Continuing Medical Education
Continued certification is contingent upon registration of 40 hours of continuing medical education every two years, including the year in which the CDQ Examination is taken. For each two-year CME registration cycle, forty (40) hours of continuing medical education must be registered in order to obtain CME credit for that two-year period. For each two-year CME registration cycle, CME credit will be registered for continuing medical education which is obtained during that two-year period. CME hours exceeding the 40 required hours for a registration period will not be registered.
The uniform deadline date for registration of continuing medical education is June 1st. All CME registration materials and complete payment of the CME registration fee must be received and processed by NCCAA on or before June 1st in order for a practitioner to be listed as certified on June 2nd. NCCAA advises practitioners to submit their materials and payments well before the June 1st deadline in order to assure processing before their certification expires.
The CME registration fee of $220 applies to all CME registration for 2010.
Complete CME registration information is included on the new CME Submission Form which is available on the Downloads page.
CME Registration
Continuing medical education must be submitted using a current CME registration form (dated Oct 2006 or later) that is mailed to NCCAA, 1500 Sunday Drive, Suite 102 Raleigh, NC 27607.
The deadline for CME registration and payment of CME registration fee is June 1st.
CME registration fee for 2010 is $220. Any change and the effective date of change for CME registration fee will be posted on NCCAA’s web site.
NCCAA will accept CME credit for programs approved for continuing medical education credit by the
- American Medical Association (AMA);
- American Association of Physician Assistants (AAPA);
- Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education (ACCME).
The content for thirty (30) hours of each registration period must be in the field of anesthesia or one of its subspecialties. The content for the remaining ten (10) hours may be in any medical topic. ACLS instruction will be tabulated as anesthesia-related content.
NCCAA will grant 40 hours of CME credit to any AA-C practitioner who is a full-time student in good standing in an LCME-accredited school of medicine during a two-year CME registration cycle.
Payment of the CME registration fee is due in full upon the registrant's initial submission for CME credit within the two-year cycle. When a check for CME registration is returned, registration of CME credit will be held in abeyance until the registration fee plus a $50 returned-check fee are submitted to NCCAA.
If CME registration is being held in abeyance at the deadline for CME registration, then CME registration will be declared void and the anesthesiologist assistant will not be certified.
The practitioner who fails to register CMEs and/or pay the CME registration fee by the June 1st deadline will not be certified by NCCAA and will be notified immediately following the June 1st deadline by certified/return receipt mail that he/she
- Is not certified by NCCAA and
- Has until August 31st to bring CME registration, including payment of CME registration fee, up to date or he/she
- Will be decertified by NCCAA and
- Will only be able to regain certification by successfully completing a Certifying Examination.
The practitioner who is a candidate for CDQ Examination and who fails to register CMEs and/or pay the CME registration fee by the June 1st deadline will not be certified by NCCAA and will be notified immediately following the June 1st deadline by certified/return receipt mail that he/she
- Is not certified by NCCAA and
- Has until August 31st to bring CME registration, including payment of CME registration fee, up to date or he/she
- Will be decertified by NCCAA and
- Examination results will be declared void and will not be released and
- Will only be able to regain certification by successfully completing a Certifying Examination.
CME Audit
The National Commission randomly audits CME submissions of practitioners on an annual basis. The practitioner who is selected for audit must comply in full in order to remain certified.
The basis for audit is the CME credit registered during the preceding two-year CME registration period.
The practitioner who is selected for audit will receive notification of audit via certified/return receipt mail in which an audit form and directions will be included.
CME programs from the preceding two-year CME registration period must be listed legibly on the CME audit form. Incomplete or illegible CME audit forms will be returned without processing.
The CME audit form must be accompanied by complete, legible copies of the original documents of CME credit issued by the granting organization. CME materials will not be returned.
The documents awarding CME credit must state the source of accreditation of the CME granting organization.
The CME audit form must be signed and dated by the practitioner.
The practitioner has 90 days to comply with the audit by completing and returning his/her CME audit form, along with all requisite documents, to NCCAA at 1500 Sunday Drive, Suite 102 Raleigh, NC 27607.
The practitioner who complies with the audit and passes will continue to be certified by NCCAA.
The practitioner who fails to comply with the audit or does not pass the audit will be notified by certified/return receipt mail that he/she has been decertified by NCCAA and will only be able to regain certification by successfully completing a Certifying Examination.
If for whatever reason a practitioner cannot submit appropriate documentation for CME credit registered in the preceding two-year CME registration period, then that practitioner may substitute CME credit that is acceptable to NCCAA according the above guidelines.