For the 22nd consecutive year, Ray Davis and Don Bukstein were invited to the Eastern Allergy Conference at The Breakers in Palm Beach, Florida, joining a distinguished group of experienced Problem-Based Learning facilitators to lead case-based educational sessions.
Throughout the meeting, participants worked through three challenging clinical cases in small-group breakout sessions, each followed by expert “lectures in context” that expanded on the clinical questions raised during the discussions. This combination of active participation and focused expert instruction continues to be one of the hallmarks of the conference.
This year’s PBL cases included:
- A seven-month-old infant with questions surrounding the early introduction of allergenic foods.
- A complex hereditary angioedema case requiring careful diagnostic and management decisions.
- A challenging chronic rhinosinusitis case involving nasal polyps, aspirin-exacerbated respiratory disease (AERD), and asthma.
As each session unfolded, participants quickly became engaged, openly sharing perspectives, defending their clinical reasoning, and learning from one another in a collaborative environment. These discussions demonstrated how Problem-Based Learning transforms education from passive listening into active clinical decision-making.
One of the most rewarding aspects of the meeting was the feedback we received from attendees. Many participants shared that they had gained valuable insights not only from the faculty but also from their peers during the case discussions. Several also commented that the emphasis on shared decision-making, patient compassion, and collaborative care provided practical skills they had not previously experienced during other CME conferences or even during fellowship training.
Ray Davis, MD
Marc Shaker, MD
Back row (left to right):
Allen Meadows, MD
Michael Blaiss, MD
Don Bukstein, MD
Russ Settipane, MD
Also serving as PBL facilitators during the conference, though not pictured, were Dana Wallace, MD and Maeve O’Connor, MD.
For more than two decades, the Eastern Allergy Conference has provided an outstanding environment for collaborative learning, and we are honored to continue contributing to its educational mission through Problem-Based Learning.
And of course, being in Palm Beach, we took a little time to walk along the beach between sessions — a nice moment to reflect after some really thoughtful discussions.
It was a wonderful few days of teaching, learning, and connecting — exactly what PBL is all about.
