Implementing Advisory Councils to Strengthen Continuing Education Programming: Case Study and Synthesised Recommendations

Abstract

Continuing education (CE) activities that are multicomponent, long-term, interprofessional, or geographically dispersed require thorough mechanisms to meet the educational needs of learners. One tool offering a variety of benefits for complex CE programming is the formation of an advisory council, but there is a gap in the literature detailing how to most effectively implement councils to inform CE. Through the lens of a five-year, rural health telementoring project, this paper’s purpose is to propose best practices for utilising CE councils by translating existing best practices from other health fields into actionable recommendations for CE providers. An intentional, phased approach to council development is recommended, including: (1) clearly defining the council’s purpose and revising this purpose throughout the project; (2) thoughtfully recruiting members by determining key, needed characteristics; (3) deliberately planning and structuring meetings through a collaborative, team approach; and (4) effectively evaluating the council to support continuous improvement. Collectively, these practices support the development of councils that foster collaboration between project staff and council members to meaningfully improve CE. Although additional research is needed to examine the impact of councils on CE, the approaches described provide a practical foundation for CE programmes seeking to establish or strengthen councils – positioning councils as valuable partners in continuous program improvement.