Testing as a component of continuing education programs: evaluation of conference presentations by this method

Area of Science:

• Medical Education
• Continuing Medical Education Assessment

Background:

• Evaluating the effectiveness of medical conferences is crucial for professional development.
• Assessing knowledge acquisition during national medical conferences presents unique challenges.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate the impact of individual presentations and the overall national medical conference on attendee knowledge.
• To assess the efficacy of pre- and post-conference testing as an educational tool.

Main Methods:

• Lecturers provided key questions summarizing their presentations.
• Audience participants completed tests before and after the conference.
• Scores were analyzed for individual lecture segments and the complete conference test.

Main Results:

• Attendee scores significantly improved from the pre-conference test to the post-conference test.
• Knowledge retention was evident across all tested segments and the overall assessment.

Conclusions:

• Pre- and post-conference testing effectively measures knowledge gain in medical professionals.
• The testing methodology was positively received by participants, suggesting its utility for future educational events.