Flexible work arrangements and their impact on women in radiology: RSNA 2021 panel discussion summary sponsored by AAWR and more.

There is an ongoing trend in the direction of flexible work arrangements in which employees can decide where and when to work. Multiple studies have demonstrated a significant decrease in associated job-related stress, improved job satisfaction, job autonomy, and collaboration when flexible work arrangements exist. However, some have reported increased workload and home spillover to work.1 The American Association for Women in Radiology (AAWR) convened a panel of radiologist presenters with diverse backgrounds who shared their own experiences with flexible work arrangements at the Radiological Society of North America (RSNA) 2021 Scientific Assembly and Annual Meeting. This manuscript summarizes the discussion and reviews various aspects of workplace flexibility. The RSNA 2021 AAWR-sponsored panel on workplace flexibility reviewed the current state of different work arrangements available for radiologists and addressed future strategies for implementing workplace flexibility. The panelists addressed the imperatives and key factors for the availability of diverse opportunities and ways to foster future opportunities. Matters discussed included differences in the availability of flexible work arrangements in the healthcare system compared to other industries, normalizing flexible work arrangements at the organization level, underutilization of currently available flexible work arrangements, part-time positions and stigma associated with them, thriving in a part-time capacity, workplace flexibility options for radiology residents and fellows and successfully implementing workplace flexibility at institutions. The panel ended with a call to action to develop toolkits with effective resources to support implementing flexible workplace opportunities.

Adapting to the new radiology landscape: challenges and solutions discussed at the 2014 AMCLC open-microphone sessions.

Every year, multiple open-microphone sessions are hosted at the ACR AMCLC. These sessions allow members of the College to offer opinions, experiences, and questions regarding challenges facing radiologists and the future of the profession. At the 2014 AMCLC, 3 such sessions focused, respectively, on radiology's workforce, the obstacles slowing the shift from volume to value, and alternative reimbursement models and the shifting physician employment landscape. These open-microphone sessions framed contemporary obstacles and emerging challenges that professional radiology societies, such as the ACR, should target with new initiatives and use of resources; in addition, the sessions revealed opportunities for members, councilors, and state chapters to respond with meaningful resolutions and policy proposals.

Driving change: taking ownership of our profession and its future.

The open-microphone sessions at the AMCLC provide a forum for the ACR's membership to be heard. The topics in 2013 included a review of the annual radiology workforce survey, the impact of teleradiology services, and the rationale for the new Imaging 3.0 initiative. Comments from members at the 2013 AMCLC unequivocally illustrated a single overarching theme: anxiety-anxiety about the future of our practices and anxiety about our profession. In light of recent and anticipated changes in health care, radiologists, radiation oncologists, interventional radiologists, nuclear medicine physicians, and medical physicists-members of the ACR-must continue to establish a leadership role in the health care system and serve as a cornerstone for all patient-care delivery models. ACR commissions, networks, institutes, and initiatives will position us for smoother transitions in the persistently altering health care landscape and will ensure that we have the expertise and tools to serve as leaders in health care systems and advocates for our patients in current and future health care systems.

Residents' perceptions of MRI training in the United States.

PURPOSE: The primary objective of this exploratory study was to gain a better understanding of perceptions of magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) training by US radiology residents. METHODS: Two surveys were administered between September 2002 and June 2003 to nonprobability-based samples totaling approximately 2000 residents, under the auspices of the ACR's Resident Physician Section. The MRI Training Survey was administered in 2002, and it was supplemented by the Cardiac MRI Training Survey in 2003. The response rate for the MRI Training Survey was 15%, whereas the response rate for the Cardiac MRI Training Survey was 43%. RESULTS: The sample of residents surveyed comprised approximately 74% men; approximately 80% were in their third postgraduate year or higher. Eighty-five percent of residents reported the receipt of formal training in MRI physics. At least 60% did not have dedicated MRI rotations in either musculoskeletal or body MRI, and 89% lacked dedicated rotations in cardiac MRI. Seventy percent reported that they viewed overall MRI training as less than adequate; 94% stated that dedicated MRI training was warranted. CONCLUSIONS: This preliminary research suggests that current MRI training may be less than residents feel is needed in many training programs. New comprehensive, electronically disseminated core curricula, as well as a potential future mandate for minimum training requirements by the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education's Radiology Residency Review Committee, may be necessary to strengthen MRI training at a time when the demand for radiology services is growing.