title: The American Board of Radiology Focused Practice Recognition in Brachytherapy (FPRB) Program: Opportunities lost, lessons learned, and future implications.
abstract: In 2011, the American Board of Medical Specialties approved a pilot project submitted by the American Board of Radiology for a Focused Practice Recognition in Brachytherapy initiative. Developers had anticipated significant interest within the profession and had hoped that the project would stimulate clinical interest, research, and education in the modality. A centerpiece of the project was a National Brachytherapy Registry, which was to serve as a dynamic longitudinal database for participants and the profession. Ultimately, the project did not achieve its anticipated goals and was terminated by the American Board of Radiology in 2015. Development, implementation, problems encountered, and potential implications and solutions are discussed.
authors.affiliation: 21st Century Oncology, Inc., and The American Board of Radiology, Bethesda, Maryland. Electronic address: paul.wallner@21co.com.
authors.forename: Paul E
authors.initials: PE
authors.lastname: Wallner
authors.affiliation: Department of Radiation Oncology, David Geffen School of Medicine at the University of California Los Angeles, Los Angeles, California.
authors.forename: Patrick
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Kupelian
authors.affiliation: Department of Radiation Oncology, Medical College of Wisconsin, Milwaukee, Wisconsin.
authors.forename: Beth
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Erickson
authors.affiliation: Department of Radiation Oncology, Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center, New York, New York.
authors.forename: Kaled M
authors.initials: KM
authors.lastname: Alektiar
authors.affiliation: The American Board of Radiology, Tucson, Arizona.
authors.forename: David
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Laszakovits
authors.affiliation: The American Board of Radiology, Tucson, Arizona.
authors.forename: Tina M
authors.initials: TM
authors.lastname: Henson
authors.affiliation: Department of Radiation Oncology, David Geffen School of Medicine at the University of California Los Angeles, Los Angeles, California.
authors.forename: Pin-Chieh
authors.initials: PC
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.affiliation: Department of Radiation Oncology, David Geffen School of Medicine at the University of California Los Angeles, Los Angeles, California.
authors.forename: Michael L
authors.initials: ML
authors.lastname: Steinberg
mesh_terms: D001918:Brachytherapy / Q000592:standards*; D002568:Certification / Q000592:standards*; D002983:Clinical Competence / Q000592:standards*; D004502:Education, Medical, Continuing / Q000592:standards; D006801:Humans; D011871:Radiology / Q000193:education* / Q000592:standards*; D013038:Specialization; D013044:Specialty Boards; D014481:United States