SNM LEADERSHIP UPDATE A President’s Farewell Message A s my term as president of SNM comes to an end, I reflect on all the changes that have taken place since I first took office. My goals were to support SNM’s mission to improve health care by advancing nuclear medi- cine and molecular imaging and therapy. This included continued support of the Bench to Bedside campaign SNM began 5 y ago. This initiative is critical to the future of our field and essential to bringing new technologies and bio- markers to the bedside to improve patient care. In addition, I also wanted to focus on the more immediate needs of the membership; in particular concerns related to decreases in reimbursement, decreases in the job market, and a shortage of radioisotopes. When I began my term as president of SNM in June 2010, the Board of Directors (BOD) approved a new strategic plan for the next 3 y. The strategic plan focuses on 6 goals that are important to the membership. Looking back on the past year, significant accomplishments have been realized for each of the goals of the SNM strategic plan, as detailed in the “Year in Review” article published in the February issue of The Journal of Nuclear Medicine (JNM). A summary of those accomplishments follows. Our first goal is to be the primary resource for nu- clear medicine and molecular imaging education. There is a pressing need to ensure that nuclear medicine physi- cians, scientists, and technologists receive standardized and continuing education so that their skills continue to keep pace with and advance at the same rapid speed with which the molecular imaging field as a whole is evolving. Through the SNM Mid-Winter and Annual Meetings, the Center for Molecular Imaging Innovation and Translation (CMIIT)–sponsored molecular imaging symposia, an ever-growing offering of online continuing education and, of course, JNM, SNM has cemented its rep- utation as the leader in nuclear and molecular imaging education. The next goal is for SNM to be the resource for all ra- diopharmaceutical issues. Over the past year we have focused many efforts in this area. A coalition was formed by SNM to address the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) current Good Manufacturing Practices for PET radiophar- maceuticals. Working with our allies we have successfully negotiated with the FDA for an easier process for new drug and device applications. In addition, the SNM Clinical Trials Network (CTN), which aims to facilitate the use of bio- markers in multicenter molecular imaging trials, qualified more than 40 imaging sites and celebrated the validation of its 100th scanner this past year. CTN also formed a strategic partnership with the National Comprehensive Cancer Net- work and expanded its education offerings for nuclear and molecular imaging professionals. Working with referring physi- cian and patient groups is another priority for SNM. This past year we developed relationships with multiple groups, including the Alzheimer’s Association, the American Thyroid Association, the Men’s Health Network, and more. A strategic plan and time- line are in place to continue this outreach and we look forward to expanding our activities with these groups in the coming years. SNM’s goal to advance comparative effectiveness re- search (CER) and practice guidelines saw many major ac- complishments over the past year as well. A strategic plan was drafted after an SNM CER workshop held in July 2010 and, after the High Country meeting in March 2011, SNM further defined its leadership roles in CER. SNM will develop education on CER, identify evidence gaps, commu- nicate with stakeholder organizations, and create evidence- based guidelines for nuclear and molecular imaging. SNM also collaborated with other medical organizations on sev- eral appropriate use criteria and guidelines of mutual inter- est, in addition to developing and revising our own practice guidelines. On the advocacy front, SNM has tackled a wide array of issues at the federal level, many of which have implications for other SNM goals. We have worked vigilantly to restore cuts in reimbursement and to correct technical inaccuracies, collaborating when appropriate with other imaging organ- izations facing similar issues. We also continue to work with the medical community on long-term strategies for improving supplies of 99 Mo and have strongly advocated for a domestic supply. Radiation exposure in relation to 131 I has been an important topic on Capitol Hill, and SNM representatives have attended several Nuclear Regulatory Commission hearings on regulations for the release of patients treated with 131 I. SNM revised its practice guide- line for 131 I therapy of thyroid disease and is currently revising its patient brochure on 131 I. Finally, SNM’s goal of sound governance resulted in many improvements for the society. Our budget has been focused with conservative assumptions for budgeted in- come, significant cuts for budgeted expenses, and the im- plementation of a 3% surplus. So far we are on track to meet (Continued on page 25N) Dominique Delbeke, MD, PhD 24N THE JOURNAL OF NUCLEAR MEDICINE • Vol. 52 • No. 6 • June 2011 NEWSLINE