Redesign of the American Board of Radiology Diagnostic Radiology Certifying Examination.

On April 13, 2023, the American Board of Radiology (ABR) announced plans to replace the current computer-based diagnostic radiology (DR) certifying examination with a new oral examination to be administered remotely, beginning in 2028. This article describes the planned changes and the process that led to those changes. In keeping with its commitment to continuous improvement, the ABR gathered input regarding the DR initial certification process. Respondents generally agreed that the qualifying (core) examination was satisfactory but expressed concerns regarding the computer-based certifying examination's effectiveness and impact on training. Examination redesign was conducted using input from key groups with a goal of effectively evaluating competence and incentivizing study behaviors that best prepare candidates for radiology practice. Major design elements included examination structure, breadth and depth of content, and timing. The new oral examination will focus on critical findings as well as common and important diagnoses routinely encountered in all diagnostic specialties, including radiology procedures. Candidates will first be eligible for the examination in the calendar year after residency graduation. Additional details will be finalized and announced in coming years. The ABR will continue to engage with interested parties throughout the implementation process.

Stakeholder Perspectives on Radiation Use and Interdisciplinary Collaboration in Adult Modified Barium Swallow Studies.

The Modified Barium Swallow Study (MBSS) is a videofluoroscopic examination of the anatomy and physiology involved in swallowing. Like other fluoroscopic examinations, the MBSS uses ionizing radiation with related radiation risks. Thus, the procedures and protocols related to MBSSs must balance the benefit of the diagnostic information gained with the risk of radiation exposure. This requires complex decision-making for any given clinician but becomes complicated due to the interprofessional nature of conducting MBSSs, namely the direct involvement of both the speech-language pathologist and radiologist with indirect involvement of the medical physicist and the referring physician. This editorial provides the perspectives of the various stakeholder groups related to radiation use in adult MBSSs, identifies barriers to conducting MBSSs in an evidence-based manner, and suggests areas for improvement.

Short-, Mid-, and Long-term Strategies to Manage the Shortage of Iohexol.

The recent iohexol shortage has precipitated disruptions in a pharmaceutical supply chain critical to radiologic imaging and has impacted global availability of iodinated contrast media (ICM). The shortage has created a national crisis in radiology departments, curtailing their ability to provide health care to patients who need contrast-enhanced examinations. Radiology departments are familiar with crisis management after more than 2 years of clinical and operational disruptions associated with the COVID-19 pandemic. The iohexol and subsequent ICM shortage has short-term (weeks), midterm (months), and long-term (years) implications. The purpose of this report is to provide strategies for dealing with the shortage in the near term and to discuss long-term issues and potential solutions to supply chain problems impacting radiology departments.

Physician Burnout in Radiology: Perspectives From the Field.

Physician burnout is increasingly recognized as a public health crisis given the impact of burnout on physicians, their families, patients, communities, and population health. The COVID-19 pandemic has superimposed a new set of challenges for physicians to navigate, including unique challenges presented to radiologists. Radiologists from a diversity of backgrounds, practice settings, and career stages were asked for their perspectives on burnout.

Assessing the Impact of Structured Reports for Fluoroscopic Double-Contrast Barium Esophagrams.

Fluoroscopic barium swallow examinations are a commonly performed radiologic study in the evaluation of dysphagia. These studies remain essential in the diagnostic work-up despite the increasing utilization of endoscopy, but current residents are often less experienced with fluoroscopy. Structured reporting has been demonstrated to improve comprehensiveness of reports in multiple settings, but has not been evaluated for barium swallow examinations. A retrospective review identified patients who underwent barium swallow examinations pre-structured reporting in 2017 and followed a multidisciplinary proposal for and adoption of an optional structured report in 2020. Reports were assessed for comprehensiveness by evaluating presence/absence each element (total of 10 elements). Differences in report elements between groups and multiple subgroups was performed utilizing a Mann-Whitney U test. χ2 tests were also utilized to evaluate inclusion of each individual element of the report. A total of 487 reports from 2020 and 757 reports from 2017 were analyzed. Certain elements showed substantial differences in reporting, with greater than 90% of structured reports including them, but much lower numbers including them in non-structured reports from 2017 and 2020. Reports generated in 2020 had a statistically significant increase in report elements included when compared to 2017 (p < 0.01). This statistically significant increase was also observed in comparison of structured reports and non-structured reports from either period (p < 0.01). Adoption of structured reporting for fluoroscopic barium swallow examinations led to significant increase in report comprehensiveness and should be considered after a multidisciplinary approach to development.

