Program Faculty

This SAFER program was modified and reformatted for online use by Jeanne Schlesinger, MEd, Assistant Professor and Director of Instructional Development in the VCU School of Medicine, Office of Faculty and Instructional Development.

The original SAFER program content was developed by a task force of the American Academy of Sleep Medicine.
Address:
One Westbrook Corporate Center, Ste. 920
Westchester, IL 60154
Telephone: (708) 492-0930br
Fax: (708)492-0943
Web site: www.aasmnet.org

Faculty Content Reviewer:
Michael Edmond, MD, MPH, MPA
Department of Internal Medicine, VCU School of Medicine

In compliance with the ACCME's Standards for Commercial Support, Dr. Edmond reports having no financial relationships with producers of products or services discussed in this educational material.

Production Services:

©Copyright 2004
Virginia Commonwealth University School of Medicine,
Medical College of Virginia Campus,
Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU), Richmond, VA

Website Design and Development
Chris Stephens
Jeanne Schlesinger, MEd

Systems Requirements

- 233MHz Intel Pentium II processor
- 64MB of RAM
- 28.8Kbps modem (audio only)
- 16-bit sound card and speakers
- 65,000-color video display card set to display at 800x600 (video)
- Windows 98, Windows 2000, Windows ME, Windows NT 4.0 with Service Pack 4 or later, Windows XP
- IE 5.0 or later
- Add Macromedia Flash player if not already installed
- Add Adobe Acrobat reader if not already installed

Faculty Disclosure

In compliance with the Standards for Commercial Support of Continuing Medical Education (ACCME), Jeanne Schlesinger has no relationships to disclose.

Accreditation and Educational Credit

The School of Medicine, Virginia Commonwealth University, Medical College of Virginia Campus (VCU), is accredited by the Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education (ACCME) to provide continuing education for physicians.

Physicians may claim up to 1.0 hour in Type 1 or Type 2 CME on the Virginia Board of Medicine Continued Competency and Assessment Form required for renewal of an active medical license.

VCU designates this educational activity for a maximum of 1.0 category 1 credit toward the AMA Physician's Recognition Award. Each physician should claim only those hours of credit that he/she actually spent in the educational activity.

Statement of Educational Need

The goal of the SAFER program is to increase knowledge and awareness about sleep and fatigue among medical students, residents, and attending physicians at the VCU Medical Center and to help create a learning environment that maintains optimal performance and alertness.

Educational Objectives

After completing the survey, reading the slide presentation, and submitting the post-test, the participant should be able to:

• list specific factors relevant to the medical setting that put physicians at risk for sleepiness and fatigue;



• describe the impact of sleep loss on residents' personal and professional lives, including performance of work-related tasks, health and safety of medical trainees, medical education, and medical errors;



• recognize the common (and frequently overlooked) signs of sleepiness and fatigue in themselves and others;



• recognize and challenge the most common misconceptions among physicians about sleep and sleep loss, and understand the empirical basis for the counterarguments to these misconceptions;



• use and adapt the information presented in the curriculum regarding such fatigue countermeasures as napping and strategic caffeine use, and regarding optimal sleep health behaviors to develop individualized alertness management strategies.

Statement of Educational Method

The educational information is presented in an online 57-screen slide presentation.

Statement of Evaluation Instrument

The completion of a 15-question, multiple-choice post-test amd the evaluation instrument is required for CME credit.

Statement of Intended, or Target, Audience

This module on sleep, fatigue, and alertness management is designed, but not limited to, medical professionals involved with residency programs. It is designed to be easily adaptable to a variety of target audiences, including medical students, residents, residency directors, attending physicians, hospital administrators, and "support staff" (other health care professionals who work with medical trainees as well as for residents' families).

Instructions

To earn 1 hour of category 1 credit, read the material in this slide presentation carefully. Complete the activity evaluation and answer the post-test questions on the accompanying questionnaire.

Send the questionnaire to:
OCME REGISTRAR
P.O. Box 980048
Richmond, VA 23298-0048.
FAX: 804/828-7438
ATTN: SAFER educational program

Your credit certificate will be returned. Participation is confidential.

Estimated program completion time: 1 hour.

Activity Number: END IN 10 101 04

Release date: October 2004.
Expiration date: October 2006.

Acknowledgement of Commercial Support