AAPM Newsletter July/August 2016 Vol. 41 No. 4

AMERICAN ASSOCIATION of PHYSICISTS IN MEDICINE

AAPM Newsletter • Volume 41 No. 4 JULY | AUGUST 2016

AAPM NEWSLETTER Advancing the Science, Education and Professional Practice of Medical Physics

IN THIS ISSUE: ▶ President’s Report

▶ Science Council Report

▶ Treasurer’s Report

▶ IROC Report ▶ Website Editor Report

▶ Education Council Report

▶ Election to Fellowship in AAPM ▶ CAMPEP Report and more...

DOWNLOAD THE AAPM 2016 ANNUAL MEETING APP! Stay connected during this year’s meeting with our native app for iOS, Android and Blackberry.

• Gain off-line access to the Annual Meeting Scientific Program, Committee Schedule, Exhibitor Maps and much more.

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Get more information and download the app at: www.aapm.org/meetings/2016AM/

Sponsored by Mobius Medical Systems, LP and RaySearch Laboratories AB

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AAPM is on Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn so be sure to stay connected.

Engage with us and your colleagues to stay in the know.

And don’t forget to follow us during this year’s Annual Meeting by using #AAPM2016!

We’re now on Instagram, too!

ARTICLES IN THIS ISSUE 5 7 11 12 19 23 26 27 31 33 37 41 43 45

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President’s Report Executive Director’s Column Treasurer’s Report AAPM Open House Education Council Report Science Council Report IROC Report ABR News Website Editor’s Report Legislative & Regulatory Affairs Report Election to Fellowship in AAPM CAMPEP Report Report From Imaging Practice Accreditation Subcommittee International Symposium on Advances in Diagnostic Imaging Physics Report San Francisco Bay Area Chapter News Penn-Ohio Chapter News

AAPM NEWSLETTER The AAPM NEWSLETTER is published by the American Association of Physicists in Medicine on a bi-monthly schedule.

AAPM is located at 1631 Prince Street, Alexandria, VA 22314-2818

EDITORIAL BOARD Editor Jessica B Clements, MS Kaiser Permanente

EVENTS/ANNOUNCEMENTS 2 4 9 10 13 22 22 29 30 32 40 50 51

AAPM 58th Annual Meeting & Exhibition App | AAPM Social Media AAPM 58th Annual Meeting & Exhibition Student & Trainee Activities Condolences ­— AAPM Deceased Members AAPM 2017 Spring Clinical Meeting AAPM 58th Annual Meeting & Exhibition AAPM 2016 Certificate Course AAPM 58th Annual Meeting & Exhibition Keynote Speaker AAPM 2016 Elections AAPM E&R Fund AAPM Career Services 2016 Awards, Achievements & Honors Recipients RSNA 2016 AAPM 2016 Expanding Horizons Travel Grant

E-mail: JessicaClements@gmail.com Phone: 818-502-5180 John M. Boone, PhD Robert Jeraj, PhD George C. Kagadis, PhD E. Ishmael Parsai, PhD Charles R. Wilson, PhD SUBMISSION INFORMATION Please send submissions (with pictures when possible) to: E-mail: nvazquez@aapm.org AAPM Headquarters Attn: Nancy Vazquez 1631 Prince Street Alexandria, VA 22314 Phone: (571) 298-1300

NAVIGATION HELP Previous/Next Article

PUBLISHING SCHEDULE The AAPM Newsletter is produced bi-monthly.

Next issue: September/October Submission Deadline: August 10, 2016 Posted Online: Week of September 4, 2016

Tap the arrows at the bottom of the page to go to the next or previous page.

EDITOR’S NOTE I welcome all readers to send me any suggestions or comments on any of the articles or new features to make this a more effective and engaging publication and to enhance the overall readership experience. Thank you.

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CONTENTS

AAPM Newsletter • Volume 41 No. 4 JULY | AUGUST 2016

www.aapm.org/ meetings/2016AM/ AssociationMtgs.asp

STUDENT AND TRAINEE EVENTS Please join us for the first ever Student and Trainee Day on Sunday July 31

ANNUAL STUDENT MEETING: THE MANY PATHS OF MEDICAL PHYSICS

AAPM STUDENTS AND TRAINEES NIGHT OUT: ALL-INCLUSIVE EXPERIENCE AT THE DC UNITED SOCCER GAME!

9:30 – 11:00 am | Ballroom C, Level Three, Convention Center

6:00 – 8:30pm | RFK Stadium | Tickets: $35/person (space is limited) | Registration Deadline: June 30

This year’s Annual Student Meeting consists of a panel of professionals who have pursued an education in medical physics and have since filled a variety of jobs ranging from chief medical physicist, small business founder, NIST scientist, company R&D scientist, and an academic researcher.

WGSTR STUDENT AND TRAINEE LUNCH: CORE ASPECTS OF A MEDICAL PHYSICS EDUCATION 11:30 am – 1:00 pm | Ballroom C, Level Three, Convention Center | Tickets: $10/person (space is limited) Registration Deadline: July 6 The Working Group on Student and Trainee Research and the AAPM Students and Trainees Subcommittee (STSC) are hosting this lunch to foster a discussion on Core Aspects of a Medical Physics Education as they pertain to research in our field.

RESIDENCY FAIR 1:00 – 3:00 pm | Ballroom Foyer, Level Three, Convention Center Programs: reserve your table here | Students/Attendees: RSVP here The STSC, in collaboration with SDAMPP, is hosting a Residency Fair to provide students with an opportunity to learn more about individual residency programs and how they are structured.

CAREER EXPO 4:00 – 6:00 pm | Ballroom Foyer, Level Three, Convention Center The STSC is holding the first non-clinical Career Expo at the Annual Meeting to allow students, trainees, and young professionals to talk to physicists currently working in a variety of roles at companies, government agencies and labs, and academic research. This is not meant to be a job fair, but rather a place to facilitate discussions about future career paths and roles that medical physicists fill outside of the clinic.

Company/Gov’t Agency Reps: RSVP here Students/Attendees: RSVP here

Join us for our Annual Students and Trainees Night Out sponsored by the STSC! This event provides attendees the opportunity to network with fellow students, residents, and post-docs. This year we have partnered with DC’s professional soccer team, DC United. We will attend the game and have exclusive access to the team’s Capitol View Club where they will provide buffet-style food options, beer, wine, as well as non-alcoholic beverages.

ADDITIONALLY, THE FOLLOWING ACTIVITIES WILL BE TAKING PLACE DURING THE ANNUAL MEETING: Interview Workshop 10:15 – 11:00 am (Academic/Research/Clinical Careers) 11:15 am – Noon (Regulatory and Industry Careers) Wednesday, August 3 | Partners in Solutions Room, Exhibit Hall The STSC would like to invite students, trainees, and young professionals to attend an interview workshop to practice their interviewing skills and receive feedback from real interviewers.

The first workshop is designed for those seeking careers in academic, research, or clinical environments. The second workshop is geared towards those seeking careers in regulatory or industry positions.

Partners for the Future | More information coming soon!

In an effort to open the dialogue between our corporate partners and those individuals training to become medical physicists, participating corporate partners will be conducting demonstrations designed specifically for trainees.

Symposium: Fostering a Successful Career in Research Wednesday, August 3 | 1:45-2:45 | Room 204 Interested in pursuing a career in research? Come hear from leaders in the field who have found success in academic and industry research careers.

AAPM Newsletter • Volume 41 No. 4 JULY | AUGUST 2016

AAPM PRESIDENT’S REPORT Bruce H. Curran, MEng, Richmond, VA

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t’s Sunday evening in Chantilly, VA and the first day of the AAPM Summer School/Medical Physics Leadership Academy (MPLA) kick-off is now complete. With over 150 registrants, the Summer School looks to be a tremendous success. There are many individuals who have been instrumental in the planning of this year’s school, but particular thanks go to Jennifer Johnson and Bob Pizzutiello, the co-directors, for a wonderful program. I’m looking forward to 3.5 more days of this event, which embarks AAPM on a much-needed path to helping our members improve their leadership skills.

This evening featured a keynote address by Jim Dobbins, who has achieved the rank of Associate Vice-Provost at Duke University in addition to his ‘day job’ on the Medical Physics Faculty. As noted above, this is the inaugural event for the MPLA and I’m looking forward to the continuing efforts of Jessica Clements and the MPLA Working Group.

Earlier this week Science Council (SC) held a strategic planning retreat at AAPM HQ. Dick Fraass (SC Chair) ran an excellent meeting, details of which will be shared by the council in this or a later issue of the Newsletter. One of the critical issues that SC spent significant time on was improving the process for reviewing Task Group proposals and the review process for TG reports. SC has a number of ideas for significantly improving both aspects of the process that they hope to implement in the next year. The expectation is to then generalize the process for adoption by Professional and Education Councils.

AAPM held an open house to show off its new headquarters this past Thursday. Over 100 guests were present, including many friends from AIP and the American Center for Physics, ASTRO leadership (who met with EXCOM earlier in the afternoon for an annual leadership meeting), and local members in the Washington area. More details can be found in Angela Keyser’s report in this Newsletter.

The Ad Hoc Committee on Governance Assessment (AHCGA) met by T-Con on Wednesday afternoon and reviewed possible models for updating AAPM’s governance. The committee has held discussions with individuals from SNMMI, ASTRO, and RSNA to learn about their governance structures and what features might be effective for AAPM. I want to thank Fred Fahey, Mary Martel, and Mark Watson (RSNA Executive Director) for spending time with us on this important effort. The committee is now preparing a skeleton proposal for discussion with the Strategic Planning Committee in July and the Board of Directors at their August Meeting.

The AAPM Executive Committee (EXCOM) met Friday and Saturday at AAPM HQ with a very busy agenda. We reviewed the progress on a number of key strategic projects including contracts for a new editorial system and publisher, renewal contracts with our journal Editors, the draft recommendations from the AHCGA, and a new project to replace our AAPM management system software, which has been in use for over 20 years and requires updating. EXCOM then moved to the Summer School, where we are participating as faculty and facilitators.

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AAPM Newsletter • Volume 41 No. 4 JULY | AUGUST 2016

President, cont.

I want to thank the members of the Nominating Committee (Doug Pfeiffer, Janelle Molloy, Tony Seibert, and Gene Cardarelli) for their efforts in identifying a slate of officer and Board-Member-at-Large nominations for this year’s elections. The ballot has not been sent out at this date, but elections will be nearly complete by the time you read this report. The committee may do double-duty this year; should the By-Laws changes proposed for the Nominating Committee be approved in August, the committee will reconvene to select a slate for election to the revised Nominating Committee.

One of the pleasures of being AAPM President is the opportunity to visit a number of chapters and discuss what’s happening with AAPM and with the chapters. This year I have met with the Southwest, New England, and North Central AAPM chapters to date and am looking forward to additional chapter meetings in the next 6 months.

The AAPM Annual Business Meeting (ABM) will be a busy event this year, as there are a number of By-Laws changes that have been recently approved by the Board for Membership vote. These changes are discussed at the ABM and comments included in the ballot. The ABM is followed by the Board of Directors’ Town Hall. If you are attending the Annual Meeting I invite you to attend one or both meetings; AAPM is your association and these meetings are an excellent opportunity to find out what is happening, have your voice heard, and ask questions of the Board. Please join us and participate in the governance of AAPM. n

MEDICAL PHYSICISTS WITHOUT BORDERS Medical Physics Without Borders is holding the following information meetingss: •

2016 Canadian Organization of Medical Physicists (COMP) AGM in St John’s, Newfoundland and Labrador on Thursday, July 21, 2016, 5:00-6:00 pm in Harbourview Salon G (just prior to the Poster Reception).

•

2016 AAPM Annaul Meeting in Washington, DC on Tuesday, August 2, 2016, 12:15-1:45 pm in Room 140AB (Level 1) in the Convention Center.

Both meetings will provide an update on the status and activities of MPWB and all interested are invited to attend.

www.mpwb.org

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AAPM Newsletter • Volume 41 No. 4 JULY | AUGUST 2016

EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR’S REPORT Angela R. Keyser, Alexandria, VA

AAPM Professional Information Survey The 2015 Professional Survey is available online. You can download a PDF from the web or have the document emailed to you. If you have any problems, please contact HQ.

Election Process Online Only!

Elections for the 2017 Officers and Board Members-At-Large is now in process and will run through July 13. The election process will be online only so be alert for email announcements.

New AAPM Publication The Guidelines by the AAPM and GEC-ESTRO on the use of innovative brachytherapy devices and applications: Report of Task Group 167 is now available on the AAPM Reports list.

Election Process — Online Only!

