AUR-Kodak Introduction to Management Program

Abstract

The Association of University Radiologists (AUR) has partnered with the Eastman Kodak Company to sponsor a new program that will provide management training for academic radiologists. Existing programs through the AUR and corporate sponsors play a valued role in supporting research in radiology and fostering junior faculty in the academic system. However, the AUR has not had a sponsored program in radiology management and leadership for physicians. The partnership is a natural one. The AUR continues to be the society that represents the major academic radiology programs in the United States. Kodak has been one of the prime movers in the development of medical imaging. The company has demonstrated a sustained commitment to product and process innovation, but of equal importance has been its commitment to customer education. In the early 1900s, American medical education was conducted in “proprietary” medical schools, which were either unrelated to universities or maintained in an unequal status. The Carnegie Endowment commissioned a review of medical education by Abraham Flexner, who said of medical schools: “many are. . .without redeeming features of any kind. Their general squalor consorts well with their clinical poverty” (1). The Flexner report created a revolution in American medical education. Universities revitalized medical schools by emphasizing entrance requirements, the scientific basis of clinical practice, and “active learning.” Academic medical centers remain unique in combining undergraduate and graduate education, basic and applied research, and faculties who spend most of their time in the daily practice of their profession (2). Remarkable as the subsequent advances in clinical science have been, the future is equally promising. We can anticipate minimally invasive therapies that utilize threedimensional imaging and virtual reality, robotics and nanomachines; regeneration of damaged tissues; molecular imaging and diagnosis; and control of aging, cancer, and psychiatric illness. Medical education also is poised for dramatic advances utilizing life-long “intelligent agent” computerized personal tutors; the use of actors, mannequins, and robots; and procedure simulators and virtual reality. These advances will alleviate the information overload in medical education, and they will permit medical schools and students to enhance their focus on human interaction skills, ethics, and social values. Academic medical centers are essential in generating new knowledge, translating research into patient care, and training the next generations of physicians. However, they face severe economic challenges. On the one hand, there are declining revenues related to the Balanced Budget Act of 1997 and other government initiatives, managed care, and regulatory focus on industry coding practices. On the other hand, there are increasing costs from uncompensated care of the uninsured, wage and benefits expense in tight labor markets, the administrative infrastructure needed for managed care and regulatory compliance, and losses from physician integration strategies. Academic departments of radiology have been critical to introducing new developments in imaging such as magnetic resonance imaging and picture archiving and communication systems, but they, too, must deal with the economic pressures. Radiologic societies have responded with development of research and education foundations, which support junior faculty and trainees in the academic aspects of the field. The National Institutes of Health budget has increased substantially, and recently we have seen the creation of a National Institute of Biomedical Imaging Acad Radiol 2001; 8:1134–1135