Setting the Stage for the 2025 ACR-RBMA Practice Leadership Forum

The 2025 ACR-RBMA Practice Leadership Forum (PLF), taking place Jan. 24–26, 2025 in Phoenix, Ariz, is set to cover a variety of topics relevant to practice leaders of all experience levels, ranging from risk management and cybersecurity to AI and beyond. The Bulletin spoke with past PLF attendees H. Coleman Herrod, MD, Logan McLean, MD, Christopher J. Hanrahan, MD, PhD, and CEO Katrina Rougelot, of Summit Physician Specialists in Salt Lake City to learn more about why attending the PLF is important for radiology leaders and how it helps foster the exchange of ideas and insight. 

How is the PLF different from other meetings? What are the top reasons practice administrators and radiologists should attend?

The PLF is uniquely focused on the specific challenges of practice management in radiology. The topics delve into both current and future issues affecting the radiology workforce, including workforce shortages, increasing patient volumes, physician burnout, compensation trends, experiences with AI, and risk management strategies. 

Unlike a typical article detailing national trends and predictions, many speakers at the PLF combine research from national databases with insightful personal experiences from their own practices. Notably, several presentations at the 2024 meeting adopted a “this is how we do it” approach, which sparked engaging open forum discussions amongst participants. This collaborative sharing of experiences was particularly valuable, offering practical solutions and strategies for addressing challenges similar to those we face in our own practices.

Why is it particularly valuable to attend as an administrative-physician leader team?

For our group, attending the PLF was a first for the current physician component of our leadership team. Our administrative-MD team approached the meeting with the mindset of a working retreat centered on engagement and collaboration. By attending various breakout sessions, we were able to divide and conquer, later reporting back to each other on key takeaways.

Meeting for meals after each session allowed us to review, discuss and distill our notes, making the experience fulfilling and productive. During our time at the PLF, we even created a slide deck that we presented to our practice the following week. In the months following the forum, our practice management team has frequently referenced data points and anecdotes from the meeting, which have proven invaluable as we navigate difficult issues within our practice.

Describe your experience attending as a team and the challenges you were able to work on or make progress on as a result of attending the PLF.

While radiology practices across the country differ in organizational structure, size and region-specific issues, we found that the challenges we face are not unique to our organization. It was especially beneficial to learn how other practices manage remotely employed or partner radiologists and how they integrate this new model with a more traditional, geographically-based business approach. This insight has been instrumental in guiding our strategies as our practice evolves.

How can practice leaders convince their teams to attend the 2025 meeting?

Our weekend working retreat at the 2024 PLF transformed into a valuable team-building exercise, free from the typical constraints posed by varying shifts and family commitments. Our leadership team took the opportunity to build stronger relationships and collaboratively address different topics, focusing on practical solutions that we could implement. 

The current sentiment within our practice is that sending an administrative-MD team to the PLF leads to impactful changes in collective thinking and operational practices. This experience is seen as a worthwhile investment of both time and resources that can yield significant benefits for any organization.