News Release

SNM Lifelong Learning and Self-Assessment program modules approved by ABNM, ABR for CME credit

SNM's online program allows physician diplomates to satisfy maintenance of certification requirements when recertifying

Business Announcement

Society of Nuclear Medicine and Molecular Imaging

SNM's Lifelong Learning and Self-Assessment Program modules, which allow molecular imaging/nuclear medicine professionals to demonstrate competence--and accountability--to patients, colleagues, managed care companies and government regulators, have gained the approval of the American Board of Nuclear Medicine and the American Board of Radiology.

"Informed consumers want assurances that health care providers deliver high-quality care that is based on the most recent medical knowledge, technology and skill," noted SNM President Peter S. Conti, M.D., Ph.D. "Our online program modules are now approved for self-assessment credit to satisfy the maintenance of certification requirements for physician diplomates to take either the ABNM or the ABR recertification exam," he said. "SNM's peer-reviewed LLSAP program allows molecular imaging/nuclear medicine health care practitioners to assess their medical knowledge and competency in patient care, in systems-based practice, and in practice-based learning and improvement," added Conti, a professor of radiology, clinical pharmacy and biomedical engineering at the University of Southern California, Los Angeles.

ABNM and ABR have approved six modules for self-assessment credit: Hematologic Malignancies, Gastrointestinal Malignancies, Solitary Pulmonary Nodules and Lung Cancer, Melanoma-Sarcoma-Neuroendocrine Malignancies, Image Artifacts and Normal Variants in PET and PET/CT for Oncological Applications and Breast and Gynecologic Cancers.

"ABNM certifies that SNM's self-assessment modules fulfill maintenance of certification requirements. Our diplomates will benefit from greatly expanded SNM educational offerings," said Henry D. Royal, M.D., ABNM executive director. "ABNM requires self-assessment as a part of lifelong learning. The emphasis will be on active participation in a continuous quality improvement program," he added.

Over the year, the SNM LLSAP program will offer numerous Web-based self-assessment modules covering the recent developments in nuclear medicine and correlative imaging in the specialty fields of oncology, cardiology, neurology, endocrinology, pulmonology, gastroenterology, musculoskeletal and genitourinary disorders and basic sciences. The topics addressed will include the technical aspects and evaluation and treatment of patients using computed tomography (CT), positron emission tomography (PET) and PET/CT, single photon emission tomography (SPECT), SPECT/CT and therapy with unsealed radioactive sources. These self-assessment modules provide continuing education credit for physicians, technologists, pharmacists and scientists; AMA PRA Category 1 credit is offered in addition to SNM VOICE credit for nuclear medicine technologists.

Molecular imaging /nuclear medicine physicians must now pass recertification exams at regular intervals and demonstrate involvement in continuing medical education. With SNM's LLSAP program, molecular imaging/nuclear medicine professionals can satisfy one of four components of maintenance of certification, as required by the American Board of Medical Specialties.

Each self-assessment module offers a syllabus focusing on the latest information and developments in the field from the past three years; multiple-choice questions with critiques explaining the correct answer and why the distracters are incorrect; and interactive case studies, including clinical background, images and multiple-choice questions with critiques. Program participants move through these online modules at their own pace.

Program modules to come include Introduction to Nuclear Brain Imaging; PET/CT Imaging: Evaluation of Patients With Head and Neck Cancer and Brain Tumors; PET and PET/CT Imaging: Evaluation of Patients With Urological Tumors; Benign Thyroid Disease; Parathyroid Scintigraphy; Nuclear Medicine in Neuroendocrine Tumors; Functional Imaging of Adrenal Gland; Investigational and Clinical Applications of PET and SPECT Brain Imaging in Movement Disorders; Psychiatric Disorders and Traumatic Brain Injury; Clinical Applications of PET and SPECT Brain Imaging in Cerebrovascular Disease, Brain Tumors and Seizure Disorders; and Clinical Applications of SPECT and PET in the Evaluation of Dementia.

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To register or learn more about SNM LLSAP program, please go online to http://www.snm.org/llsap.

About SNM
SNM is an international scientific and professional organization of more than 16,000 members dedicated to promoting the science, technology and practical applications of molecular and nuclear imaging to diagnose, manage and treat diseases in women, men and children. Founded more than 50 years ago, SNM continues to train physicians, technologists, scientists, physicists, chemists and radiopharmacists in state-of-the-art imaging procedures and advances; provide essential resources for health care practitioners and patients; publish the most prominent peer-reviewed resource in the field; sponsor research grants, fellowships and awards; and host the premier annual meeting for medical imaging. SNM members have introduced--and continue to explore--biological and technological innovations in medicine that noninvasively investigate the molecular basis of diseases, benefiting countless generations of patients. SNM is based in Reston, Va.; additional information can be found online at http://www.snm.org.


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