap identification and analysis. You can periodically send surveys from Learning ExpressCE to all participants registered on your site, selected participants, and/or participants in specific CE activities. The invitation link for each survey you create lets you filter participants by profession, state, zip code range and/or status. You can send your survey at the time of your choosing, or link it to a specific program to be sent on a specific date or a specific length of time after a live program. Learning ExpressCE automatically provides an analysis of survey responses with responses to each question displayed as a pie chart or list. This report can be generated under the Surveys tab (click analysis) or the Reports tab in the navigation bar. Surveys can be set up to allow anonymous respondents, or to display respondent’s information. For Your Self-Assessment:

By clicking on Respondents for a specific survey under the Surveys tab, you can view a list of respondents. This list can be exported to excel in order to view each respondent’s responses to survey questions. Survey analyses and exported survey responses can be attached to your self-assessment to show how gaps are identified, and provide evidence of gaps identified.

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Standard 3: Continuing Pharmacy Education Activities From: ACPE Accreditation Standards for Continuing Pharmacy Education Version 3: Released July 2017:

“The provider must structure each CPE activity to meet the knowledge-, applicationand/or practice-based educational needs of pharmacists and technicians. Guidance: Knowledge-based CPE activity: These CPE activities should be designed primarily for pharmacists and technicians to acquire factual knowledge. This information must be based on evidence as accepted in the literature by the health care professions. The minimum credit for these activities is 15 minutes or 0.25 contact hour. Application-based CPE activity. These CPE activities should be designed primarily for pharmacists and technicians to apply the information learned in the time frame allotted. The information must be based on evidence as accepted in the literature by the health care professions. The minimum credit for these activities is 60 minutes or one contact hour. Practice-based CPE activity. These CPE activities should be designed primarily for pharmacists and technicians to systematically acquire specific knowledge, skills, attitudes, and performance behaviors that expand or enhance practice competencies. The information within the practice-based CPE activity must be based on evidence as accepted Accreditation Standards for Continuing Pharmacy Education Version 3: Released July 2017 7 in the literature by the health care professions. The formats of these CPE activities should include a didactic component and a practice component. The minimum credit for these activities is 15 contact hours. Providers are not required to offer all three activity types. The CPE activities should be consistent with the provider’s mission and appropriate to meet the identified pharmacist and technician needs. Providers are encouraged to guide pharmacists and technicians to the best combination of CPE activities to meet their practice needs.”

From: ACPE CPE Evaluation Form (Rubric): Requested evidence:

Activity announcement for selected CPE activities

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In Learning ExpressCE, the Information Page for a CE program (which is viewable on the participant-facing site after clicking on the program title in the Catalog) serves as the activity announcement. For your self-assessment:

Include a screen shot of the Information pages for the CE activities you are using as examples to show the assigned activity type and credit available.

Standard 4: CPE Activity Objectives From: ACPE Accreditation Standards for Continuing Pharmacy Education Version 3: Released July 2017

“The provider must develop objectives for each CPE activity that define what the pharmacists and technicians should be able to do at the completion of each CPE activity. Guidance: Objectives must be: specific and measurable developed to specifically address the identified educational need (Standard 2) addressed by an active learning activity (Standard 7) and covered by a learning assessment (Standard 9)”


Requested Evidence: Activity announcements for selected CPE activities


In Learning ExpressCE, the objectives you enter for each Continuing Education Presentation/ Module are displayed on the Information Page for the program, which is viewable on your participant –facing web site. Objectives are entered after opening the pink bar that displays after clicking “Create a New Program” under the Programs tab in the navigation bar. For your self-assessment:

In Learning ExpressCE, the Information Page for a CE activity (which is viewable on the participant-facing site after clicking on the activity title in the Catalog) serves as the activity announcement. Include a screen shot of the Information pages for the CE activities you are using as examples to show that objectives were developed for each activity. Open each Presentation/ Module on the Information Page so the objectives are viewable before you take the screen shot.

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Standard 5: Standards for Commercial Support (SCS) From: ACPE Accreditation Standards for Continuing Pharmacy Education Version 3: Released July 2017:

“The provider must plan all CPE activities independent of commercial interest. The educational content must be presented with full disclosure and equitable balance. Appropriate topics and learning activities must be distinguished from topics and learning activities which are promotional or appear to be intended for the purpose of endorsing either a specific commercial drug, device or other commercial product (as contrasted with the generic product/drug entity and its contents or the general therapeutic area it addresses), or a specific commercial service (as contrasted with the general service area and/or the aspects or problems of professional practice it addresses). Guidance: The provider must:

ensure independence in planning and delivery of CPE activities, and implement a mechanism to prospectively identify and resolve conflicts of interest

during the planning process, and use commercial support appropriately, and manage commercial promotion appropriately, and present content that is without commercial bias, and disclose required information.”

