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E-News: October 2006
For questions and responses contact:
ACR Resident and Fellow Section
1891 Preston White Dr
Reston, VA 20191
Phone: (800) 227-5463, ext 4998
E-mail: rfs@acr.org
ARTICLES IN THIS ISSUE
The ACR at RSNA - Resident Reception and More
RSNA is just around the corner and members of the ACR RFS and staff have
been busy planning a number of events and activities for you during your
visit to Chicago. See the complete list below:
- ACR RFS Reception - Enjoy free food and drink, and take the opportunity
to meet your colleagues from across the country at this reception, a
"don’t miss" event! Tuesday, November 28, at 6:15 pm, in Regency Room
CDE of the Hyatt McCormick Place. RSVP and reserve your complimentary
jump drive at rfs@acr.org
- ACR Booth - Visit the ACR in the exhibition hall at booth #4309 for
demos of the MRI Teaching File, ACR Campus,TM and the upcoming Mammography
Case Review. In addition you’ll be able to purchase ACR products and
meet with staff and members of the ACR leadership.
- ACR On-Site Interview Service - The Professional Bureau returns to RSNA
this year and provides you with an excellent opportunity to interview
with prospective employers while in Chicago. As a registered
Professional Bureau user you can post your resume and search employers
that will be on site at the meeting. Visit www.acr.org/jobs for more
information.
- First Annual J.T. Rutherford Reunion - All residents and fellows
attending RSNA are invited to attend this reception sponsored by the
Government Relations Department. The reception will provide you with an
opportunity to meet with previous Rutherford Fellows and to learn more
about how you can apply for the fellowship. Contact Melody Ballesteros
at mballesteros@acr.org or (703) 716-7547 to RSVP.
MRI Imaging Database - Have you Gotten Your Video iPod Yet?
The MRI Teaching File was created in response to concerns expressed by
residents regarding the lack of MRI teaching in their respective
residency programs. With the support of the ACR, the Resident and Fellow
Section created the database to supplement residents’ MRI learning
experience. The primary focus of the database is to provide a
comprehensive collection of common presentations of specific disease
entities and pertinent normal anatomy.
We need you!
Not only do we hope you find the cases informational and supplemental to
your everyday learning, we also hope that you will help contribute to
the success of this database. We depend on case submissions from
residents and their staff to build the database. Without your
submissions, this important project will not succeed.
In appreciation for your submission, the ACR will pay $80 a case to the
submitting residents for an accepted case. For every three cases
submitted and accepted to the database you'll earn your choice of $300
or an Apple Video iPod.
To find out more about the database and how you can submit a case, visit
the RFS Web site.
Update - Deficit Reduction Act of 2005
Developing and preserving cost containment strategies are ongoing,
central issues to governmental health care policy. The current paradigm
is to blindly cut reimbursement to radiologists and imaging providers
across the board, mammography of course being an exception. Specific
cuts are outlined within the Deficit Reduction Act of 2005 (DRA). Rep.
Joe Pitts (R, Pa.) introduced a bill, HR 5704 , in June in response to
the DRA; a Senate version of the bill, S. 3795 , was introduced in
August. These bills, known as the Access to Medicare Imaging Act of
2006, seek to delay DRA cuts by providing a two-year moratorium on
certain Medicare physician payment reductions for imaging services.
As residents, it is our responsibility to prepare for and preserve the
future of radiology. Therefore, if you have not done so already, we
strongly encourage you to contact your members of Congress and advocate
for the passage of HR 5704 and S. 3795.
The ACR has developed template letters that you can customize to either
encourage sponsorship of these bills or thank your legislators for their
sponsorship. Please use the links below.
- Click here to see if your representative has signed on as a co-sponsor of HR 5704.
- Click here for a letter requesting co-sponsorship of HR 5704.
- Click here for a letter to thank any co-sponsor of HR 5704.
- Click here to see if your senators have signed on as co-sponsors of S. 3795.
- Click here for a letter requesting co-sponsorship of S. 3795
- Click here for a letter to thank any co-sponsor of S. 3795
For more information visit the ACR Web site or contact the ACR
Government Relations office at (800) 227-5463.
Nominations Are Being Accepted for the Intersociety Conference
The Intersociety Committee is a freestanding committee of the ACR and
serves as a gathering place for radiology’s leaders. In this forum each
society has an equal voice, helping to formulate solutions to the issues
confronting the practice of diagnostic radiology and radiation oncology.
Two members-in-training will be elected by the Council during the 2007
AMCLC to attend the 2007 Intersociety Summer Conference in July. The
individuals elected will be required to write a report on some aspect of
the meeting for publication in the ACR Bulletin.
The deadline to submit nominations is December 30. For more information
visit the ACR Web site or contact Mary Jane Donahue at
mjdonahue@acr.org.
Update - AFIP
The Armed Forces Institute of Pathology has been accruing cases since
1862, including roughly 3 million cases with over 50 million pathology
slides. Rad-path cases are represented in this aggregate by more than
60,000 individual cases. A didactic course with nearly 200 hours of
lecture is offered five times per year with over 1,300 students from
across the globe. A syllabus is handed out at the beginning of class and
houses innumerable facts and figures contained within its 3,000 pages.
