Since the 2020 pandemic, in-person learning conferences have experienced an understandable disruption. But now, providers are ready to gather again to learn, discuss and enjoy the company of fellow colleagues and meet new acquaintances. Here we provide resources for some the best in-person CME conferences for Physician Assistants across the USA. (As a side note, many conferences by reciprocity provide CME credits for NPs, Physicians, RNs and all branches of the medical field.)
Physician Assistant CME Requirements
Each 2-year cycle, *Physician Assistants must earn 100 hours of CME to maintain their “PA-C” status (“Physician Assistant – Certified”). Fifty of these CME hours this must be Category I CME; the remaining 50 hours can be Category II. *Continuing Medical Education (CME) – NCCPA As of 2022, the average annual CME fund allowance for Physician Assistants and Nurse Practitioners was $2537 per year.
Top 5 CME Conference Courses for Physician Assistants
Searching the United States, the following 5 resources were found to have affordable and quality Category I CME for Physician Assistants. A quick list is provided here in no particular order. None of these listed have paid for any advertisement opportunity. More details on each CME Conference resource are located below this list as well as options for free CME & CE.
- NorthWest Seminars: Comprehensive locations throughout the entire USA and ample CME conference dates from January through December of 2024, even booking into 2025.
- CME4Life: Emergency & Urgent Care CME focused. Beautiful locations throughout the USA, including Puerto Rico. Veteran-owned.
- Skin & Bones CME: A quality CME conference with charity combined! A portion of all CME registration fees benefit “Turn it Up“, a charity supporting musical pursuits for children struggling with hearing impediments and deafness.
- MCE Conferences: Family-oriented locations with 1/2-day sessions to help focus on family fun while maximizing CME hours! 100% free of commercial support.
- North Carolina Academy of Physician Assistants (NCAPA): From the birthplace of the Physician Assistant profession. Established in 1976. Now offering 2 Annual CME Conferences: the popular August Summer Session and the newest February Winter Session.
1. Best Variety of Locales: NorthWest Seminars
The Northwest Seminar offers a plethora of beautiful locations across the United States as well as Canada and exotic destinations including Turks and Caicos, Costa Rica, Greenland, Hungary, Scotland and Iceland to name a few. Each CME conference provides an average of 20 Hours Category I CME. With 47 years of experience, the faculty consists primarily of clinically practicing physicians. Learn More.
2. Emergency Medicine & Urgent Care Focused: CME4Life
Veteran-owned and operated by John Bielinski Jr, MS, PA-C – a life-long teacher, CME4Life provides 4 annual live CME conferences throughout the United States & Puerto Rico. In addition to the live CME Conferences, CME4Life offers PANCE & PANRE Standard and LA format Review Courses. Early registration fees for the live conferences start at $699 and garner 20 Hours of Category I CME. Learn More.
3. CME Conference Supporting Charity: Skin, Bones, Hearts & Private Parts
With up to 26 Hours of Category I CME available in person or virtually online, the Skin & Bones conferences are held across the USA in 9 locations with the target audience of Physician Assistants, Nurse Practitioners and Physicians. An added Bonus? A portion of each conference registration supports the Turn it Up! Foundation, providing financial support for music learning endeavors to hard-of-hearing and deaf children. Early registration starts at $987. Learn More.
4. Family-oriented & 100% Commercial Free: MCE Conferences
For 15 years, MCE conferences have offered fully accredited CME for Primary Care with a focus on family time while attending the conference. All CME activities are 100% commercial free. The conference daily schedule is structured for 1/2-day sessions in family-friendly resorts and locations so that learning and family time are well balanced. Destinations include USA and International locations. Learn More.
5. A Provider Favorite: NC Academy of Physician Assistants
Earn CME in the state where the Physician Assistant profession was born: North Carolina. A favorite among PAs and NPs, the NCAPA has held in-person meetings since 1976! Most recently a 2nd winter conference session was added. The NCAPA Conference offers affordable registration fees starting at $750 for up to 29 Hours of Category I CME (price for non-NCAPA members). Add-on workshops start at $150 and include a basic EKG and Joint Injection for hands-on learning. Learn More.
Can’t Make it to an In-person Conference?
If you are needing just a few extra hours to fill your CME gap, myCME offers a wide variety of medical specialty CME and CE, both FREE and Premium (paid). And of course, if you need basic to advanced ECG Courses offering Category I CME or CE, we invite you to peruse all of our courses at Dr Stanley’s ECGcourse.com. Enjoy 12% off your purchase with code CONF12 at checkout.
Have a conference resource you’d like to share? Please comment below!
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