Education

Application FAQs

Please review the list of questions below.  If you do not see your question or would like more information on about any of the questions listed, please e-mail PACE@agd.org.

What is the difference between national and local approval? 

Nationally approved providers are approved by the national Committee on PACE to offer courses regardless of location or teaching method and typically market to students from more than one state or province.  Locally approved providers are approved by the local AGD office to offer lecture or participation courses in a single state or province and market to students in only one state or province.  Click here for more information.

 

When can I apply for AGD PACE Approval?

To qualify for PACE approval, all organizations MUST have offered a planned program of continuing dental education activities for at least 12 months. Note: If an organization has not offered a planned program of continuing dental activities for at least 12 months, the AGD will accept CDE units issued by the organization for membership maintenance credit, but the units will not be applied towards a member’s Fellowship/ Mastership award.  Click here for more information.

 

Should I apply for national or local PACE Approval?

If your organization is primarily offering lecture or participation courses only within one state or province primarily to participants from one state or province, then you should apply for local approval. All others should apply for national approval. AGD Headquarters recommends that local providers contact the designated local representatives regarding any review fees or state-specific requirements before submitting the application to the local office. Click here for more information.  

 

How do I renew approval?

All current AGD providers should receive renewal information at least six months prior to expiration. (National providers also receive notification eleven months prior to expiration.) The information will include the current application. Providers should file for renewal is at least 90 days before the current approval period expires. The three-month time frame allows time to process and address any committee concerns. Current PACE-approved providers are listed on the AGD Web site, but it is recommended that providers save their approval confirmation letter, which includes current term of approval and six-digit ID# as well as new information regarding the PACE program.  Click here for more information or to download an application. 

 

Do I need to purchase a scanner to submit CDE electronically to the AGD?

Many providers have found handheld scanners to be an accurate and efficient method to collect AGD member ID numbers on site but they are not required to submit CDE electronically to the AGD. The handheld scanners quickly records and store ID numbers found on AGD member ID cards. These ID numbers are later downloaded into a Microsoft® Word or Excel file. Scanners can hold up to 500 numbers at any given time, so you can scan IDs from multiple courses before downloading. (Just make sure you know where one course ends and another begins.)  Click here for more information.

 

How can I change information I submitted on a CDE Roster?

E-mail PACE staff at PACE@agd.org with all the information to be changed and a contact number in case there are questions.  Staff will e-mail confirmation that the change has been made. AGD PACE staff are the only people authorized to make changes to rosters because  the change often needs to be made on the member record, not the roster. 

 

How do I know what subject code to use?

A downloadable list of subject codes identifying general topics is available on the AGD Web site. Course instructors should determine the subject code(s) when planning a course with the provider.  If multiple subjects are addressed within a single course, providers and/or instructors should indicate how much time is spent on each so the time can be accurately recorded on participant records.

 

A participant has contacted me to change the subject code. Do PACE Guidelines allow this?

PACE Guidelines do not restrict the number of subject codes a provider can award credit in during a particular session. PACE just asks that providers accurately represent the topic taught. Because of the advanced nature of many programs, PACE is aware that there are often several subject areas discussed. If you receive requests from participants to reassign hours after the program is completed, you should consider the requests and, if it is reasonable and accurately represents the content, you can approve the request and e-mail PACE@agd.org authorizing the AGD to make the change.

 

Note: These requests generally come from members working towards their AGD Mastership Award and we encourage AGD PACE-approved providers to work with them on a one-on-one basis whenever appropriate and possible.

 

What is the difference between a Verification Code and the AGD Subject Code?
The course completion/verification code is a random code that each program provider announces toward the end of each course to help verify that each participant has taken part in the entire session or course. According to current PACE Guidelines, a course completion/verification code for each educational activity must be given to the attendees at the end of each course. While completion/verification codes are randomly selected, we suggest that you limit the code to six characters. You also may want the code to be easily identifiable to you. Some programs use the instructor initials as the first three letters of the location along with a date, subject code, or course code. Program providers also must include the verification code when submitting electronic or paper rosters of AGD member participants to the AGD.

