National Council started with a report by Peter Conti, MD, President of SNM.  A major emphasis of his discussion was the need for SNM to refocus and rebrand SNM to become more inclusive (eg, molecular imaging).  Part of this effort is to widen the scope of Nuclear Medicine and to broaden our membership base.  Of particular concern, were non-nuclear medicine technologists performing much of the research work.  Val Cronin (President, SNMTS) reported on some recent changes.  Membership is up 11% over the same period in 2005.  There are now three programs offering an Advance Practice (APNM) program.  The Society has as a goal 2010 for inclusion of CT training in NMT programs, and by 2015 a B. Sc. minimum requirement.  Scott Holbrook (SNMTS President-elect) reported completion of CT and PET courses online.  The Society has voted to reduce (by 50%) membership fees to all military personnel.  There will be a $5.00 incentive offered to automatically renew membership via credit card.   The secretary/historian position has been split into two positions: secretary, and an historian. 

NMTCB now requires CEU’s: 24 CEU’s per two year period.  These can be achieved at any point in the two year period.  Non-compliance can result in a probationary period of 6 months initially, eventually leading to suspension.  Re-instatement would involve a fee and penalty.  If someone has been inactive for >5 years, and request to be re-instated, they would be required to pay back dues and take the exam again.  There are specialty exams now: Cardiology and PET. 

An area of concern was the possibility that JCAHAO could reclassify radiopharmaceuticals as a prescription.  This would create a myriad of problems, particularly in the areas of injection, preparation, credentialing, etc.   Something as simple as RBC survival could require separate certification.  NMT’s could be subject to nursing standards in order to inject.  Nuclear Medicine is a small player in this problem, and therefore diligence by all involved will be required to prevent this from happening. 

In regards to the problems with regarding CEU’s by the chapters, it was requested of SNM to look into establishing a standard procedure and equipment to be used by all.  This will require follow-up at the next meeting. 

There is a grant in place to allow the SNM to pay for two speakers per year per chapter to attend local meetings.  There is a committee on chapters, which will have a retreat in August, for a more in-depth discussion of chapter problems.  The SNM has in place a system to allow chapters to conduct voting or information through the web.