Newsletter
A MERIC A N ASSOCIATION OF PHY SICISTS IN ME DI CI NE VOLUME 34 NO. 2
MARCH/APRIL 2009
AAPM President’s Column given a strained economy? How do our decisions affect the field and profession of medical physics now, in five years, in twenty years, and so on? Let’s think outside of the box!
Maryellen Giger University of Chicago
A
s each new year progresses, many people become motivated to act on their “new year’s resolutions.” Some think about them, some add them to their “to do” lists, some form committees relevant to the resolutions, and some make them happen. I hope at the end of my Presidential year, I can look back and say that we did “all of the above.” Each day, I am amazed at the number of AAPM activities that aim to expand the role of the AAPM in the field of medical physics and the role of the medical physicist in the public arena. Such activities arise from all three Councils – the Science Council (chair: John Boone), the Education Council (chair: Tony Seibert), and the Professional Council (chair: Per Halvorsen). As we progress in these activities, we need to continuously reflect and ask ourselves various questions. Times change, and we need to be flexible. For example, what is motivating AAPM to take such actions? How would we prioritize the activities if
I believe it is important for AAPM members to be updated in the activities of the AAPM president. Throughout the year, at least one of the members of the “presidential chain” in the executive committee, (i.e., the president-elect, the president, and the chairman of the board), try to attend the various Council retreats and special meetings of the AAPM, as well as many chapter meetings. I have found these interactions to be beneficial at multiple levels – serving to update EXCOM (the executive committee) on the pulse of the AAPM and the various activities, and to impart EXCOM views and questions to the particular attendees. Just as different members of the AAPM come from different areas within the field of medical physics (e.g., diagnostic vs. therapy, research vs. clinical practice, etc.), so do the different members of EXCOM. Thus, the education of EXCOM via these retreats and meetings is crucial to ensure that a broad perspective is achieved within EXCOM and extended to the board, and that the needs of all members of AAPM are addressed. I thank Angela Keyser and Lisa Giove for helping me stay organized relative to these activities. I recently attended the AAPM Science Council retreat held at MD Anderson in Houston, Texas. Science Council retreats are usually held at
an institution of one of the various Council members, thus allowing the other Science Council members to expand their scientific knowledge base. For example, the evenings at the Houston meeting included tours of the MD Anderson’s Proton Therapy Facility and of the Radiation Physics Center. During the daytime, council chair, John Boone, led an exciting retreat. Science Council, with its various committees, subcommittees, and task groups, is quite involved in analyzing and producing documentation on scientific matters that affect members of the AAPM as well as the public. For example, as diagnostic imaging/ therapy systems evolve, phantoms are necessary for obtaining information on image quality, validating quantitative imaging TABLE OF CONTENTS Chair of the Board Column President-Elect’s Column Editor’s Column Executive Director’s Column Education Council Report Science Council Report Professional Council Report Website Editor’s Report E & R Fund Contributors Image Gently Update Leg. & Reg. Affairs IAEA Liaison Report American Board of Radiology Health Policy/Economics ACR Accreditation Letter to the Editor
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