Future-Proofing Your CME Writing Biz: Preparing for 2025

Future Proof Your CME Writing Business for 2025

[00:00:00] If you're a CME professional, watching the rapid changes in health care education, you might be feeling a bit overwhelmed by wreck right now. You're seeing AI tools, transformed content development, private equity, reshaping, familiar organizations, and probably feeling increasing pressure to demonstrate. To demonstrate real-world outcomes. You know, you need to adapt, but sorting through which trends actually matter and which are just noise, feels like a full-time job in itself.

[00:00:31] Today, we're immersing ourselves in the evolving landscape, all continuing medical education and continuing education for health professionals.

[00:00:39] What 2025 might look like for the field and how you as a CME writer or other independent professional , can prepare for these changes. I'm breaking down six key trends that will likely shape CME in 2025. And more importantly, I'll show you exactly how to position yourself

[00:00:58] to thrive and share concrete strategies you can implement today.

[00:01:03] I'm Alex Howson and this is Write Medicine, the go-to podcast for mastering high quality continuing medical education content. So grab your notebook or your favorite AI tool and let's dive into what's on the horizon.

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[00:01:19] To understand where we're headed. We need to look at three powerful forces in 2024. That influenced healthcare education. First, we saw a fundamental shift in how both clinicians and patients view technology and healthcare. Think about it five years ago. The idea of AI helping with a diagnosis might have seemed like science fiction. But today clinicians are actively seeking these tools and training on how to use them.

[00:01:55] And according to a Yougov.com poll. 53% of the general public think that AI will have a positive impact on healthcare in the future from scheduling appointments to reviewing scans. And diagnosing disease.

[00:02:10] Second there's intense economic pressure to improve efficiency and reduce costs. Healthcare organizations, aren't just adopting new technologies because they're exciting. They're doing it because they need to survive in an increasingly competitive environment. CME providers, your clients. Are affected by the same factors, especially as private equity continues, its stranglehold on the field.

[00:02:36] And we'll talk about this toward the end of the episode. So make sure to stay tuned.

[00:02:41] And third, we're seeing a growing awareness of health equity and the social determinants of health that is reshaping how we deliver healthcare. And by extension, how we educate health professionals. This trend is driving other changes, like a growing demand for patient centered care, which [00:03:00] challenges us to design education and create content. That truly reflects patient needs and values and the integration of real world data to craft relevant. An evidence-based education.

[00:03:14] So let's dig into the trends. These factors have driven in 2024, and that we're likely to see more of in 2025. Let's start with an obvious one artificial intelligence, our generative artificial intelligence. In 2024, we saw a massive focus on integrating AI into workflows and content development. And there's a general feeling in the field that the rise of technology enabled education offers opportunities for enhanced personalization and interactivity. In continuing education. A topic that is central to many presentations at the upcoming Alliance conference in Orlando at the beginning of January.

[00:03:57] The promise of AI enabled education in continuing education includes tailoring educational content, individual learners needs, preferences and performance via adaptive learning platforms that adjust difficulty levels based on learner inputs or AI driven recommendations for supplementary materials. Or immersive technologies like zSpace or SimX that simulate real world scenarios for practice and application. An application platforms like augmented reality, guided surgical training or virtual reality modules for practicing empathy in patient provider communication. Or using AI to provide real time data driven feedback to learners via a dashboard chatbots. That simulate patient interactions are answer learner queries. Or algorithms that suggest remedial focus areas based on learner weaknesses.

[00:04:56] But trust in AI was and will continue to be a major theme.

[00:05:02] In 2025, we can expect broader adoption of integrated AI tools with a sharper focus on trust and contextual accuracy. As we embrace AI tools, maintaining ethical standards and accuracy. I will increasingly be essential. For guidance on using AI ethically, I recommend that you review the alliances ethics policy on AI. And enroll in an upcoming workshop with Nuria Nigrao on AI, hosted by the University of Chicago. You can check out articles and white papers too, from organizations like hymns healthcare information and management systems society. And the FDA's Digital Health Center of Excellence.

[00:05:46] There's also lots of industry reports from Deloitte and McKinsey on healthcare technology and AI in healthcare and education.

