Minutes

SEAAPM Business Meeting

March 29, 2003

Pine Mountain, Georgia

The meeting was called to order by President-elect David Vassy at 2:13 PM after a luncheon address by AAPM President-elect G. Donald Frey

2002 Minutes:

The minutes of the 2002 meeting were approved.

Elections:

The winners of the 2003 election of officers were announced as follows:

q President-elect: Andrew Karellas

q Secretary: George David

q Treasurer: David Gauntt

Treasurer's Report (David Gauntt):

The treasurer's report was distributed to meeting attendees as part of their registration packages and reviewed. David Gauntt reported that the treasury was in “very good shape” with approximately two years of savings in reserve. Acceptance of the treasurer’s report was moved and approved.

Chapter Board Representative Report (given by out-going representative Jerry Allison):

The board representative’s report was distributed to meeting attendees as part of their registration packages and reviewed. There was a discussion of AAPM providing financial support to the ACMP’s journal and whether AAPM should do this when AAPM’s own journal is of questionable financial status. This led to a discussion of the possibility of creation of a joint AAPM/ACMP clinical journal. The AAPM Board appointed a committee to study financial implications of joint operation of a clinically oriented journal. This would be an on-line journal. The existing AAPM journal Medical Physics is expected to continue without change. Another option discussed was adding a clinical section to Medical Physics but it was stated that the current journal leadership is not in favor of that.

Approval of the board representative’s report was moved & approved.

No CRCPD Board Representative Report

Old Chapter Business:

AAPM Fellowship Nomination Update: Dan Bourland was elected to fellowship at the 2002 national AAPM meeting in Montreal. Fellowship for Nick Detorie and George David were approved and will be awarded at the 2003 national AAPM meeting in San Diego.

Ray Tanner moved that the chapter nominate Wlad Sobol for AAPM fellowship. The motion was seconded and approved. President Vassy will take appropriate follow-up action.

In 2002 the SEAAPM asked the executive committee to see if it could find guidelines for a chapter Lifetime Achievement Award. In going through recent meeting minutes, no guidelines were found. Jerry Allison moved that the executive committee define a lifetime achievement award by coming up with set of criteria & rules for 2004 meeting. The motion was seconded and approved.

New Chapter Business:

Ray Tanner moved that $5,000 be contributed to the AAPM’s Jack Kromer Fund whose original goal was for provide a graduate level educational endowment fund. The discussion that followed included recent changes in the fund and other ways the SEAAPM could accomplish educational support. The motion was seconded and passed 9-3. Don Frey suggested that we contact AAPM headquarters to see if they can arrange for creation of a large check suitable for public presentation by the SEAAPM president at the AAPM President’s Reception.

Local Arrangements for both the 2004 & 2005 SEAAPM meetings were discussed. Several offers had been made previous to the meeting including one from Patrick Booton for Savannah, one from Ken Vanek working with Fred Harmon in Charleston, one from George Sherouse for Chapel Hill / Durham, one from Bill Root for Charlotte, and one from Mark Bruels has offered Greenville.

Wlad Sobol moved to accept Patrick Booton’s offer to chair local arrangements for 2004 in Savannah. The motion was seconded & approved.

Wlad Sobol then moved to look at 3 sites for 2005 and report back at the 2004 SEAAPM meeting. Dave Vassy offered an amendment by Vassy to accept an offer from Bill Root and George Sherouse to chair local arrangements for 2005. The amended motion was seconded and passed.

Subjects and directors for both the 2004 and the 2005 Symposium were discussed. There were discussions about a symposium on portal imaging, on imaging for the therapy physicists, on accreditation programs, and on PACS and image fusion.. George Sherouse reminded the group that imaging for therapy physicists was the topic of a symposium about eight years prior which he had directed.

No one present offered to chair a symposium.

Sanjiv Samant offered to do student-coordination for the SEAAPM chapter including identifying and communicating with graduate academic programs that are in our six-state region.

There was an impromptu brainstorming session on making SEAAPM annual meeting more productive to our vendors and members. Sherouse suggested a tiered vendor pricing structure for exhibiting at the symposium, the meeting, or both. Other suggestions ranged from being sure there is cell phone reception to Internet access at the hotel. There was a discussion of the effect on vendors if we did not have a symposium. David Gauntt asked those present about preference for Nights Out vs. Night In. The overwhelming group consensus was that the Nights In we have done the last several years are well liked and accepted.

George Sherouse suggested a business-oriented symposium. Mike Yester and George Sherouse suggested a multi-topic or multi-focus meeting which could be done in addition to or in place of a symposium. Dave Vassy offered to attempt to solicit a symposium director. Wlad Sobol moved that president Vassy attempt to find a symposium director. If none is identified by May, President Vassy will direct President-elect Andy Karellas to consider expanding the annual meeting for a multi-topic focus. The motion was seconded and passed.

A special thanks was offered to Sandra McIntosh (who was not present) for doing local arrangements and selecting the location for the 2003 symposium and meeting. She also picked the menus.

Seeing that David Vassy was presiding over the meeting, the usual virtual passing of the gavel to the new president was not done.

Adjournment:

The meeting was adjourned at 3:25 PM.

Respectfully submitted,

George David, Secretary SEAAPM