Almost a year into the pandemic we’ve transitioned most of our teaching and learning into completely virtual activities. By now most of us have participated in some live online activity by connecting with others via technology services such as ZOOM or Webex. For the most part, this modality seems to be delivering effective instruction in an accessible and convenient way, and literally meeting learners where they are via broadband Internet.

One of my favorite things to do it sit, listen, and talk with interesting people. For almost two years now I have had the pleasure of sitting down with some beautiful humans and recording these conversations for our Healthcare Insights in Northwest North Carolina podcast https://soundcloud.com/nwahecwebmaster

I was on the Cybex elliptical for some early morning cardio listening to the QuickRead Podcast summarizing the book Unlimited Memory by Kevin Horsley. Here I heard of the PIC method to increase the ability to store long term memory. The PIC method of learning is thinking about your Purpose, Interest, and Curiosity about the topic at hand. No matter the modality of a learning activity, we must ask ourselves what is our purpose for participating, why are we interested, and how can we enhance our curiosity towards the subject matter. Approaching a learning activity this way helps you dial in your concentration and helps you create long term memory to retain new information, clinical pearls, and life lessons.

Continuing Professional Development (CPD) is one of our main service areas at Northwest AHEC. We provide a myriad of learning activities throughout the year for all healthcare disciplines. Many who attend these activities are doing so to earn continuing education credits that keep licensure requirements current. While it is important, earning CE credits doesn't need to be the only motivating factor. So why not create a new path to enhance your career and earning potential by discovering new ways to expand your knowledge as a lifelong learner?

Mapping the customer journey is an important strategic exercise most businesses do at some point. Our customers, or Learners as we in the AHEC say, have a motivation or desire to learn more to stay current, comply with licensure requirements, and be an active lifelong learner. I’d like to share what goes into our workflow when we think of our learners through their journey in continuing professional development with Northwest AHEC.

“Mental hygiene and physical wellness are key to engagement, absorption, and retention.”

Enhance and Engage 

At Northwest AHEC, our goal is to deliver a high quality teaching and learning experience. The NWAHEC Instructional Design team is here help you integrate state of the art instructional technologies which engage learners, enhance knowledge transfer and retention. Our team works in partnership with event Planning Committees, Coordinators and Faculty to develop and deliver effective digital curriculum materials for synchronous and asynchronous instruction in the classroom and online. Together, we create an unforgettable experience for both faculty and learners.