Professional
development program (PDP)
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| The AMWA Professional
Development Program (PDP) has been designed specifically for
our members and aims to offer a wide selection of high-quality
workshops in the areas of medical writing, editing, public relations
and web design. |
| The program is evolving
to meet the needs of our members as experienced leaders become
available to impart their knowledge in an engaging way to small
groups. PDP workshops take three hours and are ideal for keeping
up to date with trends in medical writing, sharing ideas and
getting to know other members. |
| The PDP is overseen
by the AMWA Education Sub-committee, which was formed in July
2000. We are indebted for the assistance of the European Medical
Writers Association (EMWA), with whom we have collaborated from
the early stages of the program. The American Medical Writers
Association has also offered encouragement and information on
their extensive curriculum. These discussions with the key training
leaders of EMWA and AMWA have allowed our committee to develop
a curriculum that is both equivalent in standard and overlapping
in content with overseas programs. AMWA members are able to
participate in EMWA workshops and have these credited towards
their AMWA PDP certificate as part of a reciprocal arrangement
between our two organisations. There was a tremendous response
to the pilot workshops offered at the AMWA Annual Conference
in October 2000 and, as a consequence, the Professional Development
Program was officially launched at the 2001 Annual Conference
in November, 2001. Workshops will be offered each spring at
the AMWA Annual Conference and at other meetings during the
year. |
| Who can participate? |
| The PDP workshops
are open to both members and non-members, with members paying
$80 and non-members $100 per workshop. However, anyone who wishes
to have workshops credited towards the AMWA PDP certificate
must become a member. |
| Is there a registration
fee? |
Unlike overseas medical
writing associations, the Education Sub-committee made the decision
not to set a one-off enrolment fee, so that AMWA members who
are unlikely to be able to complete the PDP certificate because
of geographical isolation would not be disadvantaged.
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| What are the requirements of the PDP certificate? |
| By completing eight
workshops, AMWA members become eligible for the AMWA PDP certificate.
This is not a qualification, but rather an indicator of the
member's commitment to continuing education in the area
of medical writing that would be useful for resumes, employment
prospects and for some organisations, such as medical boards,
that required CME points for accreditation. |
| Members are free
to choose any workshop, and there is no stream
or specialisation within the certificate structure. This enables
members to participate in a variety of workshops depending on
their vocation and interest. However, as the program matures,
advanced workshops will be offered as follow-on workshops to
introductory modules. |
| In order to receive
a letter of attainment and credit towards the PDP certificate,
participants need to complete a pre-workshop assignment (maximum
two hours), some background reading and a needs analysis form,
which is helpful for the workshop's presenter in gauging the
range of experience in the group. In addition to attending the
workshop, the participant will also need to complete an evaluation
and quiz at the end of the workshop to test their level of comprehension
on the topic. |
| Members should attempt
to complete the eight modules in six years; however, anyone
who would find this difficult can give their reasons to the
chair of the Education Sub-Committee, so having their credits
maintained can be considered. The Education Sub-Committee will
continue to explore options for distance learning modules, which
we hope to develop as a collaborative project with an Australian
university or other interested group. |
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