Do workshops make a difference in improving the capability of physicians?

Continuing medical education (CME) activities have been shown to improve the capability and capacity of physicians for appropriate management of their patients. However, doubts have been raised about the role of workshops and seminars. This study is an attempt to find out whether workshops can improve the knowledge (capability) of practicing physician. Participants of 10 randomly selected workshops conducted in whole of Sindh were included for this study. A pre-test followed by post-test methodology used for 214 participants demonstrated that physicians' knowledge increased for some of the basic facts after attending the workshop. However, when their knowledge was assessed with some problem-solving approach, no significant (P < 0.05) change could be noted. It is recommended that workshops should be designed and conducted more carefully. Besides, some innovative approaches for CME should be compared with 'workshops' approach to determine their effectiveness.