E-learning: new opportunities in continuing professional development

The growth in professional learning is opening up many new opportunities for the application of e-learning to the world of continuing professional development (CPD). CPD programmes require professionals to engage in annual programmes of professional development, and in some cases revalidation or recertification. To date, most of this activity has been off-line. Increasingly, CPD requirements will be satisfied through the use of learning resources available on-line or packaged into specially tailored e-learning courses. Societies and professional associations – as the primary managers and coordinators of CPD programmes – are in a strong position to expand upon their existing Web-based initiatives to deliver a new generation of e-learning services to their members. Learned Publishing (2003)16, 34–46