Maintenance of Certification- SIR Member-only Benefits
SIR is pleased to offer members the following resources and material which pertain to Maintenance of Certification (MOC). For additional information, please contact our office at 703-691-1805 or email MOC@SIRweb.org.
Self-Assessment Modules and Resources
Access Self-Assessment
Modules
This requirement may be satisfied by completing self-assessment modules (SAMs). These are educational venues (refresher courses, workshops, reading assignments, etc.) that have been ABR-qualified. In a full 10-year cycle, you will be responsible for documenting successful completion of the equivalent of 20 or more SAMs but an individual can only receive credit for up to 3 SAMs per year. Thus participation in SAMs needs to be spread out over the 10 year cycle. All SAMs are also qualified as Category 1 CME, and can serve to fill the CME requirement.
2008 & 2009 Case-Based Review Monographs
These publications will serve as a valuable educational tool for practicing IRs, as well in-training interventional radiologists. The topics covered in the 2008 book include vascular diagnosis, embolization, peripheral arterial interventions, neurovascular interventions, deep venous thrombosis & IVC filters, portal interventions, pediatric interventions and oncologic interventions. The topics covered in the 2009 book include women’s health, vertebral augmentation and veins. These Monographs serve only as an educational tool. SAM Credit is not available.
Purchase these products separately or as a bundle in the IR Store.
MOC Recertification Exam: Cognitive Expertise
SIR has joined with the American Board of Radiology to offer you an opportunity to take your computer-based MOC examination without additional fees at the 2010 SIR Annual Scientific Meeting in Tampa, Florida which will take place March 13 – 18. The exam will be offered twice on Thursday, March 18 from 7 a.m. to 11 a.m. and again from 1 p.m. to 5 p.m.
If your subspecialty VIR certificate was issued in 2000 or earlier and has lapsed or is about to lapse, SIR is offering you first priority to sign up for the exam. Seats then will be made available to the SIR membership at large on a first-come, first-served basis. Available seats are extremely limited.
To register for the exam, you must submit an ABR MOC exam registration form, which can be found at www.theABR.org. If you have any additional questions about the MOC exam, please contact the ABR at (520) 519-2152.
The American Board of Radiology (ABR) is excited to announce it will be delivering a pilot of its new practice-profiled Maintenance of Certification examination for diagnostic radiology at the 2009 RSNA Scientific Assembly and Annual Meeting in Chicago. The pilot administration will allow the ABR to fully evaluate critical aspects of exam readiness, including image quality and exam content, and assist in the construction of the live version, which will be offered for the first time in 2010. The purpose of the pilot is to ensure the ABR presents the best, most psychometrically valid exam possible, and the feedback of examinees is vital to this process. The ABR is inviting select diplomates with time-limited certificates expiring from 2009 – 2012 to participate in the pilot. For more detailed information, please visit http://www.theabr.org/moc/moc_dr/moc_dr_comp3.html
Practice Quality Improvement
Information (and resources) on practice quality improvement are available in the Members section. SIR has made available the follow project templates available to SIR members only.
Project 1: Fluoroscopy Dose Recording Compliance
Project 2: Prospective Analysis for Radiation Dose Reduction
Four Key Requirements of the MOC
Many SIR members who obtained Certificates of Added Qualification (CAQ's) in Vascular and Interventional Radiology in the mid-1990's have been contacted recently by the American Board of Radiology (ABR) regarding upcoming "Maintenance of Certification" (MOC) examinations. The MOC process represents more than just a periodic examination, and is a new approach to the ABR's responsibility of assuring that the practitioners they certify in radiology and its subspecialties practice knowledgeably, safely, and skillfully.
There has been an increasing move away from lifetime certification on the part of medical specialty boards, and toward "time-limited" certificates. This reflects the sentiment that a single examination passed just at the termination of formal training does little to guarantee that a physician keeps up with current knowledge and practice in their chosen specialty. Recognizing this, the American Board of Medical Specialties has developed the MOC concept.
The basic elements of Maintenance of Certification include
four key requirements:
(1) Documentation of professional standing
(2) Documentation of a commitment to lifelong learning and
periodic self-assessment relevant to one's specialty
(3) Evidence of cognitive expertise determined by periodic
examination covering fundamental knowledge, current and valid
practice related knowledge, and knowledge of important issues in
the practice environment
(4) Assessment of practice performance
The "examination" portion of the MOC process, then, is only one part of the overall strategy, and a part that, if the other portions of the MOC are fulfilled, should be quite straightforward. As currently envisioned, the concept of subspecialty certification (formerly referred to by the ABR as CAQ) will be maintained in the ABR MOC process.
A great deal of work to be done in carrying the MOC process forward. In this regard, the various radiological specialty groups such as SIR will play a large role, working with the ABR to develop practice performance measures, self-assessment tools, and relevant, current educational programs and materials.
Visit the ABR Web site to learn more about the MOC.