[00:05:55] And do revisit past Write Medicine episodes on AI, 84 and [00:06:00] 86 in particular. And download my AI cheat sheet, which has prompts and prompt frameworks tailored specifically for CME. I'll put a link for all of these in the show notes. And if you're looking for an example of how the education providers are using AI to provide feedback to learners, check out episode 116 with Atlanta Brody and David Setiadi from Projects in Knowledge on how they integrate feedback via an AI bot.

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[00:06:30] Another trend, gaining traction is the use of confidence frameworks.

[00:06:34] And. Outcomes measurement to measure learner's self efficacy after participating in. Educational activities. Self-efficacy as a concept has been around for decades since the 1970s first described by social psychologist, Albert Bandura. Think of self-efficacy as a judgment, we make about our ability to act and to take action toward a specific goal. Do I have what it takes to learn or to execute this task. Am I confident to do whatever is expected of me. This judgment about whether we have the confidence to execute the task, motivates our thoughts, our feelings, our actions, and our performance. In continuing education, self-efficacy reflects a healthcare professionals, confidence in applying what they've learned to their practice. And measuring self-efficacy helps determine whether learners feel prepared to make changes in their clinical practice. After an educational intervention. The publication of papers in peer reviewed journals in the last few years by outcomes experts like Katie Lucero, Chief outcomes officer at Medscape who talked about self-efficacy and confidence in CME in episode 80. Have given the concept of confidence. A higher profile. By showing high confidence metrics establish a more meaningful connection. Between learning. And real-world application.

Confidence and self-efficacy was also a hot topic at the European CME forum in November in 2024. And has been the focal point of several recent studies to assess confidence following CME in various topics like pediatric growth, hormone deficiency treatment. Lifestyle medicine. And postsurgical pain management. I think we'll see even more confidence questions. In outcomes, frameworks in 2025. Why should you know about self-efficacy and confidence as a writer or independent CME professional. Well, your clients are under increasing pressure to show that their educational programs actually improve outcomes.

[00:08:53] This is a long going conversation in our field. So there's an opportunity for CME professionals

[00:08:58] who can integrate [00:09:00] self-efficacy into CME content and evaluations. One way to do this is to think about evaluation, not as something that happens after the learning, but as an integral part of the content. Itself. This could mean incorporating what I call practice bridges, explicit connections between the learning content and real world application.

[00:09:24] So for instance, when you're writing patient cases or scenarios, you could include elements that challenge learners to apply knowledge in practical contexts. Or you could create opportunities. For learners to reflect on that practice and document changes in their approach by including a templates for a practice improvement plan. A checklist for implementing a new protocol. Or simply reflective questions to encourage learners, to evaluate their own confidence.

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[00:10:27] And speaking of real world application. The focus on real-world outcomes in CME is here to stay. Real world outcomes in CME. Refer to the tangible, measurable changes in healthcare practices and patient care that result from educational interventions. These outcomes bridge the gap between theoretical knowledge and practical application. By demonstrating how education directly influences clinical decision-making. Improves patient's safety or enhances treatment outcomes.

[00:11:03] Real-world outcomes picked up considerable steam in 2024. Specific examples of real-world outcomes. Following CME participation include improve use of guideline recommended anti-VEGF therapies for retinal conditions and a study run by Cleveland clinic and increased use of GLP-1receptor agonists in certain patients with type two diabetes in a study reported by Medscape. Frameworks such as Moores outcomes provide a structured approach

[00:11:36] to evaluating real-world impact. Offering a pathway to systematically measure changes in clinician performance and patient health outcomes. So we'll all need to become a bit more comfortable with integrating real-world data into content. And interpreting real world outcomes, data for outcomes reports. This doesn't mean [00:12:00] becoming statisticians and those of you who know me and my struggle with numeracy know that becoming a statistician will never be in my future. But it does mean understanding how to translate complex data. Into meaningful learning experiences and how to translate educational outcomes into real world impact. This understanding will set you apart in the markets by helping your clients show the impact of education on patient care.

[00:12:29] Especially if you're comfortable using common data visualization tools that connect data points to clinical. Decision-making like Tableau for interactive visualizations or dashboards. Or tools for creating infographic style visuals like Canva

[00:12:45] Infogram and one of my favorites, Piktochart. We'll be running a sprint on outcomes reports in right CME pro in the early summer. So make sure you subscribe to our newsletter, Write Medicine Insider to get details on when and how to enroll.