Rapid Deployment of Home PACS Workstations to Enable Social Distancing in the Coronavirus Disease (COVID-19) Era.

OBJECTIVE. Social distancing is considered an effective mitigation strategy for coronavirus disease (COVID-19), and remote interpretation of radiologic studies is one approach to social distancing within the radiology department. We describe the rapid deployment of home workstations to achieve social distancing in the radiology department at the University of Alabama at Birmingham. CONCLUSION. Transitioning from on-site interpretation to remote interpretation requires a careful balancing of hospital and departmental finances, engineering choices, and educational and philosophical workflow issues.

Preparing and Promoting Women for Leadership Positions in Radiology and the Imaging Industry.

A dearth of women leaders in the field of radiology and affiliated industries persists despite a recognition of the importance, value, and impact that would derive from its rectification. A targeted educational collaboration, described herein, was established between academia and industry to address this deficit and to facilitate the placement of highly qualified women into leadership positions. The actionable platform offered has the potential to narrow the gap for underrepresented groups in professional leadership positions.

Career Trajectory Factors Affecting Gender Diversity in Academic Radiology Department Chairs: Results of a Survey of SCARD Members.

In this survey of academic radiology department chairs, pathways to first chair appointment were similar between men and women in terms of prior professional accomplishments and chair position preparedness. However, women more commonly perceived that their gender negatively affected their career trajectory, and they more frequently reported experiencing overt discrimination and unconscious bias.

Consensus Statement of Society of Abdominal Radiology Disease-Focused Panel on Barium Esophagography in Gastroesophageal Reflux Disease.

OBJECTIVE: The Society of Abdominal Radiology established a panel to prepare a consensus statement on the role of barium esophagography in gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD), as well as recommended techniques for performing the fluoroscopic examination and the gamut of findings associated with this condition. CONCLUSION: Because it is an inexpensive, noninvasive, and widely available study that requires no sedation, barium esophagography may be performed as the initial test for GERD or in conjunction with other tests such as endoscopy.

Accelerated Fellowships Applicable Across all Subspecialty Areas of Diagnostic Radiology as a Catalyst for Academic Recruitment.

RATIONALE AND OBJECTIVES: To build a sustainable faculty development program based on potential acceleration of all subspecialty fellowships types into the PGY 5 year. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Single center experience in programmatic change to enhance faculty recruitment. Diagnostic Radiology (DR) residents apply to subspecialty fellowships per SCARD Fellowship Embargo Guidelines. Based on projected faculty hiring needs, internal candidates are vetted and agree to enter an accelerated fellowship. The commitment is two years: the PGY5 senior year schedule prioritizes rotations in the subspecialty area while fulfilling requirements of all DR graduates, including call. Accelerated fellows (AF) participate in junior faculty development and concentrated mentoring. A subsequent instructor faculty year within our department is required to ensure professional maturity and provides financial remuneration greater than PGY 6 fellowships. RESULTS: From July 1, 2018, to June 30, 2022, 34 trainees have graduated from our DR program, and 32 have gone through the process of securing fellowships. Over this interval, our DR program has matched 7-9 residents per year. Up to four early specialization positions consisting of 2 Early Specialization in Interventional Radiology (ESIR), and 2 Early Specialization in Nuclear Medicine (ESNM), per year, are available. Over four years of the program, 8 residents participated in standard early specialization opportunities: 5 ESIR, and 3 ESNM. These 8 residents were excluded from consideration for AFs. Two additional residents declined fellowships, leaving 22 seeking standard fellowships for PGY 6 year. 6 (27%) of those were approached as potential AFs; 3 (50%) agreed to and completed the 24-month process. 2 of 3 (67%) continue to serve on faculty after the required instructor year. CONCLUSION: The novel concept of early specialization outside of ESIR and ESNM presents an opportunity to tailor the PGY 5 DR year to increase recruitment to academic faculty positions.

