Department of Pediatrics Annual Report – 2024

Continuing Education

Columbia pediatricians discuss patient care during webinar.
2024 Pediatrics Annual Report banner

Specialty Updates for the General Pediatrician

In 2024, the department held its 11th annual continuing medical education (CME) course for pediatricians, our Specialty Updates for the General Pediatrician. Each year, the program covers new or updated guidelines or practice parameters in subspecialty topics that impact primary pediatric care, with an emphasis on conditions that generally involve a team approach, including the primary care physician and the subspecialist.

This year’s event was entirely virtual with pre-recorded lectures and live question and answer sessions. Attendees joined from all over the country and participants had access to content after the event. 

Among the topics covered in our 2024 course:

  • First-line and alternative therapies for acne
  • Evidence-based guidelines to select appropriate antimicrobial treatments for SSTIs in children
  • NHLBI and GINA asthma guidelines as they pertain to SMART (single maintenance and rescue therapy) and challenges and opportunities for using SMART for asthma management
  • Trends and demographics of adolescent cannabis use
  • Screening, diagnostic and clinical management strategies for cannabis use disorders
  • Ethical, legal and social justice considerations in cannabis use
  • Current medical and lifestyle management of type 2 diabetes including barriers to achieving glycemic control
  • Current diagnostic criteria for PCOS, and which individuals are considered “at risk” for PCOS
  • General indications for initiating bracing in children with idiopathic scoliosis
  • When to refer pediatric patients with epilepsy to a specialized epilepsy center
  • When a patient with pediatric epilepsy should have genetic testing
  • The presentation and clinical features of eosinophilic esophagitis
  • Childhood risk factors that lead to adult-onset cardiovascular disease
  • Utilizing patient history and diagnostic tests to accurately diagnose food allergies and distinguish them from other conditions
  • How to examine and compare various treatment options to assess their effectiveness, benefits, and limitations in managing food allergies
  • Contemporary diagnostics and interventions for adeno-tonsillar disease
  • Prevalence of bipolar disorder in the community
  • Evidence-based clinical guidelines for early cerebral palsy implementation in high-risk neonates
  • Positive parenting skills to at least one common behavior concern

Columbia Children's Health Webinars

Since 2020, the department has hosted a series of regular webinars to bring our expert knowledge on a broad range of contemporary topics in children's care to the pediatrics community. The entire series is available for viewing on the Columbia Children's Health Youtube channel.

2024 Series Highlights