[00:13:03] I want you to take a moment here to ask yourself, what role do you see yourself playing as a writer or an independent CME professional? In the current evolving landscape. Just take a moment to think about. How you're preparing to adapt to shifts that are taking place in the field.

[00:13:22] Are you ready?

[00:13:25] So let's jump right back into our fourth trend, which is patient focused education. Patient focused education emphasizes. Integrating the patient's perspective into designing, delivering, and evaluating educational outcomes for health professionals. The goal of integrating patient focused education into CME. Is to equip clinicians with the skills and understanding necessary to deliver patient centered care. Improving both clinical outcomes and patient satisfaction. Patient focused education is also a way to directly address patients through activities or programs that are tethered to clinician education. And to provide tools and resources to help patients self-managed disease and illness, including questions to ask clinicians, joining patient provider and counters.

[00:14:18] As keynote speaker Sonia Narang shared at the Alliance 2024 conference. The growing demand for patient focused education reflects a broader shift in healthcare toward prioritizing patient needs, preferences and outcomes, as well as addressing disparities. In care. Specifically the inclusion of patient and caregiver, voices in CME reflects first. Changing healthcare dynamics.

[00:14:48] Patients are more informed and engaged in their care decisions due to access to online health information. And patients and caregivers want to actively participate in their care [00:15:00] decisions. So in the context of chronic disease management health professionals need to be able to help patients manage conditions like diabetes or hypertension through education that supports self care.

[00:15:14] Uh, second factor here

[00:15:15] is that accrediting bodies, like the Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education. Emphasize patient centeredness as a core component of effective continuing education. And patient focus is a criterion for accreditation with commendation. And a third driver. Toward patient focused education is the research which shows patient-centered care, improves treatment adherence reduces error. And enhances quality of life.

[00:15:46] So patient perspectives will continue to shape educational strategies in 2025 with more robust methodologies for including patients in that education. Here's how you can adapt your approach to content in ways that go beyond adding patient cases and that instead. In corporate and understanding of the entire healthcare journey and educational design. First include patient narratives, testimonials, or real-world data in educational content, including your needs assessment.

[00:16:20] If you're not already doing this. By including perspectives from patient advocacy, organizations and insights from published qualitative studies on patient lived experience. Second. Include patient perspectives and content that teaches clinicians how to better communicate with patients. Especially in shared decision-making and interprofessional team communication scenarios. Or scenarios that teach clinicians to communicate complex medical information or information about sensitive topics. In ways that patients can easily understand. And third, expand your competencies in areas like health literacy. Cultural competence. Inclusivity and equity. By using language and images that follow representation guidelines from resources like the American Medical Association’s, Health Equity Resource Center. The Association of American Medical Colleges toolkits on Cultural Competency and Equity in Medical Education. Or the World Health Organization's social determinants of health framework.

[00:17:38] Interprofessional continuing education or IPCE is another growth. Area that's creating opportunities for forward-thinking CME writers and independent CME professionals. ACCME's 2024 data showed a notable expansion of IPC activities in 2023. Reflecting the [00:18:00] increasing value of collaboration across healthcare teams. So in 2025, expect IPCE to become even more integrated into continuing education strategies.

[00:18:13] As healthcare teams work more collaboratively, the challenge for writers and other content creators. We'll be to develop educational content that works for interprofessional team members. This isn't just about writing different versions of the same content. It's about understanding how different healthcare professionals think and work together. So here's a practical example, say you're developing an activity about managing patients with complex type two diabetes. Uh, primary care physician. And endocrinologist and a diabetes educator all need different things from this content.

[00:18:52] And they also need to understand each other's roles and perspectives. How do you address all these needs? The answer lies in what I call layered learning design. You create a core narrative. Addressing shared competencies, things like communication skills and collaborative decision-making. And then layer in profession specific details. That help each learner understand their unique role while appreciating how they fit into the larger care team. For an introduction to

[00:19:26] IPCE checkout episodes, 45 and 132 of the podcast. And I really recommend that you follow experts like Lawrence Sherman and Tina Patel Gunaldo on LinkedIn for deeper insights. You can also check out the journal of interprofessional education and practice. For case studies and practical insights on how to construct real-world applications and authentic interprofessional scenarios in your content.