From: ACPE CPE Evaluation Form (Rubric): Requested evidence:

Evidence demonstrating independence, e.g. activity announcements, grant agreements, planning documents.)

Activity announcements for selected CPE activities Evidence of separation of promotion/advertising from continuing education, e.g.,

activity announcements, agreements, educational materials, reviewer/learner comments

Educational materials for selected CPE activities Evidence of disclosure to learners of relevant financial relationships and sources of all

commercial support Activity evaluation forms for selected CPE activities Summary of activity evaluation feedback pertaining to bias, including free text

comments, and evidence of provider follow-up on comments of bias, if identified

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Activity Announcements, evidence of separation of promotion/advertising from

continuing education, and evidence of disclosure to learners of relevant financial

relationships and sources of all commercial support:

In Learning ExpressCE, the Information Page for a CE program serves as the activity announcement. You enter the information that displays on the Information Page when you create a new CE program in Learning ExpressCE (click on the Programs tab in the navigation bar, then click “Create a New Program” to display the bars you open to enter program information.) When creating a new CE activity in Learning ExpressCE, there are several boxes where you can add information that relates to the Standards for Commercial Support. For example, you can access a text box titled “Support/Acknowledgement” by opening the blue Program Info bar. This is an appropriate place to acknowledge commercial support (or state that the program has no commercial support), disclose information about commercial support to participants, describe the independent approach used for planning and delivering CPE activities (if it has commercial support), and explain to participants that promotions/advertising/exhibits are located in a separate space from CE activities. For your self-assessment:

Include a screen shot of the Information pages for the CE activities you are using as examples in your self-assessment. Easy access to the educational materials for CE activities:

When you create a new CE activity in Learning ExpressCE, you have the option to upload educational materials for the overall activity, or – if your activity has multiple sessions – for each session. A wide variety of files can be uploaded, including text docs, PDFs, audio files and videos. These materials are stored with the CE activity in Learning ExpressCE and can be accessed by you or by registered participants at any time. For your self-assessment:

Simply download the educational materials from your CE activities and include the materials in your self-assessment. To access educational materials for a CE activity in Learning ExpressCE:

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1. If the CE activities you are using as examples for your self-assessment are not free, create a coupon with a 100% discount that can be applied to all CE activities. (The coupon tab is accessed by hovering over the Programs tab in the navigation bar on your Learning ExpressCE admin site.)

2. Open your Learning ExpressCE participant site (the front end) and login.

3. Click on the title of the CE activity, then register for or purchase the course (using the coupon).

4. Click on the links to educational materials to open and download them. Evaluations & Evaluation Summaries:

Evaluations can be created in (or copied and pasted into) Learning ExpressCE, where participants can conveniently complete them on a computer or mobile device. The data is automatically summarized, and can be exported with a quick click of a button in 1 of 3 formats:

1. a PDF with an attractive pie-chart display summarizing participant responses; 2. an excel file showing each participant’s individual responses, with their names; 3. an excel file showing each participant’s individual responses, without their

names. As evidence of monitoring for commercial bias or promotion, simply export the evaluation reports for the CE activities you are using as examples in your self-assessment, point out the questions about sources of commercial bias or promotion, and include the evaluation reports in your self-assessment.


Export the evaluation summary data for the CE activities you are using as examples in your self –assessment by following these steps:

1. Open the “Programs” report found under the Reports tab on the navigation bar

2. Expand the dates for the report so the time period includes the date the CE activity of interest was offered, then click “Search” (see Tip, below)

3. Click on the title of the CE activity of interest 4. On the far right of the page, under the heading “Export Evaluation,” select

your preferred format and click the link. 5. Add the exported evaluation summary data to your self-evaluation.

(Continued)

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Standard 7: Teaching and Learning Methods From: ACPE Accreditation Standards for Continuing Pharmacy Education Version 3: Released July 2017:

“The provider must assure that all CPE activities include active participation and involvement of the pharmacist and technician. Guidance: The methodologies employed should be determined by the CPE activity planned (Standard 3), objectives, educational content, and the size and composition of the intended audience. The provider should design and implement active learning exercises as a component of live and home study instructional methods.”


Requested Evidence: Attach a description of what is done to foster active participation of learners in live

activities; include examples of actual learning materials.

Attach a description of what is done to foster active participation of learners in home study activities; include examples of actual learning materials.


