Writing Excellence - Healthcare Professionals

Summary of work

The Understanding Obesity eCME module was developed to build scientific knowledge that obesity is a disease, in a target audience of endocrinologists, obesity specialists, specialist nurses and primary‐care physicians. A landscape review of existing educational resources revealed there to be a limited number of CME activities to support HCP self‐learning about obesity and those that were available were not interactive or engaging. A steering committee of obesity specialists was convened to agree the key educational points that should be communicated in the module in order to increase understanding of obesity among HCPs. These were: i) Obesity is a disease; ii) Obesity is due to an imbalance of energy intake and expenditure, as a result of a complex interplay between individual biology and toxic environmental factors; and iii) What best practice looks like in obesity management. The module is presented in several small, in‐depth, subject‐specific, digestible chapters to aid the learning experience and increase retention of information. It is accredited by the European Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education and has been endorsed by the National Obesity Forum. Since its launch in October 2014, more than 500 HCPs have accessed the module to increase their scientific knowledge of obesity.

Judges comments

Clear and well researched, this was an attractively presented and engaging interactive learning tool whose online format made it usable and convenient. Clearly written, punchy and very useable, it told its own story effectively and is a useful and engaging addition to eCME for healthcare professionals.