Many opinions have been brought to the table regarding the future of the
AFIP. Discussion among RFS members at the 2006 AMCLC and a survey of
recent radiology fellows resulted in the consensus RFS opinion that the
AFIP provides an educational component that is protected both in time
and content. A strong facet of this perspective revolves around the lack
of clinical responsibilities during the current 6-week course. During
this time there is no night call or float and clinical responsibilities
are placed on hold. Additionally, it is felt that the AFIP lectures
provide the "why" of radiologic appearance. Angela Levy MC, the current
course director, also feels that the lecture series provides attendees
with a big picture and overriding concepts, which may be lost in
translation from an online course. Quantitative data have shown that
community programs demonstrate improved examination performance
following AFIP coursework in comparison to community programs that do
not attend the AFIP.
So what does all this mean? There is currently no end in sight for the
didactic series; however there likely will be modifications to the
program in the future. These changes may include: an increased online
component, a shortened didactic session, and the need to secure an
alternate source of reimbursement for attendance.
All of these issues were discussed in July during an AFIP summit held at
the at the ACR headquarters in Reston, Va. The discussion and outcomes
from this meeting will be published in a consensus paper in the Journal
of the American College of Radiology.
RFS Letter to the ABR Regarding Oral Board Results
In an effort to improve the communication of results following oral
boards, the RFS has drafted a letter to the American Board of Radiology
suggesting electronic notification via a secure Web site. A copy of the
letter can be found here.
There is no immediate remedy available as of yet, however the RFS is
working with the ABR to explore ideas for a solution. Please contact the
RFS Executive Committee with comments, questions, or suggestions via
email at rfs@acr.org.
Resident and Fellow Section Tool Kit - Coming Soon!
A central focus of the RFS executive committee is resident education.
Over the past few years we have undertaken the task of developing
archives, media, and easily accessible resources for residents to
motivate involvement within the RFS and to support learning.
In this vein of educating residents, an RFS Tool Kit has been developed
and will be sent to each residency program. The kit contains a compact
disc with educational and informational highlights regarding the RFS,
and will include a PowerPoint presentation on what the RFS is and who we
are, details from the 2006 ACR annual meeting, and other
resident-oriented information on chapter development and the role of the
RFS in the ACR. We will encourage residents to use this tool kit as a
resource within their institutions to increase awareness of the ACR and
the RFS, and to learn more about how to get involved.
For more information please contact rfs@acr.org.
Visit the ACR CampusTM
Earlier this year the ACR introduced the new ACR Campus™. Accessible 24 hours a day on the ACR Web site, the ACR Campus™ offers world-class lecturers and content on the latest topics in medical imaging. The offerings include:
- Cardiac Web Lecture Series
In response to a growing emphasis on cardiac imaging, this comprehensive curriculum featuring lectures in basic cardiac imaging includes plain film, CT, MRI, and nuclear medicine.
- Grand Rounds Lecture Series
This innovative online lecture series focuses on the most up-to-date radiologic curriculum, with each lecture targeting a specific disease state or a challenging condition that radiologists often face in today’s practices.
- OB Ultrasound Lecture Series
Women's health issues remain among the most influential and important topics in diagnostic imaging today. This series features 22 lectures with topics including first trimester sonography, ectopic pregnancy, the fetal heart, and fetal gastrointestinal tract imaging.
- Virtual Lecture Hall
This new and distinctive educational forum provides the radiologist with an opportunity to learn about imaging procedures from a comprehensive perspective. Lecture topics include MRI, GI and breast imaging.
- Waiting Room - Breast Imaging
Explore this unique learning program that mirrors a true-to-life waiting room in a representative imaging center where each patient must be examined by the end of the day.
- "Doctor Challenger" - Chest
A new interactive, case-based education opportunity that offers you the chance to go head-to-head with a fictional "opponent" in diagnosing challenging radiologic studies.
Programs on ACR Campus™ are available to residents individually at a
discounted rate. The ACR also has provided special opportunities for
residency training programs to use this new material as a teaching tool
and allow easy access for residents. For more information visit the ACR Web site or e-mail ACR Campus™.
Get Involved - Resident Positions Available on ACR Commissions
Looking for a way to get involved in the ACR as a member of the RFS? The following ACR commissions currently have a position available for a resident or fellow representative:
- Commission on Economics
- Commission on Medical Physics
- Commission on Research and Technology Assessment
The commitment for these positions is at least one year, with the potential for your term to be renewed. The amount of time spent on commission work will vary depending on the level of activity of the commission; you should at least anticipate participating in a few conference calls throughout your term and, if at all possible, plan to attend the ACR’s annual meeting in Washington D.C.
As a resident serving on a commission your ideas and experience will contribute to ACR policy and projects. Send an e-mail to rfs@acr.org if you are interested in any of these positions or would like more information about becoming involved with the College and the RFS.
Online Cardiac CT Course
Cardiac imaging is quickly moving to the forefront of diagnostic
radiology. Through technological innovations of gated MRI and
multi-detector CT the heart can be imaged in a single beat. The Society
of Thoracic Radiology has created an educational Web site that will
guide you through the imaging features of cardiac anatomy and pathology.
Click here to access PowerPoint presentations organized in categorical
format.
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