Empowering Our Radiology Community

Amy Kotsenas, MD, FACR, Chair of the American College of Radiology^® (ACR^®) Commission on Membership and Communications contributed this piece.

It’s been one year since the ACR announced a new strategic plan, “Empowering the Radiologist of the Future.” During that first year of implementation, we focused on creating a strong infrastructure to ensure long-term success in accomplishing the 12 objectives which serve as guideposts for our journey over the next three to five years.

During the ACR 2023 Annual Meeting, we celebrated our centennial with the unveiling of a new brand identity, with a logo that emphasizes our role in elevating the field of radiology and our new #FocusedForwardTogether tagline highlighting our renewed focus on important issues impacting our field as we move forward, unified in our pursuit of serving patients and society.

Our implementation of the strategic plan continues with progress on three time-limited initiatives. The initiatives listed below are intended to accelerate progress on specific objectives.

• Convener of Conversations: We’re examining how members and the ACR communicate with each other, prioritizing what is working and creating new opportunities that foster open, civil dialogue that is respectful, honest and transparent. Later this summer, we will begin beta testing a more centralized Member and Customer Care Center, ensuring that when you reach out to the ACR, you receive the information and support you need quickly. Over the remainder of 2023 and into 2024, we’ll be streamlining the amount of outbound emails we send to consolidate and personalize content to align with the interests you’ve shared with us.
• Organization of Opportunity: We are taking action to maximize the impact of our volunteers by matching opportunities to member interests and expertise. A dedicated team is in the process of maintaining an inventory of all opportunities, particularly shorter term micro- and non-governance roles, and creating a centralized system for volunteers to sign up.
• Hub of Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Emerging Technology Assessment and Advocacy: We strive to empower our members to remain at the forefront of the evolving clinical care landscape. By prioritizing the latest research and knowledge on the safe implementation, appropriate use and economics of AI, we’re aiming to empower all members as leaders in information-centric medicine. We look forward to sharing exciting new projects in this area later this year.

Finally, I’m pleased to share a major undertaking to further demonstrate our commitment to the next century of quality, leadership and innovation — a redesign of our website, acr.org. With support from the new ACR Website Redesign Committee, we look forward to developing a new website over the next two years that is member-centric and mobile optimized, with improved searchability. The new site will deliver a better experience when you seek to obtain information and clinical guidance from the ACR, join or renew your membership, register for events and courses, and purchase products.

We look forward to continued strategic collaboration between members and staff, leading together, to empower the innovative, influential and inclusive radiology community of today and tomorrow.