Elections for the 2017 Officers and Board Members-At-Large opened on June 22 and will run through July 13. Again this year, AAPM will use the Bulletin Board System (BBS) during the election process to allow members to discuss issues of concern with the candidates and the election in general. The election process will be online-only so be alert for email announcements.

AAPM Expanding Horizons Travel Grant — Deadline September 1 Up to fifteen $1,000 travel grants per year will be awarded for the purpose of providing additional support for student and trainee travel to conferences that are not specifically geared toward medical physics. Learn more and apply online.

#AAPM2016 — Annual Meeting News Make plans to visit HQ during AAPM Open House, Saturday, July 30, 5:00 pm – 7:00 pm. With the Annual Meeting in our neighborhood, we hope you will find time to visit the new AAPM HQ located at 1631 Prince Street in Alexandria, Virginia. Please consider this when you are making your travel and hotel plans. The new AAPM HQ is nine Metro subway stops away from the Washington Convention Center on the Yellow Line (King Street Station). Transportation to the Open House will not be arranged, but Metro information will be provided. Register for the Tour.

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AAPM Newsletter • Volume 41 No. 4 JULY | AUGUST 2016

Executive Director, cont.

Remember: •

Dedicated time to Visit the Vendors on Tuesday, August 2 from 9:30 AM – 11:00 AM. No sessions are scheduled to conflict during this time so make sure to visit the Exhibit Hall. An online Buyers Guide is available, with information about the exhibiting companies. Exhibit hours are: • • • •

• •

Sunday, July 31, 12:30 pm – 5:00 pm Monday, August 1, 9:00 am – 5:00 pm Tuesday, August 2, 9:00 am – 5:00 pm Wednesday, August 3, 9:00 am – 2:00 pm

Make sure to download the AAPM Annual Meeting App for your device.

Make plans to attend the 2016 Annual Business and Town Hall Meeting on Wednesday, August 3 from 6:15 PM – 7:30 PM in Ballroom B of the Washington Convention Center. Members of the AAPM Board of Directors want to hear directly from the membership. What should AAPM be working on? How can the organization better serve you? Here’s your chance to be heard. AAPM’s President and Treasurer will report on the status of the organization.

New plans for the AAPM Night Out at The Newseum — The 2016 Night Out will not be a dinner event.

Instead, you are encouraged to meet your colleagues at the venue for limited light snacks and then make your way to one of the many restaurants in the area for dinner. Or, dine first and make your way to the event for a bite of something sweet at the end of the evening! This change has been made in an effort to contain costs, but still provide an opportunity for attendees to socialize with colleagues and see a bit of Washington, DC. Each adult Night Out ticket will include 1 drink ticket, good for beer or a glass of wine. Again, you will be disappointed if you come to the Night Out expecting a meal. Please make your plans in advance and dine at a restaurant of your choice and favorite cuisine! We have compiled a list of restaurants located between the Convention Center and The Newseum, and encourage you to either make reservations on your own, or with help from the restaurant desk at the Convention Center. View restaurant list »

RSNA 2016 — Beyond Imaging Beyond Imaging is the theme of the 102nd Scientific Assembly and Annual Meeting, November 27 – December 2.

Reminder - AAPM’s Headquarters Hotel is the Hyatt Regency Chicago located at 151 E. Wacker Drive. AAPM and RSNA Member Registration & Housing opened on April 27.

Headquarters News Congratulations to Lynne Fairobent on being named a Fellow of the Health Physics Society. This award is given to senior members of HPS in recognition of their significant administrative, educational, and/or scientific contributions to the profession of health physics.

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AAPM Newsletter • Volume 41 No. 4 JULY | AUGUST 2016

Executive Director, cont.

I firmly believe that part of the success of AAPM HQ operations is our ability to attract and retain an excellent team of high performing association management professionals. The following AAPM team members celebrated an AAPM anniversary in the first half of 2016. I want to publicly thank them and acknowledge their efforts. n Nancy Vazquez

20 years of service

Viv Dennis

6 years of service

Jennifer Hudson

15 years of service

Melissa Liverpool

5 years of service

Zailu Gao

15 years of service

Rachel Smiroldo

5 years of service

Karen MacFarland

13 years of service

Shayna Knazik

2 years of service

Lynne Fairobent

12 years of service

Robert McKoy

2 years of service

Lisa Schober

11 years of service

Richard Martin

1 year of service

Laurie Allen

9 years of service

Our Condolences Robert O. Gorson, MS — Philadelphia, PA Luther E. Preuss — Dearborn, MI Hector E. Rivera — San Juan, PR

Our deepest sympathies go out to their families

We will all feel the loss in the medical physics community.

If you have information on the passing of members, please inform HQ ASAP so that these members can be remembered appropriately. We respectfully request the notification via e-mail to: 2016.aapm@aapm.org Please include supporting information so that we can take appropriate steps.

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SAVE THE DATE! MARCH 18–21, 2017 Hilton New Orleans Riverside New Orleans, LA

AAPM Newsletter • Volume 41 No. 4 JULY | AUGUST 2016

TREASURER’S REPORT Mahadevappa Mahesh, PhD, Baltimore, MD

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am writing this column soon after attending the AAPM Open House and this year’s AAPM Summer School. The summer school focus was on Medical Physics Leadership Academy and it was well received. We had many interesting and ‘outof-box’ topics that we medical physicists are often not exposed to in our daily routines but are interested to know.

The topics that were covered at this year’s summer school varied from leadership to time management to financial topics. I found the sessions on financial topics especially interesting and timely. Our AAPM Controller Robert McKoy, gave a very engaging session on financial topics including how to evaluate financial statements, income and expenditure statement, budget statement, etc., which I plan to discuss in more detail as pertaining to our association finances later this year. This all happened around the same week when outside auditors were auditing our finances. I heard that our audit process went smoothly and details of the audit will be presented first to AAPM board during this year’s annual meeting.

We are passing the half-year mark and it is already been more than six months since AAPM staff moved to the new building. The Open House on June 9th was well-attended by AAPM members and also by leaders of other professional societies (many of you have seen increased twitter activity around these events). We are now getting used to managing the mortgage for our building rather than paying rent. As discussed in my last column, the maintenance of the loan covenants is important and thanks to our AAPM finance staff we are maintaining our good standings with the creditors.

I have heard that our registration for this year’s Annual Meeting is more than last year and I welcome all of you to my neighborhood (Baltimore-Washington DC corridor) for an exciting meeting this year. n

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Thank you to all of our guests for helping to make AAPM’S OPEN HOUSE on June 9th a huge success!

Come visit us at our new headquarters: 1631 Prince Street, Alexandria, VA 22314

T

he theme for 2016 and the AAPM Annual Meeting is “Communicating our Value. Improving our Future.” I have observed over recent years that the importance of the Medical Physicist to both the imaging and treatment processes has lessened in many institutions. We are losing/have lost our place as key players on the diagnosis and treatment teams, often relegated to the role of technicians in the eyes of our colleagues and administrators. This is true in academic/research arenas as well, where grant opportunities for improvements in technology and process, areas in which we are major players, have been on the decline. We need to reverse these trends in order to survive and thrive.

AAPM can help medical physicists achieve better recognition by providing tools and guidance in promoting our value to our institutions and colleagues. Medical Physics 3.0, the Medical Physics Leadership Academy and the 2016 Summer School on Leadership are all venues that have this goal (among others). Our Annual Meeting provides opportunities for sharing/improving your scientific knowledge, clinical skills, and professional leadership. Involvement in AAPM committees and task groups enables you to help shape our future, clinically, scientifically, and professionally.

These opportunities, however, are only of value if you take advantage of them and work to incorporate them into your research, clinical practice, or interactions with your colleagues. I echo John Boone’s words from 2015; “I invite you — indeed I challenge you — to take advantage of the outstanding opportunities offered at this summer’s meeting to reinvigorate your professional, [clinical, and scientific] excellence.”

—Bruce H. Curran, AAPM President

NEW AND EXCITING FEATURES THIS YEAR….

• PRESIDENTIAL DEBATE (Monday, August 1, 4:30 – 6:00 pm)

In the spirit of the meeting being held in Washington, DC during an election year, the AAPM will host its own Presidential Debate! Since AAPM is currently not close to an election, we will bring back a panel of past presidents to have a lively debate about issues facing the administrative, professional, educational, and scientific aspects of physics in medicine. Make sure to come and cast your vote!

• Special 2-Day Program on Radiomics (Monday, August 1 –

Tuesday, August 2) • Distinguished Lectureships:

 Zagzebski/Carson Distinguished Lectureship: In the spirit of education and science, this year’s session will feature an overview of new and innovative noninvasive use of ultrasound in the treatment of disease presented by Kullervo Hynynen, PhD.  The Anne and Donald Herbert Distinguished Lectureship in Modern Statistical Modeling: This session will feature an overview of statistical modeling techniques used for analyzing the many types of research data and an exploration of recent advances in new statistical modeling methodologies.

• TG100 Certificate of Completion Course: Application of Risk

Analysis Methods to Radiotherapy Quality Management — See next page for further details.

• Joint scientific symposium with the World Molecular Imaging

Society: Metabolic Imaging of Cancer • Joint scientific symposium with ESTRO: Advances in

Experimental Medical Physics • NEW Exhibit Hall Guided Tours: The Exhibit Hall Guided

Tours offers a new way for attendees to interact with our exhibitors and earn SAM credit in the process. First attend a short introduction by an expert on the selected theme — Microdosimeters for Therapy or Dosimeters for Diagnostic Imaging Quality Control. Then follow your tour guide to participating exhibitors’ booths, where they will present detailed information about the solutions they offer. A fun, easy way to get a comprehensive overview of the products available on the market to address the clinical need.

• NEW General ePoster Discussions: General ePosters include

a select group of high-scoring posters on a specific theme identified by the Program Directors to be of special interest to attendees of the scientific program. These General ePoster presentations will occur in the ePoster Theater Area integrated with the poster presentation area in a format promoting lively discussion and scientific exchange.

• NEW Expanding Horizons: The Expanding Horizons ePoster

session on Tuesday, 9:30 – 11:00 am, gives a venue for AAPM conference attendees to meet and discuss with awardees, learn the hot topics and emerging research areas presented at these conferences, and understand the relevance to future medical physics research.

All sessions and technical exhibits will take place in the Walter E. Washington Convention Center, 801 Mt Vernon Pl NW, Washington, DC. The education program and professional program will offer a significant opportunity to gain practical knowledge on emerging technical and professional issues.

This year, the scientific program will also offer a special twoday track on Radiomics.

TG100 Certificate of Completion Course: Application of Risk Analysis Methods to Radiotherapy Quality Management The course will consist of an all-day program on Wednesday followed by a workshop on Thursday, which provides further hands-on experience with tools of risk analysis and safety improvement. The course will run in Ballroom C concurrently with other AAPM program content. Upon fulfilling the requirements, participants will receive a certificate of completion. This mini-track, open to all registrants, will focus on describing a structured methodology of TG100 for analyzing clinical processes and for developing clinic- and site- specific quality management programs that more effectively and efficiently address work practices in individual clinics. The mini-track will consist of 6 sessions (including educational and scientific sessions, and proffered papers) which provide basic education as well as a survey of emerging and advanced concepts. The topics will be of interest to those working in diagnostic radiology as well as therapy physics.

The mini-track will also serve as the certificate course at this year’s meeting, which provides an in-depth review of a particular topic with verification of learning objectives through online homework. Attendees may enroll in the certificate program for an additional fee. Enrollment in the program entitles participants to dedicated seating in the mini-track sessions as well as additional online materials. Following the meeting, certificate program participants will be required to take an online examination which covers the material presented throughout the day-long mini-track. Enrollees who demonstrate satisfactory attendance at the course and successful completion of the online examination (available after the meeting) will receive a framed certificate of completion for this course.

SCIENTIFIC PROGRAM Therapy Track The 2016 Therapy Track will showcase several current hot topics in therapy physics including emerging fields that present unique opportunities for medical physicists.

Invited symposia will be presented on the following topics: radioimmunotherapy, real-time 3D dosimetry, radiation countermeasures, computational biology, advances in experimental medical physics, digital linear accelerators, and motion management and RBE prediction in particle therapy.

At this year’s meeting several symposia will be presented in coordination with the educational program. That is, back-toback invited sessions which first present the well-established aspects of a topic (education) followed by new emerging advancements (science). As usual, this year’s scientific program will also include fantastic cutting edge research presented in more than 27 proffered sessions in the therapy scientific track alone.

