Financing research and education: current challenges and future solutions--a summary of the 2009 Intersociety Conference.

Academic radiology departments perform the majority of the educational and research functions that support and grow our specialty; however, these missions are financed heavily from the clinical revenue generated by academic radiologists. This financial dependence on an uncertain revenue stream places our academic missions at considerable risk and strains the solvency of our academic base. Distributing the costs of education and research across the primary beneficiaries of the education and research product would lessen the burden on our academic departments and create a more stable financial base for the future.