Clinical pharmacists fulfill a crucial role in seasonal influenza prevention and treatment and are expected to be on the frontlines in the case of a pandemic.  Education of this key sector of health care providers on the latest findings on epidemiological trends, transmission of influenza, prevention of epidemics, and best practices for treatment is a necessary and invaluable contribution to epidemic mitigation and will be greatly beneficial in the event of an outbreak. This activity provides information from experts in the field of seasonal and pandemic influenza for clinical pharmacists, with a focus on the expanding scope of pharmacy professions in the diagnosis, management, and prevention of influenza.

Pharmacists and pharmacy technicians

• Identify strategies for the control and management of seasonal influenza in different patient populations, based on current treatment guidelines and expert recommendations
• Assess and implement current approaches, pharmacologic and non-pharmacologic, aimed at containing the spread of influenza within health care facilities, based on expert recommendations and guidelines
• Learn to develop and implement programs that will improve the success of seasonal immunization programs, using practices demonstrated to improve immunization rates
  

Accreditation Statement
2.0 contact hours (.20 CEUs) of credit for pharmacists.  Approval of this course for pharmacists is under a cosponsorship agreement between Medical Education Collaborative (MEC) and HealthMatters Communications.  MEC is accredited by the Accreditation Council for Pharmacy Education as a provider of continuing pharmacy education.  ACPE #: 815-999-07-180-L01-P (for pharmacists); 815-999-180-L01-T (for pharmacy technicians). The program is designed for all pharmacists.

Medical Education Collaborative adheres to ACPE Essential Areas and Policies, including the Standards for Commercial Support regarding industry support of continuing medical education.  In order to resolve any identified conflicts of interest, disclosure information is provided during the planning process to ensure resolution of any identified conflicts.  Disclosure of faculty and commercial relationships, as well as the discussion unlabeled or unapproved use of any drug, device or procedure by the faculty, are made known below.

Michael E. Klepser, PharmD, FCCP

• Michael E. Klepser, PharmD, FCCP, serves on the Schering speaker bureau.

Michael L. Tapper, MD

• Michael L. Tapper, MD, serves on the Gilead Sciences speaker bureau, and is a consultant for Abbott Laboratories and Moldex.

Andrew T. Pavia, MD

• Andrew T. Pavia, MD, is a consultant for Boeringer Ingelheim and Pfizer.

Filippo Cavalieri, PhD

• Filippo Cavalieri, PhD, Director of Scientific Content - HealthMatters Communications, has no financial relationships to disclose.

The employees of Medical Education Collaborative (MEC) have no financial relationships to disclose.

Internet Activity

Windows

• Windows 2000, ME, XP, Vista
• IE 5.0 or later/Netscape 7/Mozilla 1.5/Opera 7/Firefox
• Flash 7 or later

Macintosh

• OS X
• Safari/Mozilla 1.5
• Flash 7 or later

Internet Connection

• Minimum connection of 56Kbps
  

Medical Education Collaborative (MEC) protects the privacy of personal and other information regarding participants, educational partners, and joint sponsors. MEC and our joint sponsors will not release personally identifiable information to a third party without the individual’s consent, except such information as is required for reporting purposes to the appropriate accrediting agency.

Medical Education Collaborative (MEC) Healthmatters Communications maintains physical, electronic and procedural safeguards that comply with federal regulations to guard your nonpublic personal information.

Copyright © 2007-2008 Medical Education Collaborative Healthmatters Communications. The contents of this CME program may not be reproduced in any form without written permission from Medical Education Collaborative

The material presented in this activity does not reflect the views of Medical Education Collaborative and Healthmatters Communications. These materials may discuss uses and dosages for therapeutic products that have not been approved by the United States Food and Drug Administration.  Medical Education Collaborative and (cosponsor) do not recommend the use of any product outside of the labeled indications.  A qualified health care professional should be consulted before using any therapeutic product discussed. All readers and continuing education participants should verify all information and data before treating patients or employing any therapies described in this continuing education activity.

Viewers are expected to visit all presentations before attempting to take the test and activity evaluation. Successful completion will lead to the issuance of a certificate for 2.0 contact hours (.2 CEUs). To receive credit, the course must be completed before December 2008. If you attended the live presentation on October 14, 2007 and have received CME credit for this program, you are not eligible for additional credit.

Participation in this activity should be completed in approximately 2 hours. Please follow these steps in order to receive CME credit for viewing the webcast:

• Read all of the CME accreditation information above.
• View the complete webcast program.
• Click on the link to apply for CME credits.
• Complete the online registration (registration is free).
• Complete the online test and/or evaluation. Participants must receive a test score of at least 70% and answer all evaluation questions to receive a certificate.
• After successfully completing the online test and evaluation, your application will be processed by the CME provider and your certificate will be sent to you. Please allow 3-4 weeks for this process.
  
  Should you have any CME questions regarding this activity, please contact:
  Medical Education Collaborative
  651 Corporate Circle, Suite 104
  Golden, CO 80401
  866.420.3252 (toll free)
  303.420.3259 (fax)
  http://www.meccme.org/