• Joint AAPM-ESTRO Symposium: Advances in Experimental

Medical Physics (SAM) • Radiation and Immunotherapy: How to Ignite Long Term

Anti-Cancer Response (SAM) • Radiation Countermeasures Research and Development

(SAM) • Session in Memory of Robert J. Shalek: High Resolution

Dosimetry from 2D to 3D to Real-time 3D (SAM) • Connecting Radiation Physics with Computational Biology

(SAM) • Motion Management for Pencil Beam Scanning Proton

Therapy (SAM) • The Challenges of Predicting RBE Effects in Particle Therapy

and Opportunities for Improving Cancer Therapy (SAM) • Experiences with TG100 in Clinical Use (Session 5 of the TG100

Certificate Course series) (SAM) • Research Opportunities with Digital Linear Accelerators (SAM)

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SCIENTIFIC PROGRAM (CONTINUED) Imaging Track The 2016 Imaging Track highlights ongoing research and advances in Imaging in Medical Physics. In addition to proffered sessions, this track will include scientific symposia on Imaging-Radiomics Joint session on the Low Dose CT Grand Challenge, radiation and cancer, model observer design and its validation for digital breast tomosynthesis, quantitative performance assessment of CT systems employing iterative reconstruction algorithms, advances in image-guided neurointerventions, advances in dedicated breast CT, and advances in preclinical imaging. Several of the scientific symposia are expected to offer SAM credits. The scientific symposia and the proffered scientific sessions will explore the state of the art and also new frontiers in imaging.

• Radiation and Cancer: Reality, Extrapolations, Myths & • • • • •

Practice (SAM) Model Observer Design and its Validation for Task-based Evaluation of Digital Breast Tomosynthesis Quantitative Assessment of CT Systems with Iterative Image Reconstruction Algorithms Advances in Image-guided Neurointerventions – Clinical Pull and Technology Push Advances in Dedicated Breast CT (SAM) Advances in Preclinical Imaging

Joint Imaging/Therapy Track The 2016 Joint Imaging-Therapy Track will feature exciting topics highlighting the latest science incorporating imaging for improving therapeutic interventions. In addition to over 30 hours of proffered sessions, this track will include invited symposia covering the following topics: the joint symposium with World Molecular Imaging Society on the metabolism of cancer, image-guided interventions; advances in imageguided brachytherapy; deformable registration; CT ventilation; dual-energy CT; new applications of electronic portal imaging; medical physics advances for low-resource settings; and a debate on the future of the ITV. As in all of the other tracks, several of the scientific symposia are expected to offer SAM credits for those participating in the ABR’s MOC program who don’t want to miss out on hearing the latest science in imaging and therapy.

• Joint WMIS-AAPM Symposium: Metabolic Imaging of Cancer • Image-Guided Interventions: Advances in Intraoperative

• • • •

Imaging, Guidance, and an Emerging Role for Medical Physics in Surgery (SAM) Dual Energy CT in Radiation Therapy (SAM) The EPID Strikes Back (SAM) Rest in Peace – ITV (SAM) Federal Funding Opportunities and Grantsmanship

• Advances and Innovations in Image Guided Brachytherapy

(SAM) • CT Ventilation Imaging: The New Clinical Reality of Functional

• • • •

Avoidance and Response Assessment in Lung Cancer Radiation Therapy (SAM) Concepts in Risk-based Assessment (Session 2 of the TG100 Certificate Course series) (SAM) Learning from Medical Errors: A Partnership for Progress (Session 4 of the TG100 Certificate Course series) High impact Technologies for Low Resource Environments (SAM) Session in Memory of Jean Pouliot: Next-Generation Deformable Image Registration (SAM)

Radiomics (Special 2-Day Program) “Radiomics” is the name given to the growing effort to extract and utilize the data inherent in medical images in order to quantify medically relevant characteristics (e.g., phenotypes of cancerous tumors.) The field continues to evolve, building upon quantitative image analysis methods from computeraided diagnosis and machine learning. Various radiomic studies are attempting to further understand the biology of cancer (for example, druggable mutations), as well as the role of tumor heterogeneity in metastatic disease. Medical physicists have taken a leading role in radiomics and thus, this track will include proffered and invited talks over several days addressing multiple key areas of radiomics, including quantitative imaging foundations and best practices, new applications and results across modalities, new software tools and processes, and driving biological questions. Important challenges, such as the dependence of radiomic features on databases, technology, and methodology, will be examined in detail to help point a way forward in this exciting area.

• Segmentation (Educational Course) • Harmonization & Robustness in Radiomics (Educational

Course) • State-of-the-Art in Radiomics in Radiology and Radiation

Oncology • Imaging Genomics Associations and Biological Correlates of

Radiomics (Educational Course) • Challenges in Radiomics and Big Data (SAM Educational

Course) • Grand Challenges in Medical Imaging and Radiomics (Joint

Imaging-Radiomics) • Session in Memory of Laurence Clarke: Moving Radiomics

Forward: Funding, Regulatory Issues, and Clinical Translation

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EDUCATIONAL PROGRAM Therapy Track The 2016 Therapy Education track will feature a total of 35 hours of educational sessions designed to meet the diverse interests of our membership, with the majority of sessions being SAM sessions. The program will include topics in SRS/ SBRT, IGRT, brachytherapy, proton therapy, quality assurance, motion management, and safety. Highlighted topics for this year include a series of SBRT Case Study Panel Discussions of different treatment sites (lung, liver, and spine), two sessions on Statistical Considerations for RT, and a session on Big Data in Rad Onc. A few sessions on the updates of AAPM TG reports (TG-167, TG-180, TG-191, TG-199, etc.) will be presented.

Returning popular topics will include small-field dosimetry, adaptive treatment planning, and proton therapy. Continuing the tradition from the last several meetings, there will be a live point-counter point debate; this year the comparison between proton and photon radiation therapy will be the focus.

• TG191: Clinical Use of Luminescent Dosimeters • TG167: Clinical Recommendations for Innovative

Brachytherapy Devices and Applicators • Three Dimensional Dosimetry • Prostate HDR Treatment Planning – Considering Different

Imaging Modalities • SBRT Workflow Overview (SAM) • PANEL DISCUSSION: SBRT/SRS Case Studies – Lung

(INTERACTIVE SAM) • In Memoriam of Jan van de Geijn: Knowledge-based

Planning (SAM) • Online Adaptive Radiotherapy – Considerations for Practical

Clinical Implementation (SAM) • PANEL DISCUSSION: SBRT/SRS Case Studies – Brain and Spine • • • • •

• • • • • • • •

(SAM) Image Guidance Technologies and Management Strategies (SAM) PANEL DISCUSSION: SBRT/SRS Case Studies – Liver (SAM) TG180: Imaging Dose During RT (SAM) The Quality Gap (Session 1 of the TG100 Certificate Course series) (SAM) Session in Memory of Donald Herbert: Anne and Donald Herbert Distinguished Lectureship on Modern Statistical Modeling (SAM) Statistical Failings That Keep Us All In The Dark (SAM) Basics of Proton Therapy (SAM) Learning the New Approaches of TG-100 and Beyond (Session 3 of the TG100 Certificate Course series) (SAM) Big Data in Radiation Oncology (SAM) MRgRT (SAM) New Task Groups for External Beam QA: An Overview (SAM) Key Dosimetry Data – Impact of New ICRU Recommendations (SAM) How to Identify and Resolve Potential Clinical Errors Before

They Impact Patients Treatment: Lessons Learned (SAM) • Implanted Markers for Radiation Therapy and TG 199 Update

(SAM) • Emerging Technologies in SRS/SBRT Delivery (SAM) • Educational Point Counter/Point: Has Photon RT Hit the

Limits? (SAM) • PET for Radiation Therapy (SAM) • TG100 Workshop (Session 7 of the TG100 Certificate Course

series) (SAM) • AAPM-AMPR (Russia)-SEFM (Spain) Joint Course on

Challenges and Advantages of Small Field Radiation Treatment Techniques (SAM) • MRI for Radiation Therapy

Imaging Track The 2016 Imaging Education Track will feature a total of fourteen educational sessions, including over 22 hours of CME with most being SAM sessions. The program will be focused on meeting the continuing education requirements of our membership at various stages of professional development, with several sessions featuring coupled “basics-to-advanced” topics, including nuclear medicine and MR. CT, Ultrasound, and Informatics. Several cross-modality sessions will be offered, including pediatric imaging, body tomosynthesis, and radiation dose monitoring. Special attention this year was given to coordinating educational requirements with the scientific program and the Partners in Solutions to meet FDA requirements for digital breast tomosynthesis including cross training from the vendors of approved systems on features specific to their machines while obtaining the additional DBT hours of training in the two tracks.

• Nuclear Medicine Physics and Testing • DBT Physics Basic to Advanced (SAM) • Recent Advances in Virtual Tools for Validation of 3D/4D

Breast Imaging Systems (TG234) (SAM) • CT Systems Course (SAM) • Body Tomosynthesis • Imaging Informatics (SAM) • Diagnostic Ultrasound QA/QC Hands-on Workshop • MRI Physics (SAM) • The Zagzebski/Carson Distinguished Lecture on Medical

Ultrasound: Image Guided Ultrasound Therapy • Shear-wave Imaging and a QIBA US Biomarker Update

(SAM) • Challenges and Opportunities for Nuclear Medicine

Theranostics (SAM) • Pediatric Image Quality Optimization (SAM) • Radiation Dose Monitoring and Protocol Management

(SAM) • Pitfalls: Reliability and Performance of Diagnostic X-Ray

Sources

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EDUCATIONAL PROGRAM Practical Medical Physics

• Planning and Delivering HDR APBI Treatments (SAM)

The Practical Medical Physics Track offers presentations of use and interest to the practicing medical physicist.

• A Cliff’s Notes Version of Proton Therapy • Motion Management in Current Stereotactic Body Radiation

Therapy (SBRT) Practice • Practical Statistics for Medical Physicists (SAM) • Treatment Planning System Commissioning and QA (SAM) • Optimizing the Treatment Planning Process (SAM)

• Practical Implementation of Deep Inspiration Breath Hold

Techniques for Breast Radiation Therapy (SAM) • A Practical Guide to Radiation Safety Surveys (SAM) • Identifying Image Artifacts, Their Causes, and How to Fix

Them (SAM) • Open Source Hardware in Medical Physics and its Potential

to Accelerate Innovation (SAM) • An Introduction to Research and Clinical Development Using

Treatment Planning System APIs (SAM)

PROFESSIONAL PROGRAM The Professional Track will be offering sessions designed to keep our members abreast of the latest profession-related developments. Topics include clinical, publishing, educating, diversity in the workplace, compliance, international, and other aspects of our profession. International content will cover material from NCRP, ICRP, contributing to the developing world, and updates on dose reduction efforts across the globe.

Sessions include ABR preparation and MOC update, achieving residency excellence, fostering a successful research career, radiology resident teaching. Regulatory topic sessions will discuss compliance with new CT clinical practice and Joint Commission guidelines, Radiation Protection, and CDRH/FDA device science and regulatory process.

• The Medical Physicist Value Proposition for Tomorrow and • • • • • • • • •

Today HAZMAT Training for the Medical Physicist – Parts I & II (Pre-registration Required) Financial Perspectives on Scientific Publishing Interoperability in Radiation Oncology: IHE-RO Committee Update Certificate Extension Process for DBT and the Medical Physicist’s Role International Symposium: Patient Dose Reduction in Diagnostic Radiology Medical Physics Leadership Academy (SAM) PANEL DISCUSSION: Preparing for Parts 2 and 3 of the ABR Therapy Medical Physics Exam Preparing for the ABR Diagnostic and Nuclear Medical Physics Exams The American Board of Radiology Maintenance of Certification Process

• Professional Liability Insurance – what you need to know

(SAM) • CDRH/FDA Regulatory Processes and Device Science

Activities • Do the Right Thing (SAM) • The Gadget: Making of the Atomic Bomb • Compliance with the AAPM CT Clinical Practice and Joint

Commission Guidelines (SAM) • New Member Symposium • Work of ICRP, NCRP and Others and How They Impact on

Medical Physicists (SAM) • Diversity and Inclusion in Medical Physics (SAM) • Session in Memory of Franca Kuchnir: Excellence in Medical

Physics Residency Education • Where to send my manuscript • Fostering a Successful Career in Research • Post-graduate Training of the Next Generation of Academic

Medical Physicists • Opportunities for Physicists to Support Low and Mid-Income

Countries • Medical Physics Workshop: An Update on the Journal’s

Improvement Activities and Guidance on Writing and Reviewing Papers • The Pursuit of Radiation Oncology Performance Excellence (SAM) • Teaching Radiology Residents: What, How, and Expectation (SAM) • Writing Good Multiple Choice Questions

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PARTNERS IN SOLUTIONS Partners in Solutions returns again this year with vendors providing physics-level presentations on topics selected by AAPM in a special-purpose lecture room built on the exhibit floor. These sessions provide practical information for the clinical physicist from the people who know the systems in depth! CE credit is available. This year’s topics are: • Imaging: Digital Breast Tomosynthesis. The three PinS

sessions will cover the manufacturer- and model-specific features and requirements of the DBT systems currently approved by FDA. Together with other sessions offered during the Annual Meeting program, these will allow attendees to meet the FDA initial training requirements for DBT (8 hours of training including manufacturer-specific features of each approved system).

