7 Quick Things You Need To Know About Recertification

Examinations to begin in 2019

No charge for 1st attempt for each specialty

Online Examinations (not at a testing center)

Open book/resource

Specialty content only, no gen-eral physics

Approximately 50 questions

Required standard for ARDMS organizational accreditation*

*ARDMS has earned the prestigious ANSI-ISO 17024 accreditation for certifying bod-ies from the International Organization for Standardization (ISO). Accreditation is granted through the American National Standards Institute (ANSI).

ARDMS Launches a Recertification Assessment Program in 2012 With the First Examinations to Be Offered in 2019

Why ARDMS is Developing a Recertification Assessment Program:

The recertification assessment program is being developed to meet a required stan-dard of the International Standards Organization (ISO) and the American National Standards Institute (ANSI), the accreditor of ARDMS. ISO-ANSI stipulates that ARDMS should have a measurable way to assure that Registrants are knowledgeable in current day practice. Continuing Medical Education (CME) credits alone cannot prove that an ARDMS Registrant continues to meet the minimum core sonography clinical skills in present day practice; The ARDMS recertification assessment program shall benefit patients and the sono-graphy community in that it will maintain ARDMS's ongoing mission to promote qual-ity care and patient safety through the certification and continuing competency of ul-trasound professionals; In anticipation of state licensure requirements; and To elevate the practice of sonography to be aligned with other health care profes-sions.

Overview of the Recertification Assessment Program: In 2012, ARDMS will launch a recertification assessment. The recertification assessment pro-gram, along with the annual renewal fee and CME requirements, will constitute the three obli-gations ARDMS Registrants must meet to maintain active status. Beginning in 2012, Regis-trants will be assigned a 10-year recertification assessment period and will be required to take a recertification examination in

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This special edition of Registry Reports provides information about the 2012 launch of the ARDMS Recertification Assess-

ment Program. Visit and bookmark the Recertification Assessment section of the ARDMS website at:

www.ARDMS.org/Recertification

The globally recognized standard of excellence in

sonography

June 1, 2010

Registry ReportsQuarterly Newsletter for ARDMS Registrants

Special Edition

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each clinical specialty area in which they hold active status. The recertification examinations will be web-based and available online for Registrants to take during the last three years of a 10-year recertification assessment period. There will be no charge for Registrants who pass the recertification examination(s) on the first attempt. Recertification Assessment by Specialty Area:

Registrants will be required to take a recertification examination in each specialty area they hold active status. For example, a Registrant who holds the RDMS (BR) (OB) and RDCS (AE) credentials will need to take the Breast (BR), Obstetrics & Gynecology (OB) and Adult Echocardiography (AE) recertification examinations. Registrants do not have to take a separate physics/instrumentation recertification examination.

Current Registrants – What the Recertification Assessment Program Means for You:

Each Registrant who holds an active ARDMS certification as of December 31, 2011 will be assigned the 2012 – 2021 10-year recertification assessment period (see graph below). If a Registrant earns a new credential or specialty after January 1, 2012, then that credential/specialty will have a separate 10-year recertification assessment period that will begin the year following the attainment of the credential/specialty. ARDMS will develop tools and resources to assist Registrants in tracking and meet-ing the recertification assessment program requirements.

New Registrants – Understanding the Recertification Assessment Program: The 10-year recertification assessment period for first-time Registrants will begin in the year following the attainment of the credential. For example, a person who becomes registered for the first time on March 1, 2012 will be assigned the 2013 – 2022 recertification assessment period. As noted previously, the recertification examinations will be web-based and available online for Registrants to take during the last three years of the 10-year recertification assessment period. If an additional cre-dential/specialty is earned in later years, then that new credential/specialty will have a separate 10-year recertification assess-ment period that will begin the year following the attainment of the credential/specialty. Administration of the Recertification Examinations: Recertification examinations will be web-based and Registrants will take the recertification examinations online from their home or office computers. Each specialty recertification examination will have approximately 50 questions. Registrants may consult reference materials while taking the examinations and will have ample time to take and pass the examinations.