 

AGD subject codes correspond to various topics in dentistry and are used to categorize the hours a doctor completes. Subject codes should best reflect the course content.  Multiple subject codes can be assigned for one program to accurately represent the content taught.

 

Our organization is expanding and changing its name and contact person. Do we need to reapply for PACE approval?

The AGD PACE Program approves organizations, not individuals, so if your organization has a simple name or contact change, please send written notification to AGD PACE on the current organization’s letterhead to let us know the new information.  We will update the information in our database. 

 

If your organization has local approval and is expanding so that it is offering courses in more than one state, or will be drawing a significant number of attendees from more than one state, your organization will need to apply for national approval. Click here to  download an application for national approval (link to: http://www.agd.org/education/pace/apply/#section_national)or send a request to PACE@agd.org.

 

What is the difference between PACE approval and accreditation?

Accreditation is a fully developed procedure that:

 

1.     establishes standards or criteria of academic excellence in collaboration with educational institutions;

2.     develops procedures that enable institutions to perform an in-depth self-evaluation to determine whether they meet the established standards;

3.     performs on-site evaluations to determine if the institution meets the established standards;

4.     publishes a list of institutions that have met these requirements and have been accredited by the agency;

5.     periodically reviews approved institutions to determine whether they continue to uphold standards of educational quality.

All types of accrediting agencies employ these steps, but specific criteria and the procedures for inspection or examination may differ from agency to agency.

 

PACE approval is a rigorous process that includes some, but not all, of the steps required by to accrediting bodies. Most notably, AGD PACE does not make site visits. PACE approval:

1.     establishes standards or criteria of excellence;

2.     develops procedures that enable institutions to perform an in-depth self-evaluation to determine whether they meet the established standards;

3.     publishes a list of organizations that have met these requirements and have been approved by the AGD;

4.     periodically reviews approved organizations to determine whether they continue to uphold quality standards.

The AGD does not endorse or claim to support any course content, but does have a group of appointed dentists to examine if the content of the programs are of a sound scientific basis.

 

Do I need both PACE and CERP approval?

At the national level, AGD PACE and American Dental Association (ADA) Continuing Education Recognition Program (CERP) are similar approval processes. As a result, the AGD recognizes national CERP-approved providers for Fellowship (FAGD)/Mastership (MAGD) credit. Organizations with national approval do not necessarily need approval from both organizations to offer FAGD/MAGD credit. However, many organizations apply for both so they can display both logos and show support for both organizations.

 

Organizations recognized by CERP through the Extended Approval Process (EAP) are not automatically accepted for FAGD/MAGD credit because these organizations have not undergone the same application process as the nationally approved organizations. In order to offer FAGD/MAGD-approved continuing education, the AGD recommends that CERP EAP-approved organizations apply for local constituent PACE approval.

 

What does the AGD mean when they indicate that a provider is a “sole provider”?

The AGD defines sole providers as organizations where one or two lecturers or authors act as the primary administrative authority. The AGD accepts applications for PACE approval from sole providers, but sole providers must develop a planning committee that meets regularly, and at least one member of the committee must be a dentist not directly affiliated with the organization. The committee must maintain minutes from its meetings and the minutes of the meetings should be attached to the PACE application when applying for participation and continued participation. Sole providers also are required to submit a copy of the instructor(s)’ curriculum vitae (CV) with each application.

 

How do I know what my AGD PACE Provider ID number is?

AGD PACE Provider ID numbers are six-digit codes that are assigned to you when your organization applies for AGD PACE approval. Letters of approval or denial include your AGD PACE Provider ID number. Approved providers can also find their ID number, contact information, and term of approval on the AGD Web site. Go to www.agd.org, select Education, then select AGD Program Provider (PACE) and Find a Provider from the menu on the left.