• Therapy: MR Simulation. MRI techniques are becoming

increasingly used in treatment planning, image-guided radiation therapy, and treatment evaluation, and it is important that medical physicists understand the underlying processes of the systems they are using. Presentations from three manufacturers will feature details of their fast MR imaging techniques, functional MR imaging techniques, and MRI distortion correction and quality assurance techniques, including their pros and cons. An increased awareness of how MRI simulation tools work will allow attendees to better understand and apply their results.

AAPM 2016 DATES TO REMEMBER • JULY 6

Housing reservation deadline Deadline to cancel housing reservation without a $25 cancellation fee Fees for registration will be refunded in full if written notice of cancellation is received by July 6, 2016 Last day to register for SAM

• JULY 31 – AUG 4

58th Annual Meeting & Exhibition

• SEPTEMBER 5

Deadline to complete the online evaluation in order to receive CAMPEP Credit (equivalent to CME category 1), SAM Credit (equivalent to SA-CME), MDCB and RLI Credits

11:59 PM ET • SEPTEMBER 26

Credits released for meeting attendees

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AAPM Newsletter • Volume 41 No. 4 JULY | AUGUST 2016

EDUCATION COUNCIL REPORT Joann Prisciandaro, PhD, Ann Arbor, MI

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here are multiple committees that are overseen by Education Council; one such committee is the Education and Training of Medical Physicists Committee (ETC). The ETC works to advise Education Council, and through it, the AAPM Board of Directors, on matters related to medical physics education and training of medical physics graduate students and residents.

The committee is currently co-chaired by Joann Prisciandaro and Jacqueline Zoberi. In this bimonthly Education Council report, we will present highlights of the activities and progress of some of the subcommittees and working groups overseen by ETC.

The AAPM/SNMMI Work Group on Nuclear Medicine Residency Support (chaired by Robert Pizzutiello) is charged with supporting the growth of SUGGESTION BOX CAMPEP-accredited imaging physics residency programs that are adding a new nuclear medicine component to their program. To this end, the work group has accepted and reviewed applications from imaging residency programs with the intention of awarding $70,000 over 2 years to two programs (with costs shared equally between AAPM and SNMMI) for one student per year. After careful review of five applications, the Work Group awarded this grant to Beth A. Harkness at Henry Ford Hospital System and Nand K. Relan at SUNY Stony Brook.

The Awards Selection Subcommittee (chaired by Osama Mawlawi) is charged with identifying an awardee for the AAPM Graduate Fellowship. The fellowship is awarded for the first two years of graduate studies leading to a doctoral degree in medical physics. A stipend of $13,000 per year, plus tuition support (not exceeding $5,000/year) is assigned to the recipient. This year, the Subcommittee received 28 applicants, and selected Rebecca Meerschaert as the recipient of this fellowship.

The Diversity and Inclusion Subcommittee (chaired by Stephen Avery) is charged with creating new opportunities for outreach and mentoring towards diversity recruitment in the field of medical physics to increase the number of individuals from under-represented groups. To provide such opportunities, the Subcommittee awarded four Diversity Recruitment through Education and Mentoring (DREAM) Program Fellowships (formerly known as the Minority Undergraduate Summer Experience Program) to selected undergraduates. Students participating in the program are placed in a summer position with their mentoring institution for 10 weeks and awarded a $5,000 stipend. This year, the Subcommittee received eight applicants, and awarded fellowships to Soleil Hernandez, Celina Liyao Li, Khyana T. Price, and Julian Vaughn Roberts. In addition to providing this wonderful outreach and mentoring opportunity, this year the Subcommittee is organizing the Diversity and Inclusion Symposium at the 2016 AAPM Annual Meeting. The intention of the Symposium is to raise awareness and expand the scope of diversity and inclusion beyond gender and race to include socio-economic status, religion, sexual orientation, and to educate the AAPM community of the importance of diversity. The symposium is scheduled for Wednesday, August 3rd from 7:30 am to 9:30 am.

The Medical Physics Residency Training and Promotion Subcommittee (chaired by John Antolak) is charged with promoting residency training programs and developing guidelines and templates to facilitate accreditation, and the Subcommittee oversees several work groups. The Work Group on Coordination of Medical Physics Residency Programs (chaired by Rajat Kudchadker), recently reached out to SDAMPP to try to improve their ability to communicate with and coordinate the activities of residency programs. The Work Group on Funding Options for Residency Programs (chaired

by Susan Richardson), has drafted a white paper on available funding options to help future residency programs and

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hopes to have it published later this year. After completing AAPM Report 249, an update to AAPM Report 90, The Work Group on Periodic Review of Medical Physics Residency Training (chaired by Joann Prisciandaro) is now focusing on developing a residency handbook template and a document on the fundamentals for fellowship programs. Howard Elson recently took over as chair of the Work Group on Professional Doctorate Degree for Medical Physics, and is working to reinvigorate activities in development of new DMP programs.

The Students and Trainees Subcommittee (chaired by Anna Rodrigues) is charged with encouraging communication and collaboration among medical physics students and disseminating information related to medical physics to current and prospective medical physics students. To this end, the subcommittee has been actively involved in organizing a number of activities and sessions for the AAPM Annual Meeting. Many of these events have been scheduled for Sunday, July 31st, which has been dubbed “Student and Trainee Day.” These events include the Residency Fair, Career Expo, and the Student Night Out. The subcommittee is also organizing the Partners for the Futures event (vendor demonstrations specifically designed for trainees in an effort to create opportunities for our corporate partners and trainees to meet and interact) which will run through-out the meeting, and an interview workshop.

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The Subcommittee on the Oversight of MedPhys Match (chaired by John Antolak) is AAPM booth 4051 // sunnuclear.com © 2016 Sun Nuclear Corporation. All rights reserved. charged with interfacing with National Matching Services (NMS) to establish the policy and procedures for the MedPhys match, and to review and provide recommendations on any potential MedPhys agreement violations. A summary of the 2016 MedPhys Match statistics are available on the NMS website and are provided below.

The Undergraduate Summer Fellowship and Outreach Subcommittee (chaired by Kenneth Matthews) is charged with assisting in the recruitment of outstanding undergraduate physics majors into medical physics graduate programs by providing fellowships and outreach opportunities. Students participating in the program are placed in a summer position with their mentoring institution for 10 weeks and awarded a $5,000 stipend. This year, the Subcommittee reviewed 50

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applications for the Summer Undergraduate Fellowship Program. A total of 13 fellowships were awarded — ten were sponsored by the AAPM Education Council through the AAPM Education & Research Fund, and three were funded by AAPM regional chapters (Delaware Valley, North Central, and Northwest). The recipients of these fellowships are Irene Duba, William S. Ferris, Jacob W. Geiger, Alexander Scot Giuffrida, Adam Robert Harpley, Sydney Anna Jupitz, Andrew Scott McGuffey, Daniel Molenhuis, Daniel James Shinnick, Brac Joseph Stiehl, Stefan M. Stryker, Robert Franklin Turner, and Eric M. Wallat.

The Working Group on Medical Physics Graduate Education Program Curriculum (chaired by Adam Cunha) is charged with reviewing and updating the recommended curriculum for medical physics graduate education programs.

The Subcommittee is exploring taking on a parallel role to the Medical Physics Residency Training and Promotion subcommittee in order to help promote guidelines and templates to facilitate accreditation and maintenance of accreditation for graduate programs. The committee is currently compiling a database of printed and online textbooks and education material with the goal of providing a database for educators. The work group is also currently reviewing and working on an update to AAPM Reports 197 and 197S. We hope this summary has provided you with a flavor of the work and contributions of ETC and its daughter subcommitteesvcand groups. We would1 like to extend thanks for their continued hard work and commitment AAPM working Clr Ad 6.75x4.75_16Jun15.pdf 6/15/16 11:24 our AM on behalf of Education Council. n

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The Gold Standard in Radiation Measurement

D

TG100, Application of Risk Analysis Methods to Radiotherapy Quality Management

uring the Annual Meeting AAPM offers a daylong Certificate Course on a topic of current interest.

The topic this year will be patient safety and quality improvement. With the release of AAPM Task Group 100, this topic becomes increasingly important and relevant to the practicing medical physicist and trainee. Upon fulfilling the requirements of the course, participants will receive a formal certificate of completion as recognition of their mastery of the material.

The course runs all day Wednesday and consists of 6 sessions, including educational and scientific sessions, and proffered papers. These sessions which provide basic education as well as a survey of emerging and advanced concepts. Participants

must enroll in advance. In addition to the Wednesday course there is an optional workshop component on Thursday which provides 3-hours of hands-on experience with risk analysis methods.

A highlight of this course is the special guest keynote speaker, Leilani Schweitzer, sharing her story of medical error and the lessons that have emerged from it.

Registration for the Certificate Course is now open as part of the Annual Meeting registration.

We hope to see you there!

Eric Ford, PhD and Jatinder Palta, PhD Course Organizers

Special Guest Keynote Speaker: Leilani Schweitzer Learning From Medical Errors: A Partnership for Progress Open to all attendees of AAPM 2016 Wednesday, August 3 | 1:45-2:45 PM | Ballroom C Leilani Schweitzer understands medical error as few others do: through the death of her child. Faced with this profound loss, she has made a choice. Instead of pursing action through the courts she has begun working together with the healthcare community to ask why mistakes happen and what can be done to respond to them in a meaningful way.

In this keynote address, Leilani will share her story and the lessons that have emerged. She will highlight the importance of investigating and understanding errors and the advances that she has made in partnership with the healthcare community. Her experience is a powerful reminder of the accidents that no one wants to happen and what can be done to stop them.

AAPM Newsletter • Volume 41 No. 4 JULY | AUGUST 2016

SCIENCE COUNCIL REPORT Jean Moran, PhD, Ann Arbor, MI, Joe Deasy, PhD, New York, NY and Paul Kinahan, PhD, Seattle, WA

S

cience Council has been focusing on both strategic and operational initiatives.

Several of these items were topics at the June Science Council retreat which was held at AAPM Headquarters.

AAPM – NIH Long-Range Research Vision Roundtable May 26 2016, AAPM Headquarters) The AAPM Science Council held a first-ever discussion with NIH scientists and program officers exploring how AAPM and its scientists can align their efforts with the long-term directions and goals of the NIH. This was a small-scale, two-way discussion exploring possibilities, and to see what alignment there could be between the longer-term scientific priorities of the NIH and AAPM.

SUGGESTION BOX

There were 10 NIH program officers attending from the NCI Division of Cancer Biology (DCB), the NCI Division of Cancer Treatment and Diagnosis (DCTD), and NIBIB. Throughout the day, there were three focused sessions: (1) Cancer biology and the Physical Sciences in Oncology Centers (PSOC), (2) Imaging, and (3) Radiation Oncology. The meeting was organized by Joe Deasy, Chair AAPM Research Committee, Paul Kinahan, Co-Chair AAPM Research Committee, Benedick Fraass, Chair of the AAPM Science Council, and Shayna Knazik, AAPM program staff. Also representing AAPM were three other senior leadership scientists: Daniel Low, Maryellen Giger, and John Boone.

A full report has been drafted and will be disseminated once it is finalized, but we can provide some highlights here: •

AAPM members remain competitive in NIH grant funding in terms of the total available funding. However, the amount of funding per member has dropped by roughly 50% over the last 15 years, corresponding to the increase in AAPM membership.

•

AAPM can and should organize small workshops with NIH on focused topics. Several potential topics were discussed, including real-time MRI-guided therapy, quantitative imaging and treatment planning in clinical trials, radionuclide therapy, biologically guided therapy, image-guided drug delivery, and other areas.

•

In addition to small workshops, there is a desire to have a larger meeting on an annual basis near the NIH, similar to what ASTRO now leads with AAPM support.

•

AAPM will work to improve identification of physicists who are available to the NIH to help with the grant review process as well as with informal internal NIH discussions and workshops that consider new research directions and activities.

•

Within NCI imaging, there is a strong emphasis that new funding opportunities should bridge across more than one NCI program, center, or division. Within the NCI, the emphasis in successful technology-related research projects is to address important clinical or biological questions, while at NIBIB the emphasis is more on the technology itself but with a clear medical or biological application.

