How Will the 2020 Virtual Annual Clinical Assembly Work?

COVID-19 has prompted us to convert our in-person Annual Clinical Assembly (ACA) into a virtual event. Though we will miss the opportunity to learn, connect and celebrate in-person, this year's ACA will bring new opportunities to take advantage of everything the ACA has to offer!

So how exactly will this year's conference work? Here's an FAQ to help close the gap in understanding how you'll participate in this year's conference versus our in-person conference.

Frequently Asked Questions

How will I participate in the educational programming sessions?

You will register for the conference as you typically do. You may click here to register. All ACA sessions will be available in the ACOS eLearning portal (https://www.facos.org/ACOSOnlineEd), which means there's no need to block out 4 days on your calendar! You have the flexibility to take courses when you want and where you want.  Earn CME credits while learning at your own pace!

When will the sessions be available?
Sessions will be available on the first day of the conference, Tuesday, October 20, 2020 in the ACOS eLearning portal.

I've never accessed the ACOS eLearning Portal. What is it and how do I gain access?
The ACOS eLEarning portal is a repository of on-demand content from the College. It includes educational content from previous webinars, discipline meetings including the General Surgery In-depth Review and the Urological Surgery Discipline Mid-Year Meeting and the ACOS Annual Clinical Assembly. To access the ACOS eLEarning Portal, simply click here or place https://www.facos.org/ACOSOnlineEd in your web browser. You will then need to enter your ACOS credentials (Your User Name - the email address you used to create your ACOS account and password; if you've forgotten your password, you'll be able to create a new one) to gain access to the portal.

What if I miss a session?
The great aspect of our virtual conference is that you will have access to all educational programming via the ACOS eLearning portal. All sessions will be broadcast October 20 - 23, 2020. Once a session has been broadcast it will be available immediately on-demand. No need to block out 4 days on your calendar! You have the flexibility to take courses when you want. Earn your AOA Category 1-A CME credits when you want. Learn at your own pace.

What if I have questions?
There will be opportunities to ask questions. Learners will have the opportunity to ask questions using the discussion board panel in the ACOS eLearning portal. Due to the on-demand nature of this year's conference, please allow 72 hours for us to process your questions with our speakers. Typically speakers are very responsive and you should receive a response within 24 hours. If your response is delayed we will reach out to the speaker for follow-up. 

How many CME credits can I earn from this year's Annual Clinical Assembly?
2020 ACA Registrants will be able to earn up to 30 AOA Category 1-A CME credits.All content will be broadcast during the conference, i.e. October 20th through October 23rd. And all registrants will be able to access and re-access this content for up to 3 years.

How do I claim CME credits for my participation in the 2020 ACA?
In order to claim CME credits for the meeting, registrants must watch the video content for a session and then evaluate each lecture attended. Once an attendee completes all evaluations for each session attended (up to 30 credit hours), the attendee must also complete the Overall Evaluation. This step is required to earn CME credits. The system will calculate the total number of hours attended after completing the session evaluations and the overall evaluation. Once all steps are completed in-full, a certificate for AOA credit hours will be made available for the attendee's records.

Will there be any live programming at this year's Annual Clinical Assembly?
There will be several opportunities to take advantage of live programs. The following specialized sessions will be held in a live format:
  • Rural Surgeons Forum
  • Military Surgeons Forum 
  • Women Surgeons Forum 

How will I access the live sessions?
Registrants will receive a clickable link via email which will be used to access these live sessions. Instructions will be provided in the email.

What about the annual ACA Scientific Posters?
The American College of Osteopathic Surgeons is proud to support the scientific research endeavors of our residents, fellows and students with osteopathic surgeons from around the country at the 2020 ACA - A Virtual Assembly! We look forward to showcasing the hard work of our poster presenters via the new 2020 ACA ePosters Gallery. The ePosters gallery will be launched as part of the 2020 ACA virtual program.

How will I navigate the Exhibit Hall?
The exhibit hall this year will be a virtual hall experience with product and service details for each vendor. The exhibit hall will be launched as part of the 2020 ACA virtual program.

Will there be a 2020 ACOS Ceremonial Conclave?
Yes! The American College of Osteopathic Surgeons is eager to celebrate our 2020 class of ACOS Fellows and Distinguished Fellows by hosting our first ever VIRTUAL ACOS Ceremonial Conclave. More information is forthcoming about this program.

Newly approved Fellows will be recognized during the virtual Ceremonial Conclave on October 21, which is held as part of the Annual Clinical Assembly conference, that runs Oct. 20-23. Registered attendees of the ACA will be able to view the Conclave ceremony when it is broadcast on October 21. The video will be made available to everyone else after the initial broadcast, on October 22. A link to this video will be sent to all newly approved Fellows.

How will I claim CME credits?
After watching the course video, you will need to click on the CME EVALUATIONS component below the educational session. After clicking the above CME EVALUATIONS button, you will be transported to the CME evaluation site. The page contains full instructions on the required steps. Once here you will search for the session you have just "attended" and complete the evaluation questions for those classes. If for some reason your session is appearing as “Unavailable” after watching the video content in-full please try to refresh that page by clicking on the refresh disclaimer towards the top of the page. Click here for detailed instructions, including screen shots of the steps associated with this process.

Have other questions? Please feel free to contact us at [email protected].

We look forward to hosting you at this year's meeting and welcome your active participation!