How to evaluate your CME event?

Why evaluate?

• Evaluation allows an organiser to identify the merits and value of an activity and any areas needing improvement. 
• Evaluation is necessary to make the activity eligible for accreditation approval by ACOE.

How will you evaluate?

• Plan to evaluate the activityt at the outset and consider what type of information the evaluation could usefully identify.
• There are many methods for evaluating educational activities and an organiser is free to adopt its own evaluation procedure and form. Most organisers use a standard evaluation form. For big conferences, the use of an electronic evaluation system reveals to be optimal but is not compulsory.
• ACOE has produced a standard participant’s evaluation form that can be used by organisers to evaluate their event.
• Organisers can use alternative forms for live events and distance learning materials but these forms must at least include questions 1 to 4 of the the ACOE Standard Participant's Evaluation form. 

What should you evaluate?

• The extent to which desired learning outcomes are being fulfilled
• The quality of the teaching
• The extent to which the information presented was useful and relevant to the participants’ work and practice
• The balance of the information presented and the adequacy of the evidence supporting it.

What follows evaluation?

• An organiser will be asked to supply evidence that they have audited the evaluation forms and made use of the resulting information for planning future educational events.
• To answer this need the preparation of a simple evaluation report of the event is requested.  This evaluation report should identify the accomplishments and/or deficiencies of the event according to the feedback of the evaluation forms completed by the participants.
• If you have created your own evaluation form/process then we would suggest that you keep a copy of the evaluation form or documented process along with the evaluation report.

What will ACOE wish to see?

Within three months following the event, organisers are requested to provide ACOE with a copy of the evaluation report and the evaluation form used. The Evaluation report can be completed and submitted online.