•

AAPM should collect and distribute information to members on focused funding opportunities and development of grant writing skills.

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Participants agreed that the meeting exceeded expectations, and that it should operate on an annual basis, partly to also act as a planning meeting for workshops. These findings were reviewed with the AAPM Science Council on June 7, with an enthusiastic reception that led to several concepts for workshops in development. We believe that an increased relevance of AAPM to NIH initiatives, achieved by our increased level of interaction, will ultimately improve the long-term success of new and future AAPM grant applications.

Work Group FUTURE WG FUTURE is organizing a two-day workshop “Provocative Questions for Medical Physics in Oncology” at the end of September in Boston to explore new areas that Physics can offer to Oncology. The workshop design is modeled after the provocative questions initiative of the NCI, which was one of the very successful endeavors of past director Harold Varmus to guide cancer research in general. Approximately 20 participants who are key players in various clinical, pre-clinical, physics and associated disciplines will be invited. The expectation is that the group will come up with provocative questions Jacek Capala (NCI, DCTD), Joe Deasy, and that have the potential Jim Deye (NCI, DCTD) to guide Medical Physics research for the next decade and beyond. Answering those questions should make a substantial difference in our understanding and/or treatment of cancer. Rather than focusing on their own research, the participants are encouraged to challenge traditional thinking and jointly explore new exciting territory. The workshop will be web-casted to the AAPM membership, and AAPM members will have an opportunity to Paul Kinahan, Huiming Zhang (NCI, DCTD) and Cheryl Marks (NCI, DCB) submit questions to be potentially discussed at the workshop. We hope you’ll participate!

Task Group Reports An important benefit of AAPM membership is the creation and availability of AAPM Task Group reports. The number of proposals and reports has increased as well as the time from initial proposal to final report in some cases. Both proposals and reports go through a multi-stage review and approval process starting at the work group level and through the chain up to Science Council. Approved reports are then submitted to the website for posting or if applicable, submitted to a journal for publication. Science Council is fully committed to getting guidance to AAPM members in a more efficient time frame without compromising the quality of the reports. Science Council will be piloting a few approaches for improvements that will be reviewed with the leadership of all Councils for input. Transparency will be added to the task group proposal review process by having a formal request for proposals and a streamlined review. Stay tuned as the Imaging Physics Committee and Therapy Physics Committee pilot the new process. For the review of completed reports, an Ad Hoc group is creating recommendations to revise the flow and structure of the review of task group

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reports. Improvements under consideration include streamlining the review process by engaging a representative from Science Council and from other Councils as appropriate when reports are reviewed at the parent committee level (such as Imaging Physics Committee and Therapy Physics Committee). Reviews will be documented similar to how manuscript reviews are done. As completed documents travel through the review process, a standard cover sheet will include information such as the names of reviewers, number of comments, and a report on any contradictions that were raised during the review and how they were addressed. Transparency in the review process will be added by including all of the reviews and responses by the task group authors. Have you been considering proposing a task group? Please stay tuned for the formal request for proposals (RFP) which will describe a more organized and efficient process for formation and approval of task groups. n

The AAPM Science Council met in person and via teleconference at AAPM HQ on June 8-9, 2016.

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AAPM Newsletter • Volume 41 No. 4 JULY | AUGUST 2016

IROC REPORT David Followill, PhD, Houston, TX

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he IROC Houston QA Center is constantly asked whether their phantom credentialing criteria is too generous. To answer this question, we analyzed the results from the Head & Neck (HN) and prostate IMRT phantoms to determine the effect tightening the acceptance criteria would have on the phantom pass rates. These two phantom types were used to credential institutions to participate in NCI clinical trials that allow the use of IMRT. The prostate phantom is no longer used for credentialing whereas the IMRT H&N phantom now represents the standard for IMRT credentialing. The phantoms are shipped to institutions where they are filled with water and undergo imaging, treatment planning, setup and irradiation, just as a patient would. Each phantom houses targets and organs at risk. The dosimeters used include radiochromic film and TLD. Currently, the dosimeter results are compared to the institution’s treatment plan dose calculations using acceptance criteria of ±7% for PTV TLD doses and ≥85% pixels must pass a ±7%/4 mm global gamma index analyses. Pass rates for the H&N and prostate phantoms were recalculated using three different tighter criteria options: 1) 5% TLD and 85% pixels 7%/4 gamma, 2) 7% TLD and 90% pixels 7%/4 gamma and 3) 5% TLD and 90% pixels 7%/4 gamma. The gamma analysis was repeated for 30 irradiations of each phantom to estimate results for each of the three tighter criteria. The most current pass rates for 2015 using current criteria of 7% TLD and 85% pixels 7%/4 gamma for the H&N and prostate phantoms are 90% and 87%, respectively. Applying a 5% TLD and 85% pixels 7%/4 gamma criteria to all irradiations that had gamma results dropped the pass rates to 76% and 82%, respectively as seen in Table 1. Applying the 7% TLD and 90% pixels 7%/4 gamma criteria resulted in a similar pass rate as the previous tighter criteria of 80% and 84%. Tightening the criteria to 5% TLD and 90% pixels 7%/4 gamma dropped the pass rate to 69% and 77%, respectively, using criteria 3.

While applying tighter acceptance criteria to the phantom credentialing results has potential to increase quality in clinical trials by setting the QA bar just a little higher, it also has the effect of reducing the number of potential clinical trial accruing sites. The acceptance criteria used by IROC Houston has always been set based on pilot studies for each phantom type (results of first 10-15 irradiations), TLD and film dosimeter uncertainty and discussions with the clinical trial groups so as to not prohibitively inhibit potential accrual. These end-to-end QA phantoms serve as one of the most beneficial independent peer review mechanisms assuring high quality data for NCI’s clinical trials.

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ABR NEWS Geoffrey Ibbott, PhD, ABR Board of Governors and Jerry Allison, PhD, J. Anthony Seibert, PhD, and Michael Herman, PhD, ABR Trustees

A Significant New Pilot for Improving MOC Part 3 — The Cognitive Exam

As part of the ongoing review of its Maintenance of Certification Program, the American Board of Radiology (ABR) has committed to evaluating a revision to MOC Part 3: Assessment of Knowledge, Judgment and Skills. The ABR’s Board members and staff have listened to the concerns of diplomates regarding the MOC program and have responded by evaluating a new direction that is consistent with the goal of providing a meaningful credential that is backed by evidence-based processes and, at the same time, increasing its relevance to the practices of ABR diplomates.

The ABR is developing a process to replace the current 10-year requirement for a traditional proctored examination offered at Pearson Vue exam centers with a continuous assessment that leverages advances in technology to bring the process to diplomates online. The online longitudinal assessment model that will first be piloted by the diagnostic radiology diplomates, incorporates modern and more relevant adult learning concepts to provide psychometrically valid sampling of diplomate knowledge. At the same time, the ABR will offer real-time feedback for diplomates to remediate any gaps in knowledge as they are uncovered. This pilot is designed to accomplish the two major goals of MOC Part 3 as it relates to Continuing Certification: (1) providing assurance of diplomate competence for patients and the public, and (2) supporting continuous professional development through lifelong learning.

This new process was first piloted and evaluated by the American Board of Anesthesiology with overwhelming diplomate satisfaction. The new MOC Part 3 process will not affect the ABR’s initial certification examinations for diagnostic radiology, radiation oncology, medical physics, interventional radiology, or any subspecialties.

Overview of the Process In the online assessment platform, the ABR is designing, diplomates will receive weekly emails with links to questions relevant to medical physics. The questions will be based on common clinical knowledge in DMP, NMP or TMP. For convenience, questions may be answered singly or, for a reasonable time, in small batches. After opening a web-based question, the diplomate will be allowed a limited amount of time, appropriate to the question, to answer.

Diplomates will learn immediately whether they answered correctly or not and will be presented with the question’s rationale, a critique of the answers, and brief educational material. One or more references will be provided for further study by diplomates. This feedback will assist diplomates by guiding their CME (MOC Part 2) plan for lifelong learning, an essential component of professional development. Those who answer questions incorrectly will receive future questions on the same topic to gauge whether they have learned the material.

Online longitudinal assessment is designed to have minimal impact on a diplomate’s workday and requires no time away from work or travel expense. The goal of this evidence-based education model is to ensure both an assessment of knowledge as well as a personal learning benefit from participation. The potential for retesting areas of weakness provides a further opportunity for diplomates’ self-assessment of their professional growth.

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Implementation It will take considerable time for the ABR to fully develop, test, and implement this process for MOC Part 3. Thus, precise implementation rules and details, including ultimate format, scoring, and reporting, are yet to be finalized. The ABR anticipates a six-month pilot for diagnostic radiologists to be launched in the latter part of 2018. After the pilot has been completed and any necessary modifications have been made, availability to ABR diplomates may begin as early as mid-2019. As with all of the ABR’s MOC improvements, the finalized Part 3 assessment process will be phased in for diplomates in the various ABR disciplines as quickly as possible and as appropriate to the discipline.

Individual diplomates participating in MOC can determine their need to take the current MOC exam by logging in to myABR: •

Those who need to PASS AN MOC EXAMINATION by MARCH 2, 2017 (as indicated on the Part 3 tab in myABR) are still required to take and pass the exam in 2016 to meet the Part 3 requirement.

•

All other diplomates in all of ABR’s disciplines will be deferred from completing the Part 3 requirement until the new MOC Part 3 process is available in their discipline and therefore will not need to take the traditional MOC exam. A corollary to this is that diplomates, not needing to take an exam in 2016, will not benefit by taking the traditional MOC exam earlier.

•

Updates to myABR and the ABR website will be implemented in the coming months to reflect these processes and timelines.

•

To ensure their certificates remain valid, diplomates must continue meeting requirements for Parts 1, 2, and 4 of MOC and make their yearly attestations in myABR.

The design of the new MOC Part 3 is a work in progress, and some details, including the launch timeline, may well change over the next year. The ABR will post information, including FAQs, on the ABR website and will periodically report progress through its existing communication routes.

Some Important FAQs for Medical Physicists Do I still need to take an exam if I’m required to pass an MOC examination by March 2, 2017?

Yes, you are still required to take and pass the exam in 2016 to meet the Part 3 requirement. You may confirm your need to take an examination by consulting the Part 3 tab in myABR. I just checked myABR, and it shows something different from what you’re telling me. Why? Updates to myABR will be implemented in the coming weeks to reflect the new MOC Part 3 process.

What if I don’t need to take an MOC exam until 2017 or later?

You will be deferred from completing the Part 3 requirement until the new MOC Part 3 process is available in your discipline. So, you will not need to take a traditional MOC examination.

What if I’ve already registered for a 2016 MOC exam but no longer need to take it?

You can email or call (520) 519-2152 and ask to cancel your exam.

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AAPM Newsletter • Volume 41 No. 4 JULY | AUGUST 2016

ABR, cont.

How will the online assessment work?

You will receive weekly emails with links to questions relevant to your registered practice profile. For convenience, questions may be answered singly or, for a reasonable time, in small batches. After opening a web-based question, you will be allowed a limited amount of time, appropriate to the question, to answer.

How will I know if my answer is correct?

You will learn immediately whether you answered correctly, and you will be given the question’s rationale, a critique of the answers, and brief educational material.

What if my answer is incorrect?

You will receive future questions on the same topic to gauge whether you have learned the material and remediated knowledge gaps.

How will I know if I have satisfied requirements for MOC Part 3?

It will take considerable time for the ABR to fully develop, test, and implement the new process for MOC Part 3.

Therefore, exact rules and details, including final format, scoring, and reporting, are yet to be finalized.

What happens if I am “not meeting MOC requirements” or need to reinstate my certificate?

A medical physics MOC exam, like the current exam, will be given at Pearson Vue centers in 2017. The ABR is studying alternative means of handling this in 2018 and beyond.

Summary The medical physics leadership of the ABR believes that the new continuous assessment program will have many advantages for diplomates and will share additional details as they become available. n

AAPM 2016 ELECTIONS The 2016 AAPM elections is now open for online voting.

Deadline to submit your vote electronically: July 13, 2016

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focus on our future Visit the AAPM E&R Fund Donors’ Lounge Hall D – E Bridge, Level 2, Convention Center To Donate During AAPM 2016 in Washington, DC July 31 – August 4, 2016 The AAPM Education & Research Fund supports the development of our great profession via the provision of seed money for research, Summer Undergraduate Fellowships, DREAM Program Fellowships, fellowships for PhD students and support for clinical residencies.

