How to Choose the Right General Surgery CME Courses

Surgical practice continues to evolve as techniques, technologies, evidence, and approaches to patient care develop. Keeping your knowledge current can help you stay prepared for changes that shape everyday surgical practice and longer-term professional development.

When choosing general surgery CME, it can help to look beyond completing credit requirements. The topics covered, learning format, clinical relevance, and connection to your professional goals can all influence the value of your education. CME can also complement broader preparation for certification and ongoing learning. Let’s explore how to evaluate your CME and choose education that supports what comes next in your surgical practice.

What to Look for in General Surgery CME as Your Practice Evolves

Your CME can support different stages of professional development, from keeping up with current surgical knowledge to exploring emerging areas of practice. Reviewing a few key factors can help you determine how well an activity aligns with your needs.

1. Look for Coverage of Evolving Surgical Techniques

Surgical techniques continue to develop as physicians adopt new approaches, technologies, and evidence. When reviewing CME, consider whether the content addresses developments relevant to your area of practice.

Topics like minimally invasive and robotic surgery can be useful areas to explore as surgical practice continues to advance. Current education can help you stay familiar with emerging approaches and the evidence surrounding them.

2. Assess the Breadth of Clinical Topics

General surgery encompasses a wide range of clinical areas. Your CME can therefore provide broader value when it covers topics that reflect the scope of your practice or areas you want to develop.

Consider education covering areas such as endocrine, colorectal, breast, thoracic, and perioperative surgery. A broad selection can help you maintain knowledge across different aspects of surgical care while allowing you to focus on subjects most relevant to your professional interests.

3. Consider How the Education Connects With Clinical Practice

Clinical relevance can make continuing education more useful. When reviewing a CME activity, consider whether the content connects current evidence and surgical knowledge with situations you may encounter in practice.

Case-based learning, clinical examples, and discussions of diagnostic or treatment considerations can help connect educational material with practical decision-making. This approach can also give you opportunities to revisit complex topics in a structured setting.

4. Consider Board and Certification Goals

Your CME choices can also form part of your broader professional development. If you are pursuing ABS board certification, consider how your continuing education fits alongside the current requirements established by the American Board of Surgery.

CME can contribute to ongoing knowledge development and, where applicable, certification-related requirements. However, certification pathways have specific criteria, so reviewing the current American Board of Surgery (ABS) requirements can help you understand how CME fits into your overall plan.

Keep Up With Surgical Advances Through Oakstone CME

Oakstone offers general surgery CME covering current surgical practice, perioperative care, and specialized areas of surgery. These courses provide focused education through expert-led content and flexible online formats.

Comprehensive Review of General Surgery

The course offers up to 39.75 AMA PRA Category 1 Credits™. It is available as a video and covers preoperative, intraoperative, and postoperative management across a broad range of surgical conditions.

Perioperative Management

This course focuses on patient care before, during, and after surgery, with emphasis on perioperative evaluation, intraoperative management, and postoperative care. It includes 50 expert lectures and eight Q&A sessions and offers up to 21 AMA PRA Category 1 Credits™.

Comprehensive Review and Update of What’s New in Vascular and Endovascular Surgery

This course focuses on recent developments in vascular and endovascular surgery, helping physicians review evolving approaches and current clinical knowledge. It offers up to 25.75 AMA PRA Category 1 Credits™ and is also relevant to ABS requirements.

Keep Your CME Aligned With the Future of Surgery

The value of general surgery CME extends beyond completing educational credits. The right content can help you stay informed about evolving surgical techniques, review diverse clinical topics, and continue developing knowledge relevant to your practice.

As you plan your CME, consider topic coverage, clinical relevance, faculty expertise, learning format, and professional goals. If ABS board certification forms part of your plans, review the current American Board of Surgery requirements separately and consider how CME can complement your broader preparation.

Oakstone offers general surgery CME across multiple topics and flexible formats, giving you options for continued learning as surgical practice evolves.

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