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2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021

Recertification examinations will not be offered during the first seven years of the 10-year recertification assessment period and Registrants will not have to

take any action during this timeframe. Registrants may take their recertification examination(s) between the seventh and tenth years of a 10-year recertifica-

tion assessment period. All recertification examinations must be completed by the end of the tenth year.

During the last three years of a 10-year recertification assess-

ment period, Registrants will be required to take and pass a re-certification examination for

each specialty.

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Cost and Number of Recertification Examination Attempts: Registrants will have three opportunities to take and pass the recertification examination(s) for each specialty area. There will be no charge for Registrants who pass the recertification examination(s) on the first attempt. A fee (the amount has not been determined) will be charged for the second and third attempts. Registrants who are unable to pass the recertification examination for a specific specialty within three attempts will lose their certification in that specialty. The policies and pro-cedures for regaining a specialty are still being developed. Voluntarily Relinquishing a Credential/Specialty: Registrants who do not wish to take a recertification examination in a specific credential/specialty may voluntarily relin-quish the credential/specialty. For example, a Registrant holds the Abdominal (AB) and Neurosonology (NE) specialties within the RDMS credential. The Registrant, who no longer practices Neurosonology, may choose to give up the RDMS (NE) credential and take only the RDMS (AB) recertification examination. Upon passing the Abdomen (AB) recertification exami-nation, the Registrant would only hold the RDMS (AB) credential/specialty. The policies and procedures for voluntarily relin-quishing a credential/specialty are still being developed. Study & Reference Materials for the Recertification Examinations: ARDMS publishes content outlines for all specialty examinations (www.ARDMS.org/Outlines). The same outlines used for the main specialty credentialing examinations will be used for the recertification specialty examinations. In addition, it is anticipated that sonography organizations and continuing medical education providers will develop study materials and re-sources in the year or two leading up to the first administration of the recertification examinations (2019). Annual Renewal Fee & CME Requirements for ARDMS Credentials: The annual renewal fee and CME requirements for ARDMS credentials will remain in effect. As such, the recertification as-sessment program, annual renewal fee and CME requirements will constitute the three obligations ARDMS Registrants must meet to maintain active status. Where to Find More Recertification Assessment Program Information: The volunteer members of the ARDMS Recertification Task Force, members of the community advisory workgroup (which includes representatives from leading Sonography organizations) and ARDMS staff are continuing to develop the compo-nents and policies of the recertification assessment program. ARDMS will keep Registrants and the Sonography community informed regarding the ongoing developments of the recertifi-cation assessment program. Please visit and bookmark the Recertification Assessment section of the ARDMS website at www.ARDMS.org/Recertification and watch for updates in ARDMS newsletters Registry Reports, NewsWire and Notes for Educators.

Bookmark www.ARDMS.org/Recertification

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Registry Reports

Patricia Prince, RDMS, RVT, RT, Chair - ARDMS Board of Directors

Dale R. Cyr, MBA, CAE, RDMS, RDCS, CEO & Executive Director

Jessica McLane Gann, Director of Marketing and Communications

Julia Lee, Marketing and Communications Coordinator

Morgan Kreutz, Marketing and Communications Coordinator

“Registry Reports” welcomes submissions from the field.

Send inquiries to communications@ardms.org

Fax: 301.738.0313 “Registry Reports” ©2010, Rockville, Maryland.

51 Monroe Street, PE 1 Rockville, MD 20850-2400

Mark Your Calendars! 2010 ARDMS Exhibit Schedule ASE Scientific Session SVS/SVU Vascular Annual Meeting San Diego, CA Boston, MA June 12-15 June 10-13 Booth #: 139 Booth #: 628 www.asecho.org www.vascularweb.org American College of Emergency SDMS Annual Conference Vascular InterVentional Advances Physicians Scientific Assembly Denver, CO (VIVA) Las Vegas, NV October 14-17 Las Vegas, NV September 28-October 1 Booth #: TBA October 20-23 Booth #: TBA www.sdms.org/meetings Booth#: TBA www.acep.org www.vivapvd.com

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