Learning ExpressCE facilitates active learning instructional approaches in several ways: Pre- and Post-Test Comparison Report: You can create a test that is used as both a pre-test and a post test, then run a comparison report (under the Reports tab) to show how participants’ scores improved (hopefully) after participation in a CE activity. For your self-assessment:

Add a test comparison report to document your use of pre- and post-tests, and show the change in participants’ scores. Interactive Test Feature:

When creating a test, you have the option to add an active learning component to your questions. For example, after entering the possible answers for a multiple choice question, you have the option to add “Expert Insight” (eg, more information related to the test question) that will appear after the participant answers the question. The participant will then have the opportunity to expand on their answer in a “Reflection” text box. This feature could be used to

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elicit problem solving by presenting a question, then adding more information for the learner to consider and respond to. Note: If this capability is not active on your admin site, email customer-support@learningexpressce to request activation. For your self-assessment:

Register for a program that you’ve set up with a test that incorporates the interactive feature. Take the test, and take screen shots of the sections you’d like to include in your self-assessment.

Tip: If the CE activities you are using as examples for your self-assessment are not free, create a coupon with a 100% discount that can be applied to all CE activities. (The coupon tab is accessed by hovering over the Programs tab in the navigation bar on your Learning ExpressCE admin site.) Use the coupon to register for the CE activities for free.

Case Study Capability

A case study can be added to any pre- or post-test created in Learning ExpressCE. Simply choose the Paragraph Text question option when creating a test to enter the case, then add related test questions. For your self-assessment:

Register for a program that you’ve set up with a test that includes a case study. Take the test, and take screen shots of the sections you’d like to include in your self-assessment.


Videos with Intermittent Questions:

Learning ExpressCE is compatible with applications that let you add intermittent questions to video CE activities. These questions serve to engage the participant in the material being presented and enhance the learning experience. For more information, contact customer support at customer-support@learningexpressce.

(Continued)

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Register as a participant for a CE activity that includes a video with intermittent questions. Download the video file and include it in your self-assessment.


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Standard 8: Educational Materials From: ACPE Accreditation Standards for Continuing Pharmacy Education Version 3: Released July 2017:

“The provider must offer educational materials for each CPE activity that will enhance participants' understanding of the content and foster applications to pharmacy practice. Guidance: Educational materials should serve as a guide, provide additional sources of information, and include reference tools usable in practice.”


Requested evidence: Attach educational materials from the activities


Easy access to the educational materials for CE activities:

When you create a new CE activity in Learning ExpressCE, you have the option to upload educational materials for the overall activity, or – if your activity has multiple sessions – for each session. A wide variety of files can be uploaded, including text docs, PDFs, audio files and videos. These materials are stored with the CE activity in Learning ExpressCE and can be accessed by you or by registered participants at any time. For your self-assessment:

Simply download the educational materials from your CE activities and include the materials in your self-assessment. To access educational materials for a CE activity in Learning ExpressCE:

1. If the CE activities you are using as examples for your self-assessment are not free, create a coupon with a 100% discount that can be applied to all CE activities. (The coupon tab is accessed by hovering over the Programs tab in the navigation bar on your Learning ExpressCE admin site.)

2. Open your Learning ExpressCE participant site (the front end) and login. 3. Click on the title of the CE activity, then register for or purchase it (using

the coupon). 4. Click on the links to educational materials to open and download them.

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Standard 9: Assessment of Learning

From: ACPE Accreditation Standards for Continuing Pharmacy Education Version 3: Released July 2017:

“The provider in collaboration with faculty must include learning assessments in each CPE activity to allow pharmacists and technicians to assess their achievement of the learned content. Completion of a learning assessment is required for CPE credit. Guidance: The provider may select formal and informal techniques for assessment of learning. Informal techniques typically involve participant discussions. Formal techniques, such as tests and quizzes, are typically individualized, written, and graded. The assessment should be consistent with the identified CPE activity objectives (Standard 4) and activity type (Standard 3). Knowledge-based CPE activity: Each CPE activity in this category must include assessment questions structured to determine recall of facts. Application-based CPE activity: Each CPE activity in this category must include case studies structured to address application of the principles learned. Practice-based CPE activity: Each CPE activity in this category must include formative and summative assessments that demonstrate that the pharmacists and technicians achieved the stated objectives.”


Requested evidence: Attach a description of how participants are evaluated on activity objectives and

include learning assessments with participant results. Attach a description of how learning assessments are documented for credit.

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Instant access to post-tests with participant results:

Post-tests, with participant results, are stored in Learning ExpressCE and can be exported in 3 ways: 1) a PDF with an attractive pie-chart display showing participant results; 2) an excel file showing each participant’s score and individual answers, with participant names; 3) an excel file showing each participant’s score and individual answers, without participant names. For your self-assessment:

Export the post-tests with participant results for the CE activities you are using as examples:

1. Run the “Programs” report (listed after clicking on the Reports tab in the navigation bar) for the time interval that includes the CE activity of interest.

2. Click on the CE activity title to display the post-test export options. 3. Export the post-test in the format you prefer, and include it in your self-assessment.