Without contributions from our generous members we would never have been able to provide the now over 100 grants, fellowships and residencies since the inception of the Fund 20 years ago.

All contributions are tax deductible. Larger donations may be designated for specific fellowships, residencies, travel awards, research or other suitable purposes.

GIVE TO THE AAPM EDUCATION & RESEARCH FUND Donate Now: www.aapm.org/education/edfundintro.asp

AAPM Newsletter • Volume 41 No. 4 JULY | AUGUST 2016

WEBSITE EDITOR’S REPORT George C. Kagadis, PhD, Rion, Greece

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his issue of the Newsletter is being published just prior to the AAPM 2016 Annual Meeting which is taking place July 31 – August 4, 2016 in Washington, DC. Everyone is getting prepared for this event, and I am sure we are going to have a great week, full of presentations and meetings advancing our science, education, and professionalism. This event is being advertised on our website, as well as our various social media presences, especially Twitter.

The AAPM Information Services (IS) staff has once again implemented the use of a hashtag (#AAPM2016) for the Annual Meeting. The aim of a discrete hashtag every year is to facilitate searching for all tweets relating to the Annual Meeting.

IS staff will be posting information about intriguing events, talks, and general information for the Annual Meeting, so please stay tuned for useful updates.

Last year, AAPM announced a policy governing Social Media for AAPM Groups. This Policy aims to ensure that all AAPM-related content on social media sites is consistent with the organization’s mission and objectives. Our social media presence encompasses not only our site, but our presence on Facebook, Twitter, Flickr, LinkedIn, as well as our BBS. When we discuss social media we should keep all of these in mind. About two months ago, we came across an incident where a member posted information about a job board on our BBS. This was reviewed by the AAPM Executive Committee, and found to be promoting a commercial venture, competitive of AAPM’s Career Services, and consequently removed from the BBS. In order to avoid any such incidents, I would suggest in the future that everyone familiarize themselves with the AAPM Social Media Policy, as well as the Terms and Conditions, available in the footer on every page of the AAPM website. There are also “Guidelines for Good Practice” regarding the appropriateness of the content you wish to post on any of our web presences.

More specifically: a. You are personally responsible for whatever you post online. If you use your capacity as an AAPM member (of any type, i.e. full member, student member, Fellow member, etc.), ensure that what you say looks professional. b. Do not post advertisements, promotions, or solicitations for products and/or services including those related to jobs without written permission from the AAPM Website Editor.

c. Only post accurate and reputable information. If you are in doubt about the reliability of the information’s source, consider not using it and/or asking for advice from the AAPM Website Editor. d. AAPM followers of our social media presence expect the most up-to-date and reliable information. Please post information with “as of” date only in your area of expertise and please review the already available posts to avoid redundancy and/or errors. e. Always avoid posting provocative statements and/or giving irritable, angry responses to posted material. Please point out any observed errors, but never disparage the person.

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Website Editor, cont.

f. Do not redistribute members-only content (journal articles, videos, member newsletters, etc.) to a wider audience. g. Be respectful of the privacy of others. Avoid publishing or citing personal details and photographs of individuals without their permission. h. Comments are a foundational aspect of conversations in social media. Don’t delete comments just because you disagree with the commenter’s opinion. Please monitor your social media account/sub-account and delete only comments that are obviously spam, abusive, obscene or contain links to irrelevant or inappropriate blogs or websites.

Please do not hesitate to contact us should you need any further clarification about the policy and the guidelines for posting any material on the various AAPM social media sites.

I hope you find the AAPM website useful, visit it often, and send me your feedback or contact me directly. n

AAPM 2016 in Washington DC: Career Services and Student and Trainee Opportunities In addition to attending the many sessions and social events, the Annual Meeting offers an on-site Career Services recruitment connection to job seekers and employers alike, including paper resume and job posting boards and a convenient interview room.

There are also a variety of informative events being held during the Annual Meeting at the first-ever Student and Trainee Day, including a Residency Fair and Career Expo. Learn about these and other exciting on-site events at www.aapm.org/meetings/2016AM/AssociationMtgs.asp!

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AAPM Newsletter • Volume 41 No. 4 JULY | AUGUST 2016

LEGISLATIVE & REGULATORY AFFAIRS REPORT Lynne Fairobent, Alexandria, VA Requests Comments on Proposed Agreement State Policy Statement

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he U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) has revised and consolidated two policy statements on NRC’ s Agreement State Programs: the ‘‘ Policy Statement on Adequacy and Compatibility of Agreement State Programs’’ and the ‘‘ Statement of Principles and Policy for the Agreement State Program.’’

The resulting proposed single policy statement has been revised to add that public health and safety includes physical protection of agreement material.

Comments must be submitted to NRC by August 16, 2016.

The Commission’s proposed consolidated policy removes details on the Integrated Materials Performance Evaluation Program (IMPEP) and the ‘‘Principles of Good Regulation.’’ The NRC added a description of the National Materials Program (NMP).

Of note is the change to the definition of Levels of Compatibility, especially Compatibility Category B. Based on comments received, the NRC staff noted that there is a wide variation on the interpretation of the description of Compatibility Category B and of the definition of significant transboundary implication. In light of this, the Commission is proposing a new description of Compatibility Category B to eliminate the phrase ‘‘significant transboundary implication.’’

NRC stated that: i. “An ‘‘adequate’’ program includes those program elements of a radiation control regulatory program necessary to maintain an acceptable level of protection of public health and safety within an Agreement State. An Agreement State’s radiation control program is adequate to protect public health and safety if administration of the program provides reasonable assurance of protection of public health and safety in regulating the use of agreement material.

The level of protection afforded by the program elements of the NRC’s materials regulatory program is presumed to be adequate to provide a reasonable assurance of protection of public health and safety. Therefore, the overall level of protection of public health and safety provided by a State program should be equivalent to, or greater than, the level provided by the NRC program.” ii. “A ‘‘compatible’’ program consists of those program elements necessary to sustain an orderly pattern of regulation of radiation protection. An Agreement State has the flexibility to adopt and implement program elements within the State’s jurisdiction that are not addressed by the NRC, or program elements not required for compatibility (i.e., those NRC program elements not assigned to Compatibility Category A, B, or C). However, such program elements of an Agreement State relating to agreement material shall (1) be compatible with those of the NRC (i.e., should not create conflicts, duplications, gaps, or other conditions that would jeopardize an orderly pattern in the regulation of agreement material on a nationwide basis); (2) not preclude a practice authorized by the AEA and in the national interest; and (3) not preclude the ability of the Commission to evaluate the effectiveness of the NRC and Agreement State programs for agreement material with respect to protection of public health and safety. For purposes of compatibility, the State shall adopt program elements assigned Compatibility Categories A, B, and C.”

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AAPM Newsletter • Volume 41 No. 4 JULY | AUGUST 2016

Legislative and Regulatory Affairs, cont.

“The proposed new definition of levels of compatibility are: i. Category A — Basic Radiation Protection Standards. This category includes basic radiation protection standards that encompass dose limits, concentration and release limits related to radiation protection in part 20 of title 10 of the Code of Federal Regulations (10 CFR), that are generally applicable, and the dose limits for land disposal of radioactive waste in 10 CFR 61.41.7 Also included in this category are a limited number of definitions, signs, labels, and scientific terms that are necessary for a common understanding of radiation protection principles among licensees, regulatory agencies, and members of the public. Such State standards should be essentially identical to those of the NRC, unless Federal statutes provide the State authority to adopt different standards. Basic radiation protection standards do not include constraints or other limits below the level associated with ‘‘adequate protection’’ that take into account considerations such as economic cost and other factors. ii. Category B — Cross Jurisdictional Program Elements. This category pertains to a small number of program elements that cross jurisdictional boundaries and that should be addressed to ensure uniformity of regulation on a nationwide basis. Examples include, but are not limited to, sealed source and device registration certificates, transportation regulations, and radiography certification. Agreement State program elements shall be essentially identical to those of the NRC. Because program elements used in the Agreement State Program are necessary to maintain an acceptable level of protection of public health and safety, economic factors 8 should not be considered. iii. Category C — Other NRC Program Elements. These are other NRC program elements that are important for an Agreement State to implement in order to avoid conflicts, duplications, gaps, or other conditions that would jeopardize an orderly pattern in the regulation of agreement material on a nationwide basis. Such Agreement State program elements should embody the essential objective of the corresponding NRC program elements. Agreement State program elements may be more restrictive than NRC program elements; however, they should not be so restrictive as to prohibit a practice authorized by the AEA and in the national interest without an adequate public health and safety or environmental basis related to radiation protection. iv. Category D — Program Elements Not Required for Compatibility. These are program elements that do not meet any of the criteria listed in Compatibility Category A, B, or C above and are not required to be adopted for purposes of compatibility. v. Category NRC — Areas of Exclusive NRC Regulatory Authority. These are program elements over which the NRC cannot discontinue its regulatory authority pursuant to the AEA or provisions of title 10 of the Code of Federal Regulations. However, an Agreement State may inform its licensees of these NRC requirements through an appropriate mechanism under the State’s administrative procedure laws as long as the State adopts these provisions solely for the purposes of notification, and does not exercise any regulatory authority as a result.”

If you would like AAPM to consider any comments on this draft policy statement, please email them to Richard Martin, Government Relations Specialist or Lynne Fairobent, Senior Manager for Government Relations no later than August 1, 2016 in order that the comments can be consolidated and approved for submittal to NRC by August 16, 2016.

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AAPM Newsletter • Volume 41 No. 4 JULY | AUGUST 2016

Legislative and Regulatory Affairs, cont.

Individual comments may be submitted to NRC by August 16, 2016 by any of the following methods: •

Federal Rulemaking Web site: Go to http://www.regulations.gov and search for Docket ID NRC–2016–0094.

•

Mail comments to: Cindy Bladey, Office of Administration, Mail Stop: OWFN 12–H08, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Washington, DC 20555– 0001.

New Version of DICOM Standard Available — Replaces the 2016b Release.

•

The 2016c release of the DICOM standard is now available from the DICOM home page or from here. It is also indexed from Editor’s status page.

•

Release notes are available here.

•

The changes from the 2016b release are shown highlighted in PDF files; note that changes to figures are not detected and some changed figures are not rendered in the diff files: http://www.dclunie.com/dicom-status/status. html#DiffsStandard2016b2016c

IAEA Publishes Nuclear Medicine Handbook The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) recently published the Nuclear Medicine Physics Handbook.

The handbook, intended for teachers, students and residents involved in medical physics programs, provides a comprehensive overview of the knowledge required in physics, instrumentation and data processing for the practice of medical physics in modern nuclear medicine. A set of teaching slides were also developed to assist in presenting the material in each chapter. You can download a PDF version of the slides or register with the IAEA to obtain the Power Point version.

In addition, the IAEA has made available the IAEA Radiotracer Biodistribution Template (IAEA-RaBiT) — a free resource for (organ level) radionuclide dosimetry research and applications for those involved with internal dosimetry.

The IAEA-RaBiT is a standard-format template that can be used to organize biodistribution information within a center, reporting it in publications, and support high throughput dosimetry protocols. It is freely available for download/use, created as a community resource.

Finally, for those interested in Quality Assurance and Quality Controls of SPECT systems, IAEA has also developed an e-learning module for SPECT systems and tutorial videos on the IAEA Human Health Campus. n

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AAPM Newsletter • Volume 41 No. 4 JULY | AUGUST 2016

ELECTION TO FELLOWSHIP IN AAPM Geoff Ibbott, PhD, Houston, TX on behalf of the Awards and Honors Committee Soon after this article is published, AAPM will announce the opportunity for nomination of new AAPM Fellows. Fellowship in AAPM recognizes an individual’s contributions through one or more of the following: •

Service to AAPM

•

The advancement of medical physics knowledge based upon independent original research or development

•

Medical physics educational activities, especially in regard to the education and training of medical physicists, medical students, medical residents and allied health personnel

•

Leadership in the practice of medical physics

Award of Fellowship requires that a nominee have excelled in one of these categories, but the Awards & Honors Committee considers candidates most worthy of Fellowship to be those who have made contributions to the Association itself, in addition to their contributions in one or more of the other areas.

According to the Rules of the Association, to be eligible for nomination, individuals must have been Full or Emeritus Members of AAPM for at least ten years, including the two years immediately preceding their election to Fellow. There must have been no more than one interruption in membership. Members may be nominated either by a Chapter of the Association, or by any two Fellows, whose membership is in good standing. Nominations made by a Chapter shall be signed by the President of the Chapter and be accompanied by a signed letter of support of the nomination by one Fellow in good standing. Nominations made by two Fellows shall be accompanied by signed letters of support of the nomination from each of the Fellows.

