Focus on DR

Focus on DR

ABR Trustee Follows Mentors to Leadership Role on Board

By Kate Maturen, MD, ABR Trustee

2025;18(1):6

In late 2024, I had the distinct honor of succeeding Stephen Simoneaux, MD, as vice chair for diagnostic radiology (DR) on the ABR Board of Trustees (BOT). An eminent pediatric radiologist and ABR volunteer of many decades, Steve will take his signature good humor and practical wisdom to the Board of Governors (BOG) in 2025. Congratulations, Steve, and thank you for your service to the BOT!

I was a new faculty member at the University of Michigan in 2010. About five minutes after receiving my ID badge and pager, I was recruited as an ABR volunteer. My department chair, Reed Dunnick, MD, (former ABR Trustee, board president, and associate executive director) asked me to write GU items for the DR Certifying Exam, then in gestation. The process of winding down the “Old Orals” had begun, and the new written exam was known as the “Exam of the Future.”  Reed was and is a terrific mentor, and his enthusiasm for ABR volunteering was truly infectious. Brent Wagner, MD, MBA, (current ABR executive director) was my engaging committee chair, and the die was cast. I was to be an ABR lifer.

Later, as an oral examiner and GU category chair, I felt welcomed and supported by many other chairs and Trustees. Desiree Morgan, MD, (Governor and former BOT vice chair for DR) was especially helpful in encouraging me to expand my ABR involvement. Thank you to all these mentors, sponsors, and role models!

What’s old is new again, and we are returning to a DR Oral Certifying Exam in 2028. The ABR is your organization, and we are accountable to the radiology community and to the public. Incorporating robust input from radiology practice leaders, educators, and trainees, we will empanel the new DR oral certifying item-writing committees in 2025 and spend 2026-27 creating a large bank of novel items with new, high-quality images. In 2027, we will marshal and train many of you to participate as remote oral examiners, then launch the “New Orals” in 2028. Interventional radiology, radiation oncology, and medical physics have run remote oral exams since 2020, and DR will benefit from their experience and the operational expertise of the ABR staff as we roll out the largest remote exam in the organization’s portfolio.

The “Old Orals” have faded from collective memory among residents, but many have understandable anxiety about this change. Residents, you probably won’t believe me until after your exam in 2028, but it’s not nearly as scary as you may think. This is what you’ve trained for! The examiners are eager to help you show what you know. The images will be chosen to be as clear as possible. The diagnoses will be selected for their importance and clinical relevance. The exam will focus on higher level observation, management, and communication skills. Future examinees can learn more about the new exam on our website and watch a mock session.

The ABR is about people, and you know these people. They may be your teachers, colleagues, or former trainees. They are volunteering their time and expertise to further our profession, and this sense of mission and shared purpose is evident in every committee, the BOT, and the BOG. It is a true honor to serve in a leadership role for groups like these, with the highly capable and attentive support of the ABR staff. I greatly appreciate this opportunity and I’m looking forward to the work ahead.

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