News
Discover inspiring stories from our volunteers, candidates, and community, and stay up to date with important news and announcements on exams, policies, and more.
Program Director Jumps Into ABR Advisory Committee Work
As president of the Association of Program Directors in Interventional Radiology (APDIR), Quinn Meisinger, MD, has a keen interest in the ABR’s Initial Certification process. He gained more of a voice recently by joining the ABR Interventional Radiology Initial Certification Advisory Committee. The group, which includes physicians from many career stages, serves as a connection…
Retirement No Time to Slow Down for Former Board President
Reed Dunnick, MD, doesn’t plan to slow down much after he retires from the University of Michigan on August 31. Technically, he isn’t even leaving the department of radiology, where he has spent the past 33 years. The former ABR volunteer and part-time staffer will be coming to the Ann Arbor campus even more often…
Physicist: OLA ‘Better Method’ for Gauging Diplomate Knowledge
As a medical physicist who once took the Maintenance of Certification Exam years ago, Miriam Weiser, MS, has a piece of advice for her fellow ABR diplomates: Use Online Longitudinal Assessment (OLA) to satisfy Part 3 of Continuing Certification. “A point-in-time exam is not easy to study for,” she said. “It’s hard to know, especially…
Transition Year Complete, New Resident Ready for Reading Room
After a year of learning about several medical specialties during his transition year, Logan Ryals, MD, is relieved to start his residency and concentrate on career goals. While his experience, mostly with internal medicine and surgery, at Ascension Saint Joseph Hospital in the Chicago area was valuable, it was just a warm-up for what Dr….
OLA Reminders at Halfway Point of 2025
An important date is coming for diplomates in Continuing Certification who haven’t started answering Online Longitudinal Assessment (OLA) questions yet this year. August 3 is the last day when they can start participating and still be able to reach their annual progress requirement which, for most, requires answering 52 questions. Waiting until that date to begin…
Volunteer Plays Big Role in Small Subspecialty
With more than 1,300 volunteers on its dozens of committees, the ABR is fortunate to have subject matter experts who are eager to share their knowledge and limited spare time to keep board certification fair and relevant. Volunteers from smaller subspecialties can be hard to find. That’s what makes physicians like Caitlin Connolly, MD, especially…
Meet Our Four Associate Executive Directors
The ABR employs four experts from their fields to serve as extensions of Executive Director Brent Wagner, MD, MBA. These associate executive directors (AEDs), all of whom work part-time at the ABR, come from the four specialties that the organization certifies: diagnostic radiology (DR), interventional radiology/diagnostic radiology (IR/DR), medical physics (MP), and radiation oncology (RO). …
Standard Setting Produces Fair Results on Initial Certification Exams
By Ben Babcock When the ABR administers Initial Certification exams, some people pass and others don’t. How does the ABR decide where to draw the line between a passing and failing performance? The answer is a psychometric process called standard setting. ABR Initial Certification exams use a criterion-referenced standard setting process (Angoff) that involves a…
Her Volunteer Duties Cover the Range of Certification
A quick glance at the CV of Stephanie Leon, PhD, proves that she enjoys being an ABR volunteer. Dr. Leon is part of the Medical Physics (MP) Continuing Certification Advisory Committee, serves as chair of the Online Longitudinal Assessment (OLA) committee for diagnostic medical physics, and is an oral examiner. ABR exams and OLA are…
Fairness is on Her Mind When She Writes Exam Questions
As an interventional radiologist who teaches and performs clinical work, Divya Kumari, MD, keenly understands her role as an ABR volunteer who writes Qualifying (Core) Exam questions. It’s a balancing act. “I have a good idea of what (candidates) should know, particularly diagnostic residents,” she said. “We’re writing questions that they have to be able…
Physicist’s Family Reunion Takes Root in Alabama
After living in every corner of the country while growing up, studying and training to become a medical physicist, and starting her career, Samantha Simiele, PhD, feels at home again. Her job in Northern Alabama is a long way from her Eastern Washington roots. But, for the past year and a half, she’s enjoyed the…
Medical School Student Has Long Held Radiology Dreams
As far back as elementary school in Los Angeles, Chelsea Nwonwu knew what she wanted to do with her life. “I have notes from when I was a kid that asked, ‘What do you want to be when you grow up?’” she said. “And I said, ‘I want to be a radiologist.’ I was asked,…
Volunteer Happy to Jump into Peds Trustee Role
ABR volunteer Sherwin Chan, MD, and his family enjoy traveling. They especially look forward to visiting state and national parks to take in the unique wildlife and stunning vistas. It’s a good thing Dr. Chan is comfortable on the move. At the beginning of March, he made a big jump from committee chair to pediatric…
Cancer Experience Sparked His Interest in Medicine
When he was 14 years old, Cameron Brock, MD, was a typical teen. He was active, enjoying a life spent outdoors in his native Utah. There’s no way he could have imagined what was coming. “All of a sudden, I had a lot of pain in my right leg,” he said. “I wasn’t able to…
After Taxing Match Season, They Get Happy Returns
Last month, physicians and physicists from across the country matched into residency programs. Here are reactions from a few. Parris DiazDiagnostic radiologyResidency match: Stanford Medicine Unlike most Match 2025 applicants, I not only found out I matched on Monday, March 17, but discovered my program by the listed city, state, and zip code. Opening that…