AMA to Modern Healthcare: Therapeutic Insights is a groundbreaking collaboration

Modern Healthcare
Letter to the Editor

To the Editor:

The one-sided and inaccurate criticisms of the AMA's new online continuing medical education initiative are very unfortunate (AMA sales of doc info lead to partnership questions, June 4).  AMA Therapeutic Insights represents a groundbreaking collaboration between the AMA and recognized disease experts, national data providers and medical specialty groups to incorporate unique pharmacotherapeutic information, disease demographics and practice guidelines into a readily accessible educational newsletter.

For the newsletter's first issue, the AMA chose diagnosis and management of migraine in adults, and consulted an advisory board made up of some of the most widely recognized migraine headache experts.  One member of the advisory board, Stephen Silberstein, MD, chaired the American Academy of Neurology (AAN) committee which prepared the evidenced-based guidelines for migraine headache.  Despite speculation to the contrary, AMA Therapeutic Insights is consistent with the AAN practice guidelines and therefore does reflect best practice for this condition. 

The AMA uses top experts in a particular medical field for editorial review, and requires them to disclose any relevant pharmaceutical industry relationships.  This disclosure is in accord with the strict CME program development rules required by the Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education (ACCME), and the AMA's own requirements for certifying an educational activity for AMA PRA Category 1 Credit™.  By meeting these requirements, physicians can be assured that AMA Therapeutic Insights meets the highest ethical and educational standards for continued professional improvement.

AMA CME programs are considered to be a standard of excellence among CME providers and physicians due to their fair balanced, quality and evidence-based content, which is free of any commercial bias.  To imply otherwise is simply wrong and a disservice to physicians, the program advisory board, and the AMA.

Sincerely,

Edward L. Langston, MD
Chair-elect, American Medical Association