McVey L R
Beth Israel Hospital, Passaic, NJ, USA.
Radiol Manage. 1998 Jan-Feb;20(1):45-8.
A simple phone call was the impetus for a group of hospitals in northern New Jersey to create a consortium that would meet their collective need to supply continuing education credits for their RTs. Many of the seven original member-hospitals had eliminated continuing education reimbursement and other resources were unavailable. Yet hospital RTs still needed to fulfill American Registry of Radiologic Technologists (ARRT) requirements. The mission of the consortium was to provide a variety of topics that would meet the criteria for continuing education credits, as mandated by the ARRT. The idea was so simple, the seven original hospital members wondered why they hadn't thought of it earlier. If each member hospital offered a three-credit seminar, collectively the consortium could offer 21 credits per year for their employees, more than enough to meet ARRT requirements. The group gave itself a name--Northern New Jersey Council for Continuing Education--and quickly began to create a policy and procedure manual. It came up with basic rules for attendance, voting privileges and a goal for expanding its membership. The newly created manual detailed member responsibilities and instructions for holding seminars. The manual outlined responsibilities for collecting fees, registration, attendance and certification. The consortium agreed on a consistent format for advertising, letterhead and certificates for seminars. Each member was required to submit a course outline for the consortium's approval, which allowed a variety of both technical and nontechnical topics. Some members organized their own seminars, after submitting an application to the ASRT for approval. Others worked with various vendors who were happy to provide a seminar to a group of customers, rather than to individual customers. After three years, the consortium has proved beneficial to all involved. Most of all, it has met the members' goal of providing continuing education with limited resources.
一个简单的电话促使新泽西州北部的一群医院成立了一个联盟，以满足他们为放射技师提供继续教育学分的共同需求。最初的七家成员医院中有许多已经取消了继续教育报销，其他资源也无法获取。然而，医院的放射技师仍需要满足美国放射技师登记处（ARRT）的要求。该联盟的使命是提供各种符合ARRT规定的继续教育学分标准的主题。这个想法非常简单，最初的七家医院成员都奇怪他们为什么没有早点想到。如果每个成员医院都举办一个三学分的研讨会，那么该联盟每年总共可以为其员工提供21个学分，足以满足ARRT的要求。该组织给自己起了个名字——新泽西州北部继续教育委员会——并迅速开始制定政策和程序手册。它制定了出勤的基本规则、投票权以及扩大成员资格的目标。新创建的手册详细说明了成员的职责以及举办研讨会的说明。手册概述了收取费用、注册、出勤和认证的职责。该联盟就研讨会的广告、信头和证书的统一格式达成了一致。每个成员都必须提交一份课程大纲以供联盟批准，这样可以涵盖各种技术和非技术主题。一些成员在向美国放射技师协会（ASRT）提交申请并获得批准后，组织了自己的研讨会。其他成员则与各种供应商合作，这些供应商很乐意给一群客户而不是单个客户举办研讨会。三年后，该联盟已证明对所有相关方都有益。最重要的是，它实现了成员们在资源有限的情况下提供继续教育的目标。
