The American University of Beirut Medical Center and the Cleveland Clinic Foundation for Continuing Education (CCF CCE) have signed a partnership agreement to create a Continuing Medical Education Office at AUBMC which will serve as an extension for CCF CCE in Lebanon and the Middle East.
The signing took place on April 22 at 3:00 pm in the presence of Dr. Mohamed H. Sayegh, the Raja N. Khuri dean of the Faculty of Medicine, as well as Dr. Fuad Jubran, the Middle East Medical Education director of the Cleveland Clinic.
This partnership will authorize the AUB CME office to certify educational activities in Lebanon and the Middle East, including Gulf Cooperation Council countries, according to the educational needs of the area and to the curriculum designed by the AUBMC Post Graduate Medical Education Council. In order for US-certified doctors to maintain their licenses, they must show evidence that they are continuing their education and practicing free of commercial bias. Because the Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education (ACCME) has agreed to give AUB CME accreditation, it is now possible for doctors in the Middle East to maintain their licenses.
"The benefits of this office will include upgrading the quality of education given to postgraduates to meet US standards as set by ACCME, which particularly emphasize the separation of marketing and commercialism and medical content. In this way we provide content purely based on educational merit," said Dr. Ghassan Hamadeh, Associate Dean for Continuing Education at AUBMC.
CCF CCE's responsibilities will include maintaining accreditation with the Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education (ACCME), along with providing training and oversight to the operation of the AUB CME office.
AUB CME office will be responsible for implementing procedures and policies according to CCF CME guidelines, among other tasks.
Diala Nehme and Dr. George Abi Saad flew to Cleveland for training at CCF and came back with the knowledge needed to help the AUB CME office run smoothly. "We have selected Dr. George Abi Saad, president of the Medical Alumni Chapter, to run the office because of his experience in continuing education, especially Advanced Trauma Life Support," said Dr. Hamadeh.