The Society of Abdominal Radiology at 10 years: Reflections, status report, and look to the future.

In 2012, the Society of Abdominal Radiology (SAR) was formed by the merger of the Society of Gastrointestinal Radiologists (SGR) and the Society of Uroradiology (SUR). On the occasion of SAR's ten year anniversary, this commentary describes important changes in society structure, the growth and diversity of society membership, new educational and research initiatives, intersociety and international outreach, and plans for the future.

Navigating parental leave as a leader in radiology: Commentary on challenges and strategies.

Navigating parental leave can be challenging in all fields of medicine, but it can be especially challenging for leaders balancing clinical, research, and administrative duties. As women take on more leadership roles, we have the opportunity to better define the current challenges and identify potential strategies for navigating successful parental leave while balancing the demands of leadership. This manuscript provides a commentary on the challenges and strategies for navigating parental leave in leadership positions in radiology, an important topic for shaping how parental leave is both viewed and valued in the future. Specifically, we highlight challenges and strategies for administrative responsibilities, reporting personnel, emails, microaggressions, research, empowerment, and prioritization.

Childbearing in radiology training and early career: Challenges, opportunities, and finding the best time for you.

For many women, radiology residency occurs during the childbearing years and they often question when is the best time to have children. Anxiety regarding fertility and pregnancy-related complications contribute to early career burnout in women physicians and many have fertility regrets. Supporting radiologists in training and early in their career as they navigate pregnancy and childbearing is critical to achieving a diverse workforce and leadership. Herein, we explore career-related challenges of childbearing and highlight opportunities for radiologists in residency, fellowship, and early in their career, so that they can make an informed childbearing decision.

Enabling Your Radiology Business to Thrive Strategic Lessons Learned During the Initial and Subsequent Surges of the Covid-19 Pandemic.

The Covid-19 pandemic surges of 2020 resulted in major operational, personal, and financial impacts on US radiology practices. In response, a series of strategic and intentional operational changes were implemented, varying by practice size, structure and model. In reviewing the many business lessons that we learned during the pandemic, it became clear that for a business to be successful, a host of additional supportive factors are necessary. In addition to timely expense reductions, optimizing revenue capture and close monitoring and management of cash and reserves available for use, we also consider effective leadership and communication strategies, maintenance of a healthy and adequately staffed team, support for a remote work environment and flexible staffing models. Other ingredients include effectively embracing digital media for communications, careful attention to current and new stakeholders and the service delivered to them, understanding federal and state regulatory changes issued in response to the pandemic, close collaboration with the Human Resources office, and an early focus on redesigning your future practice structure and function, including disaster and downtime planning. This review aims to share lessons to enable leaders of an imaging enterprise to be better prepared for similar and future surges.

Representation of women among leadership and honorees within the Society of Abdominal Radiology, past and present.

PURPOSE: To evaluate gender diversity over time within the leadership and honorees of the Society of Abdominal Radiology with comparison to other radiologic societies. METHODS: This was a retrospective, observational study of the gender distribution of presidents and gold meal awardees within the Society of Abdominal Radiology (SAR) compared to three national radiology organizations: the American College of Radiology (ACR), the American Roentgen Ray Society (ARRS), and the Radiological Society of North America (RSNA). Data were collected from the inception of each society through 2020. Societies were directly contacted for president and Gold Medal awardee names when this information was not available on society websites. Differences in the proportion of female presidents and Gold Medal awardees before and after 2012, by society, were performed using χ2 test; 2012 was selected as a threshold year as this represented when SAR was created. RESULTS: The proportion of female past presidents was 5%, 9%, and 33% for the SGR, SUR, and SAR, respectively, and 5%, 4%, and 7% for the ACR, ARRS, and RSNA, respectively. The proportion of female Gold Medal awardees was 5%, 4%, and 10% for the SGR, SUR, and SAR, respectively, and 5%, 7%, and 7%, respectively, for ACR, ARRS, and RSNA. There was a statistically significant increase in the proportion of women presidents and honorees in all societies after 2012 compared to before 2012, but no significant difference between societies in either time period. CONCLUSION: A higher proportion of female presidents and honorees were demonstrated across all societies after 2012.