It should be noted that the length of membership is only one of several criteria considered by AAPM when selecting candidates for Fellowship. The Awards & Honors Committee carefully considers all of the nominee’s accomplishments, and selects those who have reached an appropriate threshold based on a relative weighting and analysis of the candidates’ proffered qualifications. The evaluation criteria and relative weightings are reviewed regularly and updated by the Committee to ensure that the relative values assigned to different activities are appropriate and relevant.

The Committee also assesses the proportion of Fellows among the entire membership and endeavors to maintain a proportion that is consistent with other professional societies. The Committee then forwards its recommendations to the AAPM Board of Directors for approval.

The Committee reviews the nominations for Fellowship each year in the fall and selects candidates to receive this honor at the AAPM Annual Meeting the following summer. At the Awards Ceremony, each new Fellow is called to the stage and handed a plaque by the Association’s President, while a brief description of their accomplishments is read. This honor is an important means of recognition of AAPM members who have distinguished themselves through their professional activities.

The individual Fellow or chapter making the nomination starts the process online, which creates a distinct web page for the nominee that is identified only by an ID number. The ID number is then used by the nominee and by members who

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AAPM Newsletter • Volume 41 No. 4 JULY | AUGUST 2016

Election to Fellowship, cont.

are making or supporting the nomination. The Fellow or chapter making the nomination must submit a letter explaining why they believe the candidate should be considered for fellowship. As described above, at least one other Fellow must submit a letter of recommendation. The letters should not reiterate the nominee’s CV, but should objectively explain how the nominee has distinguished him- or herself and convincingly make the case for award of Fellowship by the Association.

Once a member has been nominated, the process requires that the nominee upload a CV and a brief biographical sketch. The nominee then will provide quite extensive information to support the nomination. The information falls into the categories mentioned above.

Under the heading of “Service to AAPM,” the nominee will indicate all activities in support of the Association. Clearly, terms as an officer of the national organization or a chapter, as a board member, or as an annual meeting program director, reflect a high degree of commitment to the Association. The A&H Committee also considers individual appointments, and membership or chairmanship of councils, committees, subcommittees and task groups. This information is populated directly from the AAPM database.

In the section for Research and Scholarly Contributions, the nominee describes whether or not he or she has served as PI of extramural grants, has published in peer-reviewed journals, has made oral or poster presentations, or has published proceedings papers, among other relevant activities.

The section on Teaching and Mentoring enables the nominee to describe the formal courses they’ve taught, lectures they’ve given at, for example, an AAPM Summer School, the number of PhD or MS students for whom they’ve served as supervisor, and whether or not they’ve served as a graduate or residency program director. Again, this is just a subset of the information that can be provided.

In a section labeled “Other,” the nominee can describe his or her contributions to specialty certification boards, other societies relevant to medical physics, and government advisory committees.

The biographical sketch and the letters making or supporting the nomination can provide further detail or explanation, and can describe the nominee’s role in his or her clinical practice.

Election to Fellowship in AAPM signifies that the recipient has demonstrated excellence in leadership to the profession, service to the Association, research and scholarly works, or teaching and mentoring. Not all who are nominated in a given year will be selected for this honor. But members may be elected at a point in the future, after they have added to their list of achievements. The award of Fellowship is a significant honor, and the A&H Committee hopes that this article helps to explain how the selections are made. n

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Congratulations

to the Recipients of the Following Awards, Achievements & Honors in 2016!

WILLIAM D. COOLIDGE GOLD MEDAL Paul M. DeLuca, Ph.D.

EDITH QUIMBY LIFETIME ACHIEVEMENT AWARD Wendell R. Lutz, Ph.D. Robert J. Pizzutiello, M.S. Michael V. Yester, Ph.D.

MARVIN M.D. WILLIAMS AWARD Keith J. Strauss, M.Sc.

HONORARY MEMBERSHIP Wilfried De Neve, M.D., Ph.D. Anthony L. Zietman, M.D.

JOHN S. LAUGHLIN YOUNG SCIENTIST AWARD Arman Rahmim, Ph.D.

FELLOW NOMINATIONS Peter Balter, Ph.D. Evan Boote, Ph.D. Janice Campbell, Ph.D. Yue Cao, Ph.D. Robert Cormack, Ph.D. Magnus Dahlbom, Ph.D. Joseph Deasy, Ph.D. Larry John Filipow, DPhil Jeffrey Brian Fowlkes, Ph.D. Eric Gingold, Ph.D. Jiang Hsieh, Ph.D. David Jaffray, Ph.D. Robert Jeraj, Ph.D. Jennifer Johnson, M.S. Bruce Libby, Ph.D. Hsiao-Ming Lu, Ph.D. Zhengfeng Lu, Ph.D. Vrinda Narayana, Ph.D. Wayne Newhauser, Ph.D. Richard Popple, Ph.D. Frank Ranallo, Ph.D. Susan Richardson, Ph.D. Timothy Ritter, Ph.D.

Anil Sethi, Ph.D. Ke Sheng, Ph.D. Jason Sohn, Ph.D. Srinivasan Vedantham, Ph.D. Jihong Wang, Ph.D. Jacqueline Zoberi, Ph.D.

MOSES AND SYLVIA GREENFIELD PAPER AWARD (NON-DOSIMETRY) “Breast Dose in mammography is about 30% lower when realistic heterogeneous glandular distributions are considered,” by Andrew M. Hernandez, J. Anthony Seibert, John M. Boone – Medical Physics 42, 6337 (2015).

FARRINGTON DANIELS PAPER AWARD “Investigating the accuracy of microstereotactic-body-radiotherapy utilizing anatomically accurate 3D printed rodent-morphic dosimeters,”

by Steven T. Bache, Titania Juang, Matthew D. Belley, Bridget F. Koontz, John Adamovics, Terry T. Yoshizumi, David G. Kirsch, Mark Oldham – Medical Physics. 42, 846 (2015).

JOURNAL OF APPLIED CLINICAL MEDICAL PHYSICS PAPER AWARDS Editor-in-Chief Award “Comparison of pediatric radiation dose and vessel visibility on angiographic systems using piglets as a surrogate: anti-scatter grid removal vs lower detector air kerma settings with a grid; a preclinical investigation,” by Keith J. Strauss, John M. Racadio, Todd A. Abruzzo, Neil D. Johnson, Manish N. Patel, Kamlesh U. Kukreja, Mark J.H. den Hartog, Bart P.A. Hoonaert, Rami A. Nachabe – Journal of Applied Clinical Medical Physics, 16(5) 2015.

Medical Imaging Physics Award “A measurement-based X-ray source model characterization for CT dosimetry computations,” by Mitchell Sommerville, Yannick Poirier, Mauro Tambasco – Journal of Applied Clinical Medical Physics, 16(6) (2015).

Radiation Oncology Physics Award “Pion effects in flattening filter-free radiation beams,” by Robert A. Corns, Vicky W. Huang, Steven D. Thomas Mail – Journal of Applied Clinical Medical Physics, 16(6) (2015).

Radiation Measurements Award “Percent depth-dose distribution discrepancies from very small volume ion chambers,” by Vikren Sarkar, Brian Wang, Hui Zhao, Bart Lynch, Joshua A. James, Kiernan T. McCullough, Bill J. Salter – Journal of Applied Clinical Medical Physics, 16(2) (2015).

All of the award, achievement and honor recipients will be recognized during the 2016 AAPM Annual Meeting in Washington, DC at the Awards and Honors Ceremony and Reception. Please join us in congratulating all of the recipients: DATE: Monday, August 1, 2016 TIME: 6:30 PM PLACE: Ballroom A, Level Three, Convention Center

AAPM Newsletter • Volume 41 No. 4 JULY | AUGUST 2016

CAMPEP REPORT Brenda Clark, Vancouver, BC, Canada, Chair CAMPEP Graduate Education Program Review Committee

CAMPEP Standards Revision — May19, 2016 In preparation for a complete revision of the application and review software, a group of ten members of the CAMPEP Board of Directors and Graduate and Residency Program Review Committees, together with two AAPM staff, recently spent a full day reviewing and revising sections 1 to 7 of the CAMPEP Graduate Program and Residency Program standards. A complete review of these standards had not been done since they were first constructed from the original CAMPEP guidelines at the end of 2013. The rationale for this work was to confirm that: •

each standard is worded appropriately,

•

each statement is a standard as distinct from a guideline,

•

compliance monitoring is feasible,

•

there are no omissions and the standards are comprehensive and sufficient, and

•

the numbering is appropriate and consistent between the Graduate Program Standards and the Residency Program Standards to facilitate DMP applications and their review.

Section 8 addressing the curriculum was not included in this review.

This proved to be an intense effort by a dedicated group of volunteers (see photo) and has resulted in much improved documents. Some wording was clarified, some wording was changed to harmonize the graduate and residency standards, some numbering was changed as standards were reordered and relocated, and one section was added and another removed. A list of the substantive changes has been distributed to the directors of the accredited programs for comment, and the revised documents will be presented to the CAMPEP Board for final approval at their meeting in Washington, DC in August. n

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AAPM Newsletter • Volume 41 No. 4 JULY | AUGUST 2016

REPORT FROM THE IMAGING PRACTICE ACCREDITATION SUBCOMMITTEE Tyler Fisher, MS, Costa Mesa, CA, Chad Dillon, MS, Alpharetta, GA and Carly Williams, MS, Dover, FL

Comparison of the Medical Physics Testing Requirements for CT between the Four FDA Approved Accreditation Bodies Currently there are four accreditation bodies approved to provide advanced diagnostic imaging accreditation as required under the Medicare Improvements for Patients and Providers Act of 2008 (MIPPA). These include the American College of Radiology (ACR), the Joint Commission (JC), the Intersocietal Accreditation Commission (IAC), and RadSite. Accreditation bodies are unique, each bringing a slightly different philosophy to the market. Common areas required for accreditation include: quality control of equipment, policy and procedures, personnel qualifications, safety evaluations and phantom and/or clinical images. All accreditation bodies require some form of quality control evaluation of equipment but the number, scope and passing criteria of these tests can vary between organizations. All organizations require an annual quality control evaluation of equipment be performed by a medical physicist.

The ACR focuses on clinical and phantom image review, imaging protocols, the technologist QC program and staff credentialing and competency. Phantom images (acquired within the previous six months) include both an image quality phantom (ACR CT phantom) and CTDI phantom. The ACR clearly defines the required equipment evaluation tests required along with passing criteria. Information about ACR Accreditation can be found here.

The Joint Commission imaging standards are now fully in place for all accredited facilities. The JC requirements for equipment quality control closely mirror the ACR requirements with the addition of one test: Geometric or Distance Accuracy. The JC standards allow significant discretion to the physicist in determining how to perform the listed tests and what Pass/Fail standard to use. In fact, the only JC standard with an established Pass/Fail criteria is that the reported CTDI to measured CTDI values be accurate to 20 percent. Included with the standards is a requirement for pre-installation shielding design and a post installation radiation safety survey. There is currently no clinical image quality review with the JC. The standards are reviewed during the normal course of a JC onsite inspection. Information about JC Accreditation can be found here.

The IAC accreditation program is currently the only program that handles a significant number of cone-beam dental or H+N systems. IAC standards are written in such a way to allow the physicist discretion as to how to perform the tests, either with manufacturer provided phantoms and standards or universal phantoms. The IAC accreditation process focuses on adherence to written policies and procedures and equipment quality control. IAC requires the submission of phantom images on CD with the annual physics report in order to verify image quality. An additional area that the IAC stresses is patient safety. This includes, during initial accreditation submission, a radiation safety survey to demonstrate compliance with NRC regulations regarding public and occupational exposures in surrounding areas. Information about IAC Accreditation can be found here.

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Practice Accreditation Subcommittee, cont.

RadSite, approved as an accreditation body in 2013, focuses on written policies and procedures, staff credentials as well as a review of patient and phantom image quality. According to the company’s website, there are currently 24 facilities accredited for CT. Information about RadSite Accreditation can be found here.

All of the accreditation programs require annual testing by a medical physicist. However, the requirements vary between each program. The table below lists the physics tests required by each accreditation program. Common to all accreditation programs are the following tests (highlighted in yellow): Artifact Evaluation, CT Number Accuracy and Uniformity, High Contrast Resolution, Image Uniformity, Low Contrast Resolution, Slice Thickness Accuracy, and Dosimetry.

