ABMRS to Offer Professional Credential in Magnetic Resonance Safety

January 12, 2015 ‐ PSQH

Experts in magnetic resonance safety have formed a new organization, the American Board of Magnetic Resonance Safety (ABMRS), to provide testing and certification for professionals working with magnetic resonance. The ABMRS plans to offer testing for the credential MR Safety Certified™ or MRSC™ later this year and will provide such certification for MR Medical Directors/Physicians (MRMD), MR Safety Officers (MRSO), and MR Safety Experts (MRSE).

The ABMRS, chaired by Emanuel Kanal, MD, recognizes that efforts to standardize MR safety practices have been hampered by a shortage of professionals with proven knowledge and training to ensure safety in the magnetic resonance environment. The American College of Radiology (ACR) offers a Guidance Document on MR Safe Practices (with Dr. Kanal as first author) as a template for the development of MR safety programs, which recommends that MR facilities name a medical director to be responsible for safety. ABMRS certification will help facilities identify professionals who have appropriate training for that position as well as MR safety officer and MR safety expert.

The ABMRS describes the knowledge and competencies to be covered in the test:

The testing objective is to evaluate the MR safety knowledge and decision-making skills and competence of individuals who will be facing real world MR safety situations that they are likely to encounter in actual clinical and research MR environments. The tests will therefore focus on basic science knowledge as well as testing and confirming the ability to apply that basic science and clinical medical knowledge to MR safety situations that may likely be encountered in the MR imaging environment.

With its program of testing and certification of professional safety experts in MR, the ABMRS will provide the missing piece in MR safety. Other components of MR systems—hardware, software, and siting of MR scanners—are certified for safety. Now professionals will be as well.

For further information, please contact Emanuel Kanal at ekanal@pitt.edu.