2026 ASSH On Demand CME Webinar: AI in Hand Surgery: Separating Real Clinical Value From the Hype-Syllabus

Syllabus

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The document is the program syllabus for the 2026 American Society for Surgery of the Hand (ASSH) on-demand CME webinar, “AI in Hand Surgery: Separating Real Clinical Value From the Hype,” chaired by Abhiram R. Bhashyam, MD, PhD and Alidad Ghiassi, MD. The enduring material is based on the live webinar recorded March 31, 2026, with an on-demand release date of April 8, 2026 and expiration on March 31, 2027. It is accredited by the ACCME and offers up to 1.25 AMA PRA Category 1 Credits.<br /><br />The course addresses the rapid adoption of AI in surgical practice and focuses on practical, evidence-informed ways to evaluate which tools provide real operational and clinical value. Core applications include ambient AI documentation, AI-supported patient education and engagement, automation of prior authorization tasks, and digital postoperative follow-up/remote monitoring. The stated goal is to give hand surgeons a framework to assess workflow impact, risks (privacy, liability, governance, regulation), and return on investment (ROI) before adopting AI.<br /><br />Session 1 (David Wei, MD, MS) covers ambient AI documentation, emphasizing documentation burden, how ambient systems draft structured notes (not transcripts or diagnostic tools), what “purpose-built” systems should provide (specialty terminology, EHR integration, coding support, and downstream actions like orders/referrals), and reported ROI such as time savings and potential capacity/revenue gains, while underscoring physician oversight and consent/privacy requirements.<br /><br />Session 2 (Alidad Ghiassi, MD) focuses on patient-facing AI, highlighting trust, safety, auditability, hallucinations, bias, and regulatory concerns. It proposes a three-tier model prioritizing “author-controlled AI” (physician-authored, locked, versioned content with a full audit trail) and reviews governance themes from FDA, AMA, WHO, and Joint Commission guidance.<br /><br />Session 3 (Michael Rivlin, MD) addresses digital tools for surgical follow-up, aiming to improve early complication detection and postoperative care. The syllabus also includes CME claiming instructions, disclaimers, and conflict-of-interest disclosures for planners, reviewers, and faculty.

Keywords

ASSH CME webinar

AI in hand surgery

ambient AI documentation

EHR integration

clinical workflow optimization

patient-facing AI education

AI governance and regulation

privacy liability and consent

prior authorization automation

digital postoperative follow-up