Hey y'all,

The 80th annual ACR meeting was absolutely a blast. It was really intriguing to understand what the ACR stands for and to see first-hand how the by-laws and regulations set forth by the ACR were established. There were upwards of 60 or more residents present (most states were represented) and overall, the experience was very rewarding. As many of you may know, both Dr. Ajay Sood and myself attended as delegates from New Jersey. Here's a brief synopsis of the highlights of the meeting.

DAY 1:

The meeting started off with an introductory luncheon with speeches given by the current ACR-RPS president, Dr. Christopher Wald who outlined the purpose of the RPS section, the issues that we were tackling over the past year, and the importance of our continued involvement in the parent organization. We also learned of the new privileges the RPS section has received in being invited to the reference committees in charge of addressing by-laws issues and on various councils and commissions. Dr. Valerie Jackson, president of the ACR then gave a speech regarding the governing principles of the ACR, which helped to clear up some of the cloud about the ACR leadership council that I am sure many of us shared.

The RPS section was treated to an evening reception with senior leaders from the ACR. It was also a nice opportunity to meet our fellow colleagues and decide on plans for the upcoming evenings in DC.

DAY 2:

The highlight of this day was Dr. Gunderman's leadership seminar. In a very interactive and impromptu format, we were all treated to a wonderful seminar on qualities of leadership and motivational factors in achieving goals. I would not do credit in even attempting to rehash his talk so check it out on-line under the RPS section of the ACR (www.acr.org). All of us then had lunch with Dr Valerie Jackson and other ACR leaders where we were able to address our questions and issues and learn a bit more about the ACR.

Later on in the day, we discussed critical issues facing residents from various programs. Issues that stimulated a lively debate included possible plans on moving back the oral boards for one year, addressing the MRI training issue based on the results of the MRI survey conducted by the ACR-RPS and A3CR2, resident work hours, increased work hours given teleradiology responsibilities on call, lack of Cardiovascular MR training, etc.

The issues with the oral boards will probably not affect the current 3rd years. The ACR can only voice an opinion to the ABR but does not govern the decisions for changing the oral boards timeline. The latest news that was passed on was that the ABR would like the RRC to determine how much time fourth years spend studying for the boards versus being on rotation and use that information from polling the programs this upcoming year to make a more educated decision. The best thing for the residents would be to speak to your respective program directors and the senior residents about this issue and address to the ACR-RPS and to your own institutional RRC. This will definitely be an issue that will need our full attention and participation if we want to prevent this from happening.

DAY 3:

Elections for the RPS governing positions were held and the officers were chosen (check the list of new officers on the ACR website). Aside from the governing positions, there are multiple ways that individuals interested in playing a more active role in the ACR can get involved. For those of you who would be interested, you can contact Kelly Foster, a lifesaver for the ACR-RPS section. The rest of the convention dealt with the by-laws issues of the ACR. Major issues that conjured numerous debates were the following:

Changing the name of the ACR Standards to Guidelines

Approving the creation of a role for Radiology Assistants to work along side radiologists (a much heated debate)

ACR position on screening CT

The final portion of the ACR meeting, which is likely the most important, was preparing for the congressional hill visits. There has been a lot of debate in congress regarding capping damages from malpractice lawsuits and the drastic increases in physician insurance premiums. Many of the residents lobbied alongside their state's delegates on capitol hill, many meeting with their state senators, representatives, and staff members. This was one of the impetus behind moving the annual ACR meeting from a sunny tropical beach area like Miami or San Diego to Washington DC (hey, Adam's Morgan, Georgetown, and Dupont Circle and nice too).

Well folks, that's my bit on the ACR meeting. There's some more information on the ACR website and the meeting minutes should be out soon. Take home message is to get involved because this is our future and we can make a difference. Feel free to get in touch with me! Adios!

Ravi S. Prasad
Secretary RSNJ RFS
rsprasad@hotmail.com

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