[00:19:56] Lastly, let's talk about private equity. And Alliance town hall event in the fall that reviewed industry consolidation trends noted how increased private equity and venture capital activity has led to more acquisition and consolidation in CME. While larger companies are consolidating. This is also spring some new startup formation. But while there's an influx of private equity money into CME. Supporting some startups.

[00:20:28] This is also put pressure on companies to focus on more profitability. And cost cutting, which has impacted employee mobility. Bonuses and upward career growth.

[00:20:40] At the same time, because meeting based revenue remains below pre pandemic levels. Client budgets are often reduced and for many companies there's more emphasis on virtual and flexible education models. Private equity's influence isn't going away. And it's likely continued to grow in [00:21:00] 2025 and CME professionals, especially independence will need strategies to navigate it's ripple effects of reorganizations staff turnover and changing project dynamics. Strategies like building flexible workflows to adapt, to changing project scopes and team structures. Establishing strong client agreements that clearly defined responsibilities and timelines and clarifying expectations to mitigate potential conflicts and ensure smooth. Collaborations. So given these continuing and maybe even accelerating trends,

[00:21:41] let's get practical about what all this means for you and your independent CME writing business. How do you position yourself to thrive in this evolving landscape? I recommend focusing on three key areas.

[00:21:55] First expand your knowledge base. This doesn't mean becoming an expert in everything that's impossible.

[00:22:02] Instead, develop a contextual understanding of healthcare trends to make your content richer and more relevant. You can do this by subscribing to newsletters or journals like Health Affairs or the Alliance Almanac for healthcare policy updates, you can review journals like the Journal of the American Medical Association, the Lancet and the New England Journal of Medicine for clinical advancements. Follow health economists on social media. Joined discussions about health equity. Or set up Google alerts for specific trends like AI in healthcare, AI in continuing education.

[00:22:42] Our grab Write Medicine’s, cheat sheets of industry resources. I shared this in the launch party for my book, WriteCME Roadmap in the digital goodie bag that everyone who attended got after that launch. And I'll make sure to include a link in the show notes. The second thing you can do is evolve your service offerings.

[00:23:03] So for instance, instead of describing yourself as a writer, Position yourself as a strategic partner, your clients, aren't just buying your writing skills. They're buying your understanding of how these changes affect their educational needs. So this could mean offering needs assessment services and helping develop long-term education strategies. To get started in rethinking your positioning conduct, a personal skills audit.

[00:23:33] What are your current strengths? Where are your knowledge gaps? Be honest with yourself. We all have areas where we need to grow. And when you're ready Chart your CME writing path is a good place to start your audit. And third start experimenting with your writing approach.

[00:23:52] Take one of your current projects and ask yourself. How could I make this content more interactive? How could I better integrate [00:24:00] real-world data? How could I make this activity more patient centered? And finally bill your collaborative network connect with subject matter experts, health, equity, advocates, and technology specialists. Like Nuria Negrao who can inform your work? Remember in today's healthcare and education environment, we all have blind spots. And no one person can be an expert in everything. But also remember you don't have to do this alone, seek out communities of practice,

[00:24:33] professional development memberships like WriteCME Pro. And mentorship opportunities to guide you on your CME professional journey. As we move into 2025. These trends from AI integration and confidence frameworks to patient perspectives and private equity will shape how we create and deliver CME. For freelance or independent CME professionals like medical writers, future proofing.

[00:25:02] Your business means up-skilling particularly in areas like AI tools and patient perspectives. So you can create content that adapts to different platforms. Integrates complex data and remains engaging throughout the learning journey. The future of CME writing belongs to those who can see the bigger picture. Who can help clinicians understand not just new technologies or treatments, but the complex forces shaping how they deliver healthcare. And by developing this deeper understanding. You will be better positioned to create content that resonates with diverse learners. Aligns with clinical realities and positions you as an indispensable partner in the evolving CME landscape. Thanks for joining me today on Write Medicine.

[00:25:54] If this episode sparked ideas are inspired, you. Please share it with a colleague or leave a review. This helps us grow our community of medical writers who specialize in CME. You can subscribe to the podcast and to Write Medicine Insider for ongoing insights and deeper dives into today's topics. Until the next time, I wish you success in 2025.

[00:26:20] And I hope you'll keep joining me on  Write Medicine in the year ahead.