Maintenance of Certification

SIR is pleased to offer members the following resources and material which pertain to Maintenance of Certification (MOC). The information below is not intended to be comprehensive. If you have questions contact our office at (703) 691-1805 or MOC@SIRweb.org, or the American Board of Radiology.

Changes to the MOC Process for IR and DR

In the last few months, changes to the Maintenance of Certification (MOC) process for IR and DR have led to confusion in the community. SIR and the American Board of Radiology (ABR) have developed the following guide to help diplomates of the MOC process navigate recent changes and standing processes.

MOC Changes

All MOC diplomates have officially transitioned from the 10–year MOC cycle to the "Continuous Certification" process, effective January 2013. The "Continuous Certification" process allows more flexibility for SIR members in the MOC process:

  • "Continuous Certification" is more manageable to complete, allowing diplomates to focus on requirements one year at a time rather than for an entire 10–year cycle.
  • There are no more caps or limits on requirements such as the number of self-assessment modules (SAMs) that may be completed in one year.
  • More frequent updates to the American Board of Medical Specialties' public reporting site will encourage all to remedy lengthy noncompliance periods.
  • Possibly most important, "Continuous Certification" streamlines the process for those who hold two certificates in IR and DR. Requirements for both are now synchronized.

SAM Changes

January 2013 changes in self-assessment criteria allow greater access to self-assessment resources. All accredited Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education (ACCME) enduring CME activities now (e.g., online, print and journal-based) qualify as self-assessment CME (SA-CME). Traditional ABR-approved SAMs, both live and online, still qualify but will now be calculated by the hours of approved CME (rather than in SAM "credits"). Each diplomate must complete 75 AMA Category 1 CME credits every three years. Of those credits, 25 hours over three years must be designated as SA-CME.

  • Diplomates can focus on acquiring a minimum of 8–9 SA–CME hours each year, but only need to be able to demonstrate 25 total hours over any three year period.
  • If you have fallen behind in one year, you can catch up in the next—there are no more annual limits on how many SA–CME credits may be earned.
  • SIR has a range of resources to help: In addition to 4 ABR-approved online SAMs worth 1–2 AMA PRA Category 1 Credits™, SIR has hundreds of hours of enduring CME activities available in the SIR Learning Center.

ABR Resources

Maintenance of Certification—What It Is and What It Means for You Brochure
Update on Maintenance of Certification (MOC) at the American Board of Radiology: Continuous Certification, Public Reporting, and Self-Assessment CME

Note: More information on "Continuous Certification" can be found on the ABR website. Here diplomates can find numerous useful new and updated resources explaining the process as well as the criteria for each of the four parts of the MOC process. All diplomate progress can now easily be tracked through the new personalized myABR profile, which replaced the Personal Database in March.

SIR Resources for MOC

SIR provides a comprehensive portfolio of online learning modules and capabilities through the SIR Learning Center which consolidates all educational activities and recordkeeping required by the American Board of Radiology (ABR) for maintaining certification.

The Learning Center enables members to track credits for SIR educational activities and submit them to the Continuing Medical Education (CME) Gateway, where they are forwarded on to ABR and displayed on the consumer website of the American Board of Medical Specialties (ABMS).

Self-Assessment CME (SA-CME)

  • The enduring offerings from the SIR Learning Center that are available for SA-CME include webinars, meeting proceedings and Journal of Vascular and Interventional Radiology (JVIR) CME tests.
  • 4 ABR-approved online SAMs worth 1–2 AMA PRA Category 1 Credits™
  • The SIR Digital Video Library provides full-motion video Web presentations of the education sessions that took place at the Society–s Annual Scientific Meeting. This activity provides over 200 hours of SA-CME.

Practice Quality Improvement

The ABR requires that all MOC delegates participate in a continuous Practice Quality Improvement Project (PQI). Has your practice developed a PQI project that would be useful for other SIR members? If yes, please email you project template to MOC@sirweb.org. Projects will be reviewed and edited for appropriateness for SIR members by the MOC committee, uploaded to SIRcloud ™ and made available on and ongoing basis.

Information (and resources) on practice quality improvement are available in the Members section. SIR has made available the follow project templates available to SIR members only.

  • Project 1: Fluoroscopy Dose Recording Compliance
  • Project 2: Prospective Analysis for Radiation Dose Reduction

Case-based Review Monograph

These publications serve as a valuable educational tool for practicing IRs, as well in-training interventional radiologists.
The topics covered in the monograph series include vascular diagnosis, embolization, peripheral arterial interventions, neurovascular interventions, deep venous thrombosis & IVC filters, portal interventions, pediatric interventions, oncologic interventions, women’s health, vertebral augmentation, veins, and many more. These Monographs serve only as an educational tool. CME and SAM Credit are not available.
Purchase these products separately or as a bundle in the IR Store.


Background Information on Maintenance of Certification

The MOC program was developed by the American Board of Radiology. SIR provides our members the resources necessary to comply with the requirements. The MOC program evaluates, on a continuous basis, the six essential competencies as defined by the Accreditation Council on Graduate Medical education (ACGME) and the American Board of Medical Specialties (ABMS):

  • Medical knowledge
  • Patient care and procedural skills
  • Interpersonal and communication skills
  • Professionalism
  • Practice-based learning and improvement
  • Systems-based practice

MOC utilizes FOUR PARTS to evaluate the six competencies:

  • Part 1: Professional Standing
  • Part 2: Lifelong Learning and Self-Assessment
  • Part 3: Cognitive Expertise
  • Part 4: Practice Quality Improvement (PQI)

For more background information about the MOC process, visit the ABR’s website.