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Standard 10: Assessment Feedback

From: ACPE Accreditation Standards for Continuing Pharmacy Education Version 3: Released July 2017

“The provider must ensure learner assessment feedback is provided to participants in an appropriate, timely, and constructive manner. Guidance: The feedback provided should be consistent with the learning assessment (Standard 9), activity objectives (Standard 4), and activity type (Standard 3). Verbal and written feedback may be provided as follows: Knowledge-based CPE activity: Feedback may include the correct response to questions. For incorrect responses, the provider is encouraged to communicate that the question was answered incorrectly and provide the rationale for the correct responses. Application-based CPE activity: Feedback may include the correct evaluation of case studies. When responses are incorrect, the provider is encouraged to explain the rationale for the correct responses. Practice-based CPE activity: Feedback should be provided based on the formative and summative assessments that were used to demonstrate that the pharmacist or technician achieved the stated objectives.”


Requested evidence: Attach a description with examples of how feedback is provided to participants.

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When you create a test in Learning ExpressCE, you have the option to show participants the correct answers. To select this option, click on the “Tests” link that displays when hovering over the Programs tab on the navigation bar. Click on the test title, then click “Yes” for the “Show Correct Answers” option in the Test Information box. If this option is selected, the correct answers to the test will display after the participant passes the test. For your self-assessment: If one or more of the CE activities you are using as examples are knowledge-based activities:

1. Open your Learning ExpressCE participant site (the front end) and login. 2. Click on the title of the CE activity in the catalog, then register for or purchase it (use

a coupon – see the tip below). 3. Take the test, and answer some of the questions incorrectly - but not too many; you

want to pass the test! After you pass the test, take a screen shot showing the correct answers displayed for questions you answered incorrectly. Include the screen shot in your self-assessment.

Tip: If the CE activities you are using as examples for your self-assessment are not free, create a coupon with a 100% discount that can be applied to all CE activities. (The coupon tab is accessed by hovering over the Programs tab in the navigation bar on your Learning ExpressCE admin site.).

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Standard 11: Evaluation of CPE Activity

From: ACPE Accreditation Standards for Continuing Pharmacy Education Version 3: Released July 2017

“Providers must develop and conduct evaluations which allow pharmacists and technicians to provide feedback on CPE activities. Elements of the evaluation should be relevant to the intended outcome of the activity. Feedback should be summarized for pharmacists and technicians separately and used in a systematic fashion for the purpose of ongoing improvement of the overall CPE program. Guidance: Providers are encouraged to allow pharmacists and technicians to provide feedback in the following areas: applicability of the CPE activity to meet their educational needs achievement of each stated objective quality of faculty usefulness of educational material effectiveness of teaching and learning methods, including active learning appropriateness of learning assessment activities perceptions of bias or commercialism Additional items may be incorporated to aid the provider in evaluating the effectiveness of its CPE activities and guide the development of future educational activities as well as assess achievement and impact of the provider’s stated mission and goals (Standard 1).”


Requested evidence: Attach CPE activity evaluations. Attach pharmacist activity evaluation summary data. Attach technician activity evaluation summary data.

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Evaluations can be created in (or copied and pasted into) Learning ExpressCE, where participants can conveniently complete them on a computer or mobile device. The data is automatically summarized, and can be exported with a quick click of a button in 1 of 3 formats:

1. a PDF with an attractive pie-chart display summarizing participant responses; 2. an excel file showing each participant’s individual responses, with their names; 3. an excel file showing each participant’s individual responses, without their names.


Export the evaluation summary data for the CE activities you are using as examples in your self –assessment by following these steps:

1. Open the “Programs” report found under the Reports tab on the navigation bar 2. Expand the dates for the report so the time period includes the date the CE activity of

interest was offered, then click “Search” (see Tip, below) 3. Click on the title of the CE activity of interest 4. On the far right of the page, under the heading “Export Evaluation,” select your

preferred format and click the link. 5. Add the exported evaluation summary data to your self-evaluation.

Tip: If your CE activities were completed by participants in more than one profession, evaluation summary data can easily be exported for each profession separately. Just select the profession of interest before clicking on “Search.”

Conclusion At Continuing Education Network, our mission is to simplify the management of continuing education. We hope this guide is helpful to anyone going through an ACPE self-assessment, saves you time, and that it highlights how Learning ExpressCE can help simplify that process. As Pharmacy CE providers ourselves, we use our experience to help providers, like you, simplify their CE management. If you would like to learn more about how Learning ExpressCE can help, please visit our website or reach out to us at the contact information below.

www.learningexpressce.com [email protected]

925.231.1448

http://www.learningexpressce.com/

mailto:[email protected]

Documents

The ACPE Self-Assessment Report How Learning ExpressCE …