S985 Certified Medical Education Leads to Changes in Clinical Practice Regarding Management of Gastroesophageal Reflux Disease

Introduction: Gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) is a highly prevalent and chronic gastrointestinal disorder that is managed by various healthcare providers. Diagnosis and classification of GERD help inform treatment selection. The goal of this study was to investigate if participation in online certified medical education (CME) featuring video discussions with synchronized slides resulted in changes in treatment selection among learners in comparison to a matched control cohort. Methods: A retrospective, pre/post, test/control study examined changes in the evaluation and treatment of patients with GERD by National Provider Identifier-certified gastroenterologists, primary care providers (PCPs), and nurse practitioners (NPs)/physician assistants (PAs). The intervention group (CME) participated in a CME activity (N = 700) and their practices were compared with a matched control group of non-learners (N = 700) contained within the same clinician database. Learners and controls were matched based on total number of patients with GERD and/or heartburn, exposed month, specialty, and geography. The intervention period was June to September 2024, and data were collected from July 2024 to March 2025. An independent t test was used to assess significance (P < .01). Results: We report on data from gastroenterologists (CME, N = 166; Control, N = 166), PCPs (CME, N = 300; Control, N = 300), and NPs/PAs (CME, N = 234; Control, N = 234). A total of 6,656 patients with GERD or heartburn were seen by clinicians in the CME cohort during the evaluation period. Nineteen percent (P < .01) more patients with GERD or heartburn were referred to a gastroenterologist among the CME group (N = 5,586) compared to the control group (N = 4,348). Eleven percent (P < .01) more patients with GERD or heartburn were referred for upper endoscopy and reflux testing in the CME group (N = 358) versus the control group (N = 326). Four percent more patients were diagnosed with Barrett’s esophagus in the CME group (N = 1,181) compared to the control group (N = 1,136). Twenty-one percent more patients with GERD or heartburn were prescribed proton pump inhibitor (PPI) or potassium-competitive acid blocker (PCAB) therapy in the CME group (N = 3,690) versus the control group (N = 3,047). Conclusion: Participation in online CME led to changes in practice behavior related to the assessment and identification of patients who are candidates for treatment with PPIs or PCABs. The CME cohort had increased referrals, increased use of upper endoscopy and reflux testing, and increased use of PPIs or PCABs.