Leveraging Competencies in Education Health professions educators are increasingly defining the outcomes expected of the educational process in the US and abroad. The Scottish Doctor Learning Outcomes, the ACGME Core Competencies and the Institute of Medicine Core Competencies are just a few examples of competency frameworks that are driving education. A technical standard for competency frameworks would facilitate the tracking of competencies within curricula and learner records. The Survey The MedBiquitous Competencies Working Group analyzed several sets of medical competencies and current uses of competency frameworks in several countries, including the US, UK and Canada. Using the analysis as background data, the group developed a survey to assess desired uses and requirements for a standard for competency frameworks. Recipients were proposed by working group members. Out of 65 recipients, 24 individuals responded to the survey, including many working group members and other leaders in undergraduate medical and nursing education, assessment, and continuing professional development. The survey included the following definitions: Competency - any educational objective or educational outcome that results from knowledge, skills, or beliefs. Competency framework - a set of competencies that are interrelated. Conclusions Respondents reported that: Assessing competencies and documenting assessment pose the biggest barriers to implementation. Proposed use cases for leveraging technology standards for competencies are all important (ranging from 4.57 to 6.0 on a 7-point scale). While they are planning to leverage technology to manage and track competency-based education, the majority are not yet doing so. Additionally, the data components of competency definitions and frameworks that we proposed were received well by respondents. Progress and Next Steps Since the survey, the working group has drafted a specification that builds on the IEEE’s Reusable Competency Definition data model and the results of the survey. The working group is now investigating the use of semantic web technologies (OWL) and the VUE ( visual authoring tool as resources for creating competency definitions with rich interrelationships defined among the competencies. Such frameworks would be capable of leveraging other semantic web tools designed to make it easier to navigate a specific domain of knowledge. For the purpose of this discussion, a competency framework is a set of competencies that are interrelated. From your perspective, what should be included in a competency framework? Check all that apply. Requirements for a Standard for Competency Frameworks Valerie Smothers 1, Rosalyn Scott 2, and Tim Willett 3 1 Johns Hopkins University and MedBiquitous 2 Dayton VA Medical Center and Wright State University, 3 CRI Critical Care Education Network ® For the purpose of this discussion, a competency definition is a statement defining a single competency that is part of a larger framework. From your perspective, what should be included in a competency definition? Check all that apply.