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The Imaging Research Opportunities Working Group that was held during the summer of 1997 established a Task Force on Research Training of Radiologists and Imaging Scientists. This is to report that the first meeting of this task force occurred during the annual meeting of the Radiologic Society of North America on Sunday, November 30 from 9:00 to 11:00 am in Chicago. The attendees were:

Charles E. Putman, M.D.
C. Douglas Maynard, M.D.
Gary M. Glazer, M.D.
James Anderson, Ph.D.
Nick Bryan, M.D., Ph.D.
William G. Bradley, Jr., M.D.
Thomas Brady, M.D.

Daniel Sullivan, M.D., Director of the NCI Diagnostic Imaging Program
Anne Menkens, Ph.D., NCI Program Director
Lester Gorelic, Ph.D., - Office of the NCI Research Training Programs
Mary Bell, Ph.D., Head of the Review Group for Training Programs
David Bragg, M.D., Consultant to the Diagnostic Imaging Program of the NCI

David Bragg introduced the subject, as well as the charge to the Task Force. This was followed by a discussion by Lester Gorelic and Mary Bell about existing research training programs within the NIH.

Considerable discussion followed the presentations, and it was agreed that the existing programs within NIH that afford research training are not ideally suited for radiology trainees. Several recommendations were suggested:

1. Have the NIH prepare an RFA that would be available to M.D. or M.D./Ph.D. radiologists at the resident or junior faculty level.
   1. Resident level

      Research training at home institution	3 years
      Research training at NIH	1-2 years
      Research training at the home institution or "Center of Excellence"	1-2 years

      Since the time spent at NIH in research training will have to be credited towards eligibility for Board certification, this will require approval by the American Board of Radiology. The members of the Task Force who are members of the American Board of Radiology thought that this would not be a problem.

   2. Junior Faculty

      A training grant to support a junior faculty member for two years of research training at the National Institutions of Health, as well as for two years at their home institutions. The junior faculty member should either be Board eligible or Board certified by the American Board of Radiology

2. The Radiologic Society of North America, through their Research and Education Fund, have "Named" Research Fellowships that are awarded to individuals to work in institutions having American Board of Radiology approved training programs. The Chair of the Task Force was asked to contact the R & E Fund of the RSNA and inquire as to their interest in supporting research fellows who could be trained for up to two years at the NIH in one of the appropriate intramural laboratories. These fellowships could be called RSNA-NIH Research Fellowships. It was pointed out that the Breast Cancer Advisory Group, through the Komen Foundation, has a program that supports research trainees in breast cancer. The arrangement for the Komen foundation is that they support half of the salary of the recipient, as well as all of the travel, and the NIH accepts the trainee in their intramural program and supports the individual up to half of their salary requirements. This could serve as a model for the RSNA-NIH Research Fellowship.

Prepared by Dr. Stanley Baum, 2/19/98