Understanding the differences between the various accreditation programs helps us all to better tailor our services to the broad range of scanners, settings, and facilities that we may work with. Ideally, our annual reports should be comprehensive enough to satisfy all accreditation requirements. n

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AAPM Newsletter • Volume 41 No. 4 JULY | AUGUST 2016

INTERNATIONAL SYMPOSIUM ON ADVANCES IN DIAGNOSTIC IMAGING PHYSICS REPORT Habib Zaidi, PhD, Geneva, Switzerland

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he first AAMP-ISEP/FAMPO Diagnostic Imaging Symposium was held on March 26-29, 2016 in Rabat (Morocco). This workshop was sponsored by the American Association of Physicists in Medicine (AAPM) under the International Scientific Exchange Program (ISEP), with additional financial support provided by the International Organization of Medical Physics (IOMP), the Moroccan Association for Medical Physics (MAMP) and four local companies.

This is the second time it was held in Morocco (the first ISEP therapy meeting was held in 1996) and also the third time that it was held in North Africa (the first ISEP imaging meeting was held in Algeria in 2008). The attendance comprised mostly of professional medical physicists involved in diagnostic and therapeutic medical physics, nuclear medicine physicians, radiation oncologists, graduate students and university professors from the faculties of science and medical schools of the universities of Rabat and Casablanca.

The purpose was twofold: one was to create an opportunity for the medical physicists from Morocco and other African countries to gather together and to learn from each other’s experiences. The other was to promote clinical imaging physics as a profession and to foster closer collaboration between radiologists/nuclear medicine physicians and academicians in Morocco. The workshop was intended for professionals where renewed faculty specialized in physics of diagnostic imaging, multimodality molecular imaging, and radiation oncology presented their experience in didactic settings, so as to maximize the learning experience for the participants of the workshop, to inspire further collaborative research and development efforts within Morocco and internationally, and to improve the quality of patient care through closer involvement of medical physicists. This, almost one week, workshop included advanced lectures and visits to the hospital covering various aspects of the applications of physics in medicine, emphasizing diagnostic imaging techniques and radiation treatment of cancer. The invited AAPM faculty included Profs. Habib Zaidi (Geneva University Hospital, Switzerland), Adel Mustafa (Yale University, USA), Anthony Seibert (University of California Davis, USA) Moyed Miften (University of Colorado, USA), Robert Jeraj (University of Wisconsin, USA), Robert Gould (University of California San Francisco, USA) and Virginia Tsapaki (Konstantopoulio General Hospital, Greece). The co-directors for the workshop were Prof. Habib Zaidi, representing AAPM-ISEP and Dr. Samir Mouatassim, President of the MAMP. The first day was very well attended, with over 150 participants including invited guests representing different bodies involved in medical physics activities in the country, also representatives from the ministries of Health and Education.

The participants were from 25 different countries, mostly within Africa, but also from Europe (Switzerland, Belgium and France). About 25 participants from Africa supported by the IAEA attended the meeting. More than 100 certificates were delivered to participants. A number of participants attended only one or two days and didn’t receive the certificate.

The establishment of the Moroccan Association for Medical Physics took place on July 24, 1996. The number of the members of this society has grown rapidly and has already reached more than 50 while the total number of medical physicists in Morocco has exceeded 70. Fifty-six percent of them are working as radiation therapy physicists. Fifty medical physicists have a Master (MS) degree only and 22 have a doctorate (PhD) level.

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AAPM Newsletter • Volume 41 No. 4 JULY | AUGUST 2016

International Symposium, cont.

A small industrial exhibition took place nearby the auditorium. After the opening of the meeting by Prof. R. Cherkaoui, Vice-president of the University Mohammed V (Vice-president for Research, Cooperation and Partnership) followed by the co-directors for the workshop, Dr. Tsapaki (IOMP) and Dr. Taofeeq Ige (FAMPO), the meeting started with an opening lecture by Dr. Mouatassim on the history of medical physics in Morocco. This was followed by a series of basic and advanced lectures dealing with all aspects of diagnostic imaging physics and instrumentation and their application in radiation therapy. The official program included more than 24 hours of classroom lectures on various diagnostic medical imaging topics. The full scientific program can be consulted on the workshop web site. In addition to didactic lectures, one afternoon was dedicated to a visit of the radiation therapy department of the National Institute of Oncology in Rabat.

After four inspiring days, the workshop came to a close on Wednesday 29 March 2016; leaving behind some remarkable teachings and countless wonderful memories. The local organizing committee did an excellent job of looking after accommodation for participants coming from outside the capital and from nearby countries to lunches, gala dinner, etc.

The educational program was remarkably executed, as witnessed by all participants and reported in the evaluation forms.

The conference drew some of the widely known experts in diagnostic imaging physics and it was no surprise that the lectures delivered were of great quality. All invited speakers delivered brilliant lectures and provided plenty of valuable handouts that were made available to the participants on the workshop’s web site.

ISEP 2016 would not have been a reality if it weren’t for all individual participants and representatives of the involved organizations, with special thanks extended to the main promoters of ISEP workshops (AAPM and IOMP), the FAMPO and the local host (MAMP) in addition to all local sponsors. n

Invited faculty: Professors Mustafa Adel, Habib Zaidi, Anthony Seibert, Moyed Miften, Robert Jeraj, Robert Gould and Virginia Tsapaki and the local organizers Drs Samir Mouatassim and Lakbir El Hamidi.

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AAPM Newsletter • Volume 41 No. 4 JULY | AUGUST 2016

SAN FRANCISCO BAY AREA CHAPTER NEWS Cynthia Chuang, PhD, San Francisco, CA

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he San Francisco Bay Area Chapter of the AAPM held its annual Young Investigator Symposium on May 20, 2016 at the Stanford University Lucile Packard Children’s Hospital. Dr. Benjamin Fahimian of Stanford University served as the Program Director this year, with assistance from the other AAPM Chapter Officials Dr. Stan Benedict (Board Representative and Founder of the Young Investigator Symposium), Dr. Cynthia Chuang (Treasurer and Secretary), Dr. Olivier Morin (Current President), and Dr. Julian Perks (Past President).

The event was free for all attendees and provided an opportunity to hear from 17 of our outstanding regional medical physics and biomedical engineering students, post-doctoral scholars, and residents. This year we were also honored to have a special keynote speaker, Dr. Luc Bealieu, who provided a memorial lecture in honor of our dear friend, mentor, and colleague Jean Pouliot who passed away not long ago. The program ended with a brief tour of some of the impressive Stanford facilities at the end of the meeting.

This year we accepted submissions in three categories: (1) Graduate Students (2) Post-doctoral Fellows, and (3) Residents, and this allowed for 17 speakers overall from UC Davis, UCSF, UC Berkley, Stanford, and UC Merced.

The speakers (pictured below with Dr. Bealieu) were: Shiva Abbaszadeh, PhD, Qian Wang, PhD, Benjamin Spencer, PhD, Hojin Kim, PhD, and Wei Zhang, PhD in the Postdoctoral Scholar Category; Daniel Pinkham, PhD, Chithra Kumaran Nair, PhD, Dae Yup Han, PhD, and Justin Phillips, PhD in the Resident Category; Cesare Jenkins, Kuang Gong, Abdullah Refaey, Vishal Samboju, Xinyi Y. Zhou, Elaine Yu, Zhi Wei Tay, and John Ready in the Graduate Student Category. n

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AAPM Newsletter • Volume 41 No. 4 JULY | AUGUST 2016

PENN-OHIO CHAPTER NEWS David Jordan, PhD, Alfredo Siochi, PhD, Kurt Blodgett, PhD, Michael Ohm, PhD, Valdir Colussi, PhD and Keli Wilson, PhD, Penn-Ohio Chapter Officers

Quality, Safety and TG-100 workshop The TG-100 workshop on safety and quality management in radiation therapy was a tremendous success. Sponsored by the AAPM, the workshop was organized by the Penn-Ohio Chapter and at tracted physicists, dosimetrists, therapists, nurses, IT and hospital managers. The workshop was held in Cleveland, OH, and was attended by professionals from five states (OH, PA, WV, KY, NC).

The daylong workshop was approved for 8 ABR-SAMs, 8 CAMPEP, 8 MDCB and 9.5 ASRT credits, a great reason to leave home on a nice sunny day.

Certainly, the Agora environment (similar to that of the philosophers of Athens) provided by Peter Dunscombe and Saiful Huq, who dealt with the meaning of the “process of radiation therapy,” was the main reason to keep every one of the 60 participants until the last minute.

The TG-100 daylong workshop is available for any AAPM Chapter and is part of the nationwide initiative for improving safety and quality in our institutions.

We from the Penn-Ohio Chapter are honored to have our good friends Peter and Saiful as preceptors (Mentors) in this new exciting culture changing approach.

Spring Meeting

The TG-100 workshop was preceded by the Penn-Ohio Chapter Spring Meeting. Dr. Chris A. Flask, Case Western Reserve University, talked about Quantitative MRI: Molecules, Animals and Humans. Melissa Martin shared with us the major concerns that AAPM is facing. The topics covered her “interesting” quest to the presidency, including the “Wessels’ curve,” budget and visions. When the floor was opened for questions and discussions, the topic of Medical Physics Assistants vs. Medical Physics Residents was debated. The debate centered on the nature of the job market, resulting from the ABR timeline for phasing in new requirements for certification. While a board certified medical physicist who graduates from a CAMPEP program should have no problem finding a job, “the structure needs some touch up,” said Melissa.

Fall Meeting The Penn-Ohio Chapter 2016 Fall Meeting will be held in Pittsburgh a the Marriott Pittsburgh North on October 21-22, 2016. The theme of this year’s meeting is “Data Mining: The Truth is Out There Somewhere.” We will be lining up talks from “experts” in the field of bio-info rmatics and data mining. Details will be available soon on our web page.

AAPM Annual Meeting & Exhibition Do not forget to stop by the AAPM Chapters History poster area in Washington DC. All Chapter History Posters will be displayed in the commons area near to registration. n

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PLANNING TO ATTEND

RSNA 2016?

Be Sure to Book Your Room at the AAPM Headquarters Hotel:

The Hyatt Regency Chicago 151 E. Wacker Drive AAPM Meetings and Annual Reception will be held at the Hyatt Regency Chicago RSNA 102nd Scientific Assembly and Annual Meeting November 27 – December 2, 2016 Chicago, IL June 1: General Registration and Housing Opens, 10:30 AM CT July 27: Online Program Opens

AMERICAN ASSOCIATION OF PHYSICISTS IN MEDICINE | WWW.AAPM.ORG

THE AAPM EXPANDING HORIZONS

Travel Grant

TYPE: Grant OPEN: 5/1/16 DEADLINE: 9/1/16 NOTIFICATION: 10/3/16 APPLICATION MATERIALS TO BE SUBMITTED • Personal statement describing long term career goals, motivation to attend the selected meeting, and expected scientific value of attendance on the applicant’s dissertation project or future research (2 pages maximum).

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Curriculum Vitae.

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Letter of recommendation from the applicant’s supervisor or department head confirming that additional travel expenses will be covered.

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Budget indicating expected expenses.

THE AAPM EXPANDING HORIZONS TRAVEL GRANT will award up to fifteen $1,000 travel grants per year for the purpose of providing additional support for student and trainee travel to conferences that are not specifically geared toward medical physics. The travel grant program is designed to provide an opportunity to broaden the scope of scientific meetings attended in order to introduce students and trainees to new topics which may be of relevance to medical physics research and which may subsequently be incorporated into future research in order to progress the field in new directions.

ELIGIBILITY CRITERIA • Must be a member of AAPM in good standing at the time of application •

Must be a current graduate student, post-doctoral candidate, or resident

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Proposed meeting must not be specifically-related to medical physics

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Examples of ineligible conferences include: • AAPM Annual Meeting • AAPM Spring Clinical Meeting • AAPM Chapter Meetings • American Society for Radiation Oncology (ASTRO) Annual Meeting • Radiological Society of North America (RSNA) Annual Meeting • Any meeting that the applicant’s group is regularly attending, this will be judged on a case-by-case basis.

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Examples of eligible conferences include: • American Physical Society (APS) Annual Meeting • Biophysics Society (BPS) Annual Meeting • Physical Sciences in Oncology Centers (PSOC) Annual Meeting • Radiation Research Society (RRS) Annual Meeting • World Molecular Imaging Conference (WMIC)

APPLICATION PROCESS • APPLY AT: gaf.aapm.org • DIRECT INQUIRIES: exhg@aapm.org

American Association of Physicists in Medicine | www.aapm.org

UPCOMING AAPM MEETINGS: July 31–August 4, 2016 AAPM 58th Annual Meeting & Exhibition Washington, DC March 18–21, 2017 AAPM 2017 Spring Clinical Meeting New Orleans, LA

AAPM | 1631 Prince Street | Alexandria, VA 22314 | 571-298-1300 | www.aapm.org