Centers of Excellence

While NCME has many areas of expertise in both live programming and enduring materials, the following are particularly noteworthy and are considered NCME “Centers of Excellence”:





Clinical Content Development
  • Experienced staff of medical writers, physicians, PhDs, and editors
  • Medical directors assigned to each therapeutic area
  • NCME national medical editorial board reviews all clinical materials
  • Multidisciplinary advisory board established for initiatives covering various areas of treatment
  • Created hundreds of slide kits, monographs, and newsletters
  • Developed and produced more than 5,000 fully scripted video and audio programs
  • Created proprietary publications in cardiovascular disease, Alzheimer's disease, gastroenterology, head and neck cancer, HIV/AIDS, dermatology, internal medicine, infectious diseases, metabolic syndrome, neurology, schizophrenia, oncology, and respiratory illness
  • Expert gap analysis based on latest clinical evidence, recently released guidelines from national specialty societies, publically available data, and surveys of target learners

Electronic Media
NCME is considered an innovator in the field of electronic media and has produced nearly 6,000 electronically delivered programs, including:

  • NCME TV™ – A hospital subscription network for staff and attending physicians
  • Daily Medical News Alert – Helping physicians stay current with and assess clinical implications of daily medical news reports
  • CME teleconferencing
  • CME Tele-Symposia™
  • Interactive DVDs and mobile device programming
  • Web site development
  • Satellite videoconferences
  • Video and audio journals
  • e-journal clubs
  • e-newsletters
  • e-learning
  • Webinars




Dedicated Lecture Division
NCME has a dedicated staff that invites, prepares, and schedules faculty and registers participants for:

  • CME distinguished lecture programs
  • National and local symposia
  • Community seminars
  • Critical pathways and discharge planning workshops
  • Faculty meetings
  • Interactive Health Care Forums™
  • Visiting professor clinical roundtables
  • Best practices programs

NCME has implemented more than 35,000 of these programs to date.


Database Management
NCME has long-term relationships with over 4,000 hospitals. Our proprietary database is an invaluable tool to quickly ascertain all relevant personnel and logistics information associated with setting up and executing well-attended meetings and other programs anywhere in the country. The database is constantly updated and uses proprietary software to produce reports containing any combination of information desired.

NCME’s proprietary database is also a tremendous resource for audience generation, containing information on over 350,000 physicians in a wide range of specialties who have participated in NCME programs. Our database not only tracks their participation, but also keeps information on the type of programming (eg, teleconferences, distinguished lectures, dinner meetings, Web-based programs, or print) and topics that are of interest to them so that we can include them in announcements for future CME activities.



Project Management
The success of any project requires close attention and coordination of many fine details. NCME project directors and managers truly take ownership of programs by systematically addressing and tracking each part of the developing activity, while never losing sight of the “big picture.” NCME project directors and managers:

  • Have extensive experience implementing a wide range of programs, from live symposia to mobile device applications
  • Take ownership of the entire program, down to the smallest details
  • Serve as liaison between departments, such as editorial and production
  • Serve as both the quarterback and deep safety—heading off problems before they occur
  • Thrive under pressure
  • Meet program objectives on time, within budget




Audience Generation
All NCME programs offer a very important extra—the intended audience. Excellent programs are not valuable unless they are well attended, or are distributed to and utilized by the appropriate audience. To attract the right audiences for our programs, NCME:

  • Employs a full-time staff of telemarketers, writers, and graphic designers experienced in a wide range of media
  • Employs a full-time manager of audience generation
  • Utilizes telephone, mail, fax, and e-mail announcements inviting them to submit case studies for possible inclusion in the activity



Scientific Council Development and Management
A medical council is an assembly of physician experts who have a common interest in a specific area of medicine; it is organized to identify practice gaps and further the educational needs of that area. Councils are generally developed to provide expert clinicians and researchers with the opportunity to exchange information and ideas and to provide a forum for disseminating new guidelines and relevant trial results to their peers.

NCME has created and manages many scientific councils in a variety of therapeutic areas. NCME councils are the source of content development for CME activities. Council members feel a sense of ownership of the programs that are created, and are often more willing to participate as faculty for individual activities generated from the content. In cardiology, NCME has developed and managed content for 11 councils:

  • Interdisciplinary Lipids Council
  • Council on Myocardial Ischemia
  • International Council on the Role of Beta-Receptor Blockade
  • US Beta-Receptor Blockade Council
  • International Council on Aldosterone-Receptor Blockade Therapy
  • Council on Circadian Rhythm
  • Strategies and Therapies for Reducing Ischemia and Vascular Events (STRIVE®)
  • Controlling Atherosclerosis with Lipid Modification Strategies (CALMS™)
  • Strategies for Urgent Reperfusion of Vessels in Vascular Emergencies (SURVIVE™)
  • Practice Innovations to Achieve Cardiometabolic Lowering of Events (PINNACLE™)
  • Cardiovascular Health Protection Initiative™
  • Blood Management and Conservation
  • VTE (Venous Thromboembolism)
  • Hyperglycemia and Diabetes

Outcomes Measurement
NCME routinely implements physician competence outcome surveys for all activities and depending on the scope and nature of a CME activity, we will implement performance or patient outcomes studies. These studies are implemented in a variety of ways, namely in person, direct mail, phone, and via the Internet. The results of these studies measure the effectiveness of NCME activities in improving the quality of patient care and provide NCME with the necessary input to address future educational needs practice gaps.