Message from Chairperson
April 8, 2010
Dear Canadian Sonographers,
Congratulations to both the Vancouver Organizing Committee for the 2010 Olympics and Paralympic Winter Games (VANOC) and to CARDUP! Both have achieved remarkable goals this year and are to be highly commended. The mission of the Vancouver 2010 games was “to touch the soul of the nation and inspire the world by creating and delivering an extraordinary Olympic and Paralympic experience with lasting legacies. The vision is to build a stronger Canada whose spirit is raised by its passion for sport, culture and sustainability.” CARDUP’s goal was to deliver Canada’s first knowledge-based examinations for Canadian sonographers wishing to proudly acquire CARDUP credentials and promote excellence in Canadian diagnostic Sonography. In May of this year, CARDUP will deliver its Core and Generalist Examinations for the first time. These exams are offered to graduating students from Canadian Medical Association (CMA) accredited diagnostic ultrasound education programs and to externally-trained candidates wishing to gain CARDUP registration. This new knowledge-based Sonography specialty examination completes the set of truly ‘Canadian’ requirements for CARDUP registration with the Canadian Registered Generalist Sonographer credential (CRGS). This unique set of ‘Canadian’ requirements was determined through survey results that identified the need to develop CARDUP knowledge-based examinations which focused on the skill set and standards expected for sonographers practicing in the Canadian healthcare environment.
Sonographers registered with CARDUP must meet the established standards for entry level practice as set by the National Competency Profiles (NCP) for the profession of diagnostic ultrasound. CARDUP credentials are highly respected and provide assurance to Canadian employers that CARDUP registrants are clinically competent, meet Canadian standards for entry level practice, and are prepared to work effectively in the Canadian healthcare system. Canadian employers can also be assured that CARDUP registrants will observe the Code of Ethics for the profession of diagnostic medical ultrasound. Our new written examinations will evaluate the Sonography candidate’s knowledge of ultrasound imaging with respect to Canadian standards identified by the NCP. These written examinations coupled with the CARDUP Clinical Skills Assessment (CCSA), also based on the NCP, are required components for CARDUP registration. Combined with a solid foundation through an acceptable diagnostic ultrasound education program, these examinations are intended to drive a minimum entry-level standard for both knowledge and clinical scanning skills of Registry candidates.
The development of the Core and Generalist examinations has come at a significant cost measured both monetarily and in time, and has involved the unrelenting commitment of Head Office staff, our Executive Director, Board Members, the Exam Development Committee and the Exam Item Writing Team. Many of your fellow sonographers, outside of work hours, volunteered their time to create exam blueprints, draft exam questions, and organize and implement the delivery of the first Core and Generalist written examinations. Please join me in commending all the participants who have been a part of this momentous task, as well as, thanking all the employers who have so generously given time to these individuals to complete this formidable challenge. It is through the efforts of fellow Canadian sonographers across this country that we can now fully reap the benefits of being a Canadian-trained, Canadian-tested, and Canadian registered Ultrasound Professional.
With pride, we should join in recognition of the high standards by which our new Sonography graduates are being educated and the excellent quality of these CMA accredited diagnostic ultrasound programs. We must also recognize the excellence of the sonographers who act as preceptors and clinically educate our student practitioners during their clinical practicum in healthcare facilities. The concept of a defined set of high clinical standards to which Sonographers must aspire for entry level practice became the foundation for the development of the CCSA and this same set of standards has been used to develop the knowledge-based examinations. This set of high clinical standards is quickly becoming the formula by which the performance of all practicing Canadian sonographers is being measured. Representatives from diagnostic ultrasound education programs across the country who comprise the CARDUP National Education Advisory Committee (NEAC) have promoted this high standard of sonographic imaging instruction. We are grateful for the continuing efforts of these Committee members, who on a volunteer basis, each individually provide a unique provincial perspective, and together work in unison to be advocates for the promotion of a National perspective in defining excellence in Sonography education and practice.
We tend sometimes to fall into our quiet, unassuming Canadian way of working and living without celebrating our excellence openly and publicly when warranted. This year we have seen, through the example of the Vancouver 2010 Olympics, how a country can rally together to support our athletes, to cheer them on in their moment of glory, and to take pride in the essence of what is truly the Canadian spirit. It is my hope that Canadian sonographers become aware of their professional excellence and unique role in Canadian healthcare delivery, and join together to proudly recognize our achievements and become vocal advocates for our profession.
The date for the first CARDUP Core and Generalist examinations is May 15th. Diagnostic ultrasound education programs across our nation will host these examinations as their students graduate from their programs throughout the year. Information regarding the examinations is posted on the CARDUP website, www.cardup.org. It is a truly an exciting time for Canadian Sonography, but it is also presents a crossroads for students preparing for entry level practice. To date, CARDUP have been accepting the American Registry for Diagnostic Medical Sonography (ARDMS) written exams as one of the requirements for registration. For the remainder of this year, there will be a choice of examination routes to CARDUP registration with the Generalist credential. Students may still opt to write the ARDMS physics, abdominal and obstetrics / gynaecology examinations. Upon passing, they may register with CARDUP by submitting their ARDMS credentials along with proof of graduation from a CMA accredited diagnostic ultrasound educational program and completion of their CCSA. Alternatively, upon completion of their educational program and their CCSA, students may choose to write the CARDUP Core and Generalist examinations, and upon successfully passing register with CARDUP. However, CARDUP recognizes that Canadian employers have been anticipating Canadian knowledge-based exams as the preferred method of evaluating a sonographer’s preparation for effective functioning in the Canadian healthcare environment. Therefore, as of January 2011, CARDUP will require that all graduates write the CARDUP Core and Generalist examinations to obtain their CRGS credential.
Change is never easy, and sometimes requires both sacrifice and faith. Separation from the American registry exams may seem like a sacrifice, but faith resides in the premise that CARDUP has developed a quality examining alternative that meets the needs of Canadian employers and our unique healthcare system. This is our commitment to you. All participants in the CARDUP exam development process have done an exemplary job in providing us with what is the first of the CARDUP credentialing registry examinations. Preparation for the Cardiac written examination for the Canadian Registered Cardiac Sonographer (CRCS) credential is well underway and on track for delivery in May of 2011. This will be following by the vascular written exam in the following year for the Canadian Registered Vascular Sonographer (CRVS) credential.
I hope this letter has been both informative and inspiring. Like the athletes of our Vancouver 2010 Olympics, we too are champions in our mutual development of excellence in Canadian Sonography! Let us all strive to be the best that we can be, to provide the highest standards in ultrasonic imaging and interpretation of which we are capable, and to give our patients the most in patient care we have to offer. This will propel our profession forward along with continued collaboration with our allied health partners that is so integral to our ability to work as a complete unit to service our patients’ needs. It is this collaborative effort that genuinely defines the profession of Canadian Sonography within today’s Canadian healthcare community.
I look forward to delivering further exciting news to you as development of the Cardiac and Vascular CARDUP credentialing examinations moves forward. I wish you continued success in your endeavors in the profession of diagnostic ultrasound.
Yours in Sonography,
Dal Disler CRCS, CRGS