AAPM NEWSLETTER
JANUARY / FEBRUARY 1998
Update on ABR Physics Exam Restructuring by William Hendee Milwaukee, WI The restructuring committee for the American Board of Ra d io lo gy (A BR) P hys ic s Certification Examination held its first meeting in Louisville on No ve mbe r 2 nd . P arti cip ant s i nc luded Drs. Hubbard and Barrish (physics w ritten exam chairs); Drs . C o f fey , Fr ey a nd Bigg s (AAPM appointees); and Drs. C ha n ey , H end ee and S i mm o ns (ABR ph ysi c s trustees). Two physics written e xa mi na tio n c hai rs (D r s. Gr ah am an d M ori n) we re unable to attend. The meetin g yiel de d th e f ol lowi ng conclusions and assignments: • C ert i fi cati on by the ABR signifies that the physicist has demonstrated knowledge and competence suff icient to practice independently in the designated are a ( s ) of medical physics. • Physicists wishing to be certified in more than one area of medical physics must pass the complete examinat i on i n ea ch ar ea. A co mp r ess e d or al ex am in a ti on encompassing two or thre e a reas of physics will not be o ff e red af t er next June ’ s examination. • The certification classi f ica t io n of R a di olo gi ca l Physics will not be off e re d after next June. Instead , a certificate will be issued for e ach certifi cati on t ha t t he physicist achieves (i.e. curr en t ly T her apeu t ic Ra d io lo gica l P hys ic s,
Diagnostic Radiologic Physics, Medical Nuclear Physics). • To be ce rt ifi e d, an individual must demonstrate a(n): A deq ua t e ph y si cs bac kground and knowledge. Understanding of and ability to practice the appropriate area(s) of medical physics. Integration into the healthcare environment sufficient to serve as a clinical resource. • U n d e r gra du ate and graduate credentials required for admission to candidancy for certification: after long di sc u ssi on, t his i ssue was referred to a subcommittee of D rs. Cof fey, Simmo ns and H u b b a rd for re c o m m e n d ations. Included in this assignment is the issue of evaluating credentials of fore i g n trained physicists. • A committee of Drs. Bannerjee, Barish, Graham and Mori n wil l revise a nd e xp and t he present “Essentials” dociment for ABR tra i ni ng t o p rod uc e a Guidelines document to serve as a(n): S tud y a n d p re p a r a t i o n guide for potential candidates for ABR physics certification. E v alu ati on g uid e f or physics trustees evaluating the credentials of certification applicants. Knowledge guide for physicists preparing questions for the written and oral physics examinations. • In struct io ns wi ll be provided to a candidate’s refe r enc es d et ai l in g th e e vidence sought in validating
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the candidate’s physics and clinical acumen. Dr. Chaney will draft these instructions. • Up on th e a dvi ce o f Mr. Gerdeman, ABR’s psychmetrician, Parts 1 and 2 of the physics written examination will move towards more multiple choice, single correct answer questions and fewer multiple choice and multiple correct answer questions. Mr. G e rdeman will work closely w i th th e ph ysi cs wr it t en e xam i nati on cha irs (Dr s. Hubbard, Barish, Graham and Morin) to enhance the statistical reliability of all parts of the written examination. • Medical physicists will be surveyed about the desirability of greater emphasis on Magnetic Resonance Imaging (including Functional Imaging and Spectroscopy) as part of the ABR physics examination. • T he de s ir ab il i ty o f migrating the oral examination to a computer-based form at wa s e ndo rsed by t he Restructuring Committee. Drs. B ig gs, Fre y a nd eith er Trueb lo od o r M adsen wi ll develop a plan and timetable for this migration. They also