Volunteer Spotlight – RO: It’s No Mystery: She Finds Time to Give Back as a Volunteer
By ABR Associate Director of Communications Rodney Campbell
October 2026;19(5):10
Serving on an ABR committee takes away from volunteers’ free time. The work they do is a priority, so sacrifices must be made.
After almost 20 years as an ABR volunteer, Pramila Rani Anne’, MD, is familiar with curtailing a few activities in the name of giving back to her profession. Some things she puts aside are minor but noticeable.
“(Serving as a volunteer) means that you work a little extra at night and on the weekends,” she said. “With all the other reading that I have to do, I have less time to read junk murder mysteries, although I still get them as Christmas presents from my husband and son.”
Dr. Anne’ is a professor and director of clinical operations in the department of radiation oncology for the Bodine Center at Thomas Jefferson University. She’s chair of the ABR Radiation Oncology Certifying Exam Gastrointestinal Committee and serves as an oral examiner.
Put that on top of her volunteer duties at her hospital and for ASTRO, and it’s clear that her free time is limited. But that’s OK. Dr. Anne’ enjoys being in the middle of things.
“I like being involved,” she said. “I like to know what’s going on around me. It makes me feel good.”
She’s also president of the Thomas Jefferson University Hospital medical staff, which includes approximately 1,000 physicians. She became a member of the committee several years ago while away from the office.
“I was on vacation and I got volunteered to be treasurer,” she said. “While I was getting ready to go away, they asked if I could help a little more. I said I didn’t mind and then I got nominated.”
When Dr. Anne’ was initially approached about becoming an ABR volunteer, she passed. There was too much going on in her life. But another opportunity was coming.
“At that point, I couldn’t make the time,” she said. “A few years later, I was asked again after we hired more people at the hospital. I was still very busy, both at work and home, but things were a little better, so I had the time.”
She was happy to fit working with her medical specialty board into her calendar. It’s one way that physicians and physicists can advance the quality of their fields and better ensure patient safety.
“It helps the future of your specialty and makes sure that your colleagues have the appropriate knowledge base,” Dr. Anne’ said.
In her early days as an ABR volunteer, Dr. Anne’ saw an evolution happening. The organization was becoming more proactive about occasional problem items on its exams. Post-event quality assurance reviews by ABR psychometric staff were becoming the norm and the results worked in candidates’ favor.
“When I started, (the ABR was) trying to get away from the ‘They’re just trying to fail us’ attitude,” she said. “I was impressed with how they were throwing out questions that they felt were vague and not necessarily up to standards.”
Michael Yunes, MD, the ABR’s associate executive director for radiation oncology, met Dr. Anne’ when they were volunteering as oral examiners in Louisville.
“She had a reputation as an excellent educator and an enthusiastic, compassionate mentor,” Dr. Yunes said. “She can focus on the details while maintaining a broad understanding of the discipline and the ultimate goal of educating future radiation oncologists. She is a pleasure to work with and is always eager to improve the quality of the exams.”
Working with residents at her hospital helps her understand what they should know for Initial Certification exams. It’s a two-way education; residents have recently completed their medical school education and internships, giving them well-rounded and less specialized experience.
“You always have to be willing to learn,” Dr. Anne’ said. “I might know a little more about the radiation than residents, but they’re going to be able to tell me more about all the patient’s other problems and how those might impact their treatment, which is also important.”
Even with all her volunteer duties, radiology obligations don’t completely consume her life. Her husband and son are big Philadelphia Eagles fans who have been going to NFL games for years. In that time, Dr. Anne’ has only gone once. But that gives her occasional Sundays to kick back and relax while the guys are away.
“When he and my son go to the game, it’s like I have a whole three quarters of a day to myself,” she said. “I relax. I call a friend. Sometimes we’ll go get sushi.”