Resectability of pancreatic adenocarcinoma in patients with locally advanced disease downstaged by preoperative therapy: a challenge for MDCT.

OBJECTIVE: The purpose of this study was to determine whether preoperative neoadjuvant therapy in patients with locally advanced pancreatic cancer affects the ability of multiphasic MDCT to predict successful surgical resection. MATERIALS AND METHODS: From 2000 to 2006, there were 12 patients with prior neoadjuvant therapy successfully downstaged by CT and 31 age-matched pancreatic cancer patients without preoperative therapy who underwent pancreatic MDCT followed by attempted pancreaticoduodenectomy. Three readers blinded to surgical findings independently analyzed immediate preoperative MDCT scans of 43 patients comprising the retrospective data set in random order for vascular involvement (degree of contact and narrowing) and distant metastases. Individual reader sensitivity and specificity for resectability prediction were compared for study and control groups using the Fisher's exact test. Interobserver agreement was assessed using the kappa statistic. RESULTS: Seven (58%) of 12 neoadjuvant-treated adenocarcinomas and 10 (32%) of 31 control pancreatic carcinomas were resectable (p > 0.05). For resectable disease, sensitivities were 86%, 71%, and 14% for the neoadjuvant group and 90%, 90%, and 60% for the control group (p > 0.05). Specificities were 80%, 100%, and 100% for the neoadjuvant group and 57%, 43%, and 76% for the control group (reader 2 specificity difference, p = 0.04). The multi rater kappa value of resectability prediction for neoadjuvant patients was 0.28, and that for control subjects was 0.63 (p < 0.001). In the neoadjuvant group, the majority of individual reader errors were false-negative resectability interpretations resulting from overestimation of vascular involvement. Consideration of degrees of venous abutment did not improve estimation of resectability in patients with neoadjuvant therapy. CONCLUSION: Sensitivity for prediction of resectability tends to be lower for patients with locally advanced pancreatic cancer that has been downstaged by neoadjuvant therapy, but this trend is not statistically significant. Interobserver variability for determination of resectability is statistically higher than for controls who did not receive preoperative therapy.

Fortifying Our Teams to Best Serve Our Patients: A Report of the 2019 Summer Intersociety Meeting.

Continuing the thematic focus on fostering wellness and professional fulfillment in our workplace, the 2019 Radiology Intersociety Committee Conference focused on understanding and leading multigenerational workforces and developing high-functioning teams. To lead a multigenerational workforce and to understand and embrace traditional versus emerging cultures in our workplace, effective leaders should foster diversity of their teams. Sustaining such teams requires an understanding of different styles and preferences for bidirectional communication and clarity of information sharing and learning; active efforts may be needed to focus on practical approaches to succession planning, breaking down traditional hierarchies, clarifying role delineation, and managing authority gradients. An effective team requires attention to the well-being of team members and professional behavior in and out of the workplace. Conference participants unanimously endorsed multi-organizational support statements and activities assuring professional behavior of their members, along with the desire to explore codes of conduct and ethics.

The Early Influence and Effects of the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) Pandemic on Resident Education and Adaptations.

The novel coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) has had a major impact on the education of trainees in the radiology environment. The precipitous drop in patient volumes and sequestering of faculty and trainees to maintain social distancing affects experiential learning. The shift of nearly all teaching settings to a virtual environment has been challenging but may also allow more interaction during teaching sessions than traditional readout sessions or didactic lectures. Faculty development is key in ensuring competence and confidence in this new environment. Recruitment of trainees using a virtual platform will require communication of opportunities as well as the culture of the department and institution as well as the community. Delay of the board examinations has caused angst as well as disruption of the timing of clinical rotations but may ultimately result in a shift of how the examinations are administered. The exceptional disruption of the COVID-19 pandemic allows us to reconsider how the educational aspects of imaging can emerge as improved in the years to come.