 

What is membership maintenance credit?

AGD members must earn and record with the AGD 75 hours of CDE each three years.  Continuing dental education activities put on by any organization, institution or individual are accepted for AGD membership maintenance credit.  For these hours to apply  to the Fellowship or Mastership awards however the program proved must have applied for and received AGD PACE approval or national ADA CERP approval.

  

What licensing boards accept AGD PACE-approved credit for re-licensure credit?

Nearly all licensing boards accept AGD PACE-approved courses for re-licensure, but because regulations can change at anytime, the AGD always recommends that providers or course participants check with specific licensing boards. Click on “State Boards” on the

American Association of Dental Examiners Web site to find a complete list of U.S. dental licensing boards.  A list of Canadian regulatory boards can be found on the Canadian Dental Association’s Web site.

                                                   

What is Fellowship and Mastership in the AGD?

Fellowship (FAGD) and Mastership (MAGD) in the Academy of General Dentistry (AGD) are prestigious awards presented only to members of the AGD who have demonstrated their commitment to remain current in their knowledge and skills so that they can better serve their patients.  Members demonstrate their commitment by attending 500 and 1100  continuing education courses from PACE-approved providers, respectively.

 

Can I issue CDE to non dentists?

Yes. Any person who completes a program should receive a letter of verification confirming the number of hours they completed in the course.  If a participant is not a dentist or AGD member, it is their responsibility to maintain the letter in their files.  Providers must also maintain a historical file of all attendees.

 

 

What type of attendance verification is needed for teleconferences?

You’ll need to be able to verify that participants are present for the entire call, which can often be completed through your teleconference software. Another way is through the course verification code.  PACE requires all providers to announce a verification code sometime during the course.  You can then use this to verify attendance by requiring participants to e-mail the code back to you to receive their letter of attendance verification. Providers using this system should explain the process to participants at the beginning and end of the course.

 

Keep in mind this is just one suggestion.  PACE does not require a specific method of tracking participants other than announcing the verification code; it just expects that you have a method that best fits your organization’s processes.  Upon completion you can send or e-mail standard attendence verification forms that have been personalized to all participants who completed the program.

 

How is CDE credit awarded?

CDE credit is based on the type of course completed and the number of contact hours a participant spends taking part in the program.  Generally one hour of CDE credit is awarded for each hour spent in the classroom and cannot include registration, break, or lunch times.  CDE credit for self-instruction credit depends on the delivery type.  Audio, video, or electronically delivered programs with a fixed run time should award credit equal to two times the length of the instructional time provided.  Self-paced, self-instruction programs, such as interactive online courses or journal article reviews, should receive credit based on the provider’s best estimate of the average time spent to complete the program.  The maximum number of CE hours awarded for any single activity cannot exceed eight hours. Protocol credit is awarded based on the time spent in the initial classroom session.  Credit earned for work completed outside of the classroom cannot exceed the actual number of hours spent in the classroom during the initial session. 

 What documentation do I need to prove the information I present is scientifically sound?
Scientifically sound information should have peer-reviewed content supported by generally accepted scientific principles or methods that can be substantiated or supported with relevant peer-reviewed scientific literature; or documentation proving that the CE subject material is currently part of the curriculum of an accredited U.S. or Canadian dental education program and, whenever possible, employ components of evidence-based dentistry.

What types of financial relationships must be disclosed on the conflict of interest forms?
Any relationship in which the individual benefits by receiving a salary, royalty, intellectual property rights, consulting fee, honoraria, ownership interest contracted research, or other financial benefits are relationships that should be disclosed. 

How long should I keep completed course evaluation forms on file?
Current AGD PACE Guidelines do not specify the length of time you need to maintain course evaluations.  Many organizations either save the copies or compile the results in a report for review at their next advisory/planning committee meeting. 

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