1. Walk-Ins Welcome at 2006 SDMS Annual Conference
   
2. SDMS Office Closure and Order Processing
3. Call for Course Suggestions for 2007 SDMS Annual Conference
   
4. It's Time to Celebrate Sonography!
   
5. Senate Committee Passes CARE Bill
   
6. United Kingdom Uses SDMS Industry Standards for the Prevention of Work Related Musculoskeletal Disorders in Sonography
   
7. CDC Releases Preventing MSD in Sonography Monograph
   
8. Now Available: Two new JDMS CME Articles and Tests
   
9. News & Notes
   
10. Important Dates
    

1. Walk-Ins Welcome at 2006 SDMS Annual Conference

The 2006 SDMS Annual Conference in Denver will take you and your career to new heights! On-site registrations are welcome, space permitting. Please stop by the SDMS registration desk at the Colorado Convention Center. To expedite your on-site registration, please print out and complete the on-site registration form at http://www.sdms.org/meetings/resources/onsitereg06.pdf before you arrive.

PLEASE NOTE: Due to the overwhelming response, walk-in registrants may not be able to attend the Awards Dinner or the Wild Wild West Shindig. Check the "Is There Room For Me?" status board by the registration desk for space availability.

Registration desk hours are:
Thursday, October 12:  6:30 am to 8:30 pm
Friday, October 13:  6:30 am to 6:00 pm
Saturday, October 14:  7:00 am to 6:00 pm
Sunday, October 15:  7:30 am to 12:30 pm

We may still have limited seating in our pre-conference tutorials on October 12 and Lunch & Learn educational sessions on October 13 and 14. Check the "Is There Room For Me?" status board by the registration desk for space availability.

If you can’t make it to the educational sessions, an exhibit hall pass is only $35. Our exhibitors range from ultrasound equipment manufacturers to recruiters.

Hotel Reservations: If you have not yet made your hotel reservations, you should make them as soon as possible. The SDMS headquarters hotel, Hyatt Regency at Colorado Convention Center, is sold out.

There are several other hotels within walking distance of the Colorado Convention Center including:

Holiday Inn
1450 Glenarm Place
Denver CO, 80202
(303) 573-1450
$139/night- tell the operator you are with SDMS

Adam's Mark
1550 Court Place
Denver CO 80202
(800) 444-2326
$149/night-tell the operator you are with SDMS

Hotel Teatro
1100 14th Street
Denver CO 80202
(888) 727-1200
$169/night- tell the hotel you are with SDMS

For complete program details, visit: http://www.sdms.org/meetings

The SDMS office will be closed on Monday, October 9 for Columbus Day. It will be open on Tuesday, October 10. Due to the 2006 SDMS Annual Conference taking place in Denver, the SDMS office will be closed from Wednesday, October 11, through Monday, October 16. We will reopen on Tuesday, October 17.

IMPORTANT NOTE: Also due to the 2006 SDMS Annual Conference, product orders received after 5:00 p.m. CST on Wednesday, October 4, will not ship from our office until Friday, October 20. This includes all Federal Express expedited orders.

The SDMS Conference Management Committee (CMC) will begin planning the 2007 Annual Conference shortly after the conclusion of the 2006 Conference in Denver, CO. To assist the CMC in its continuing efforts to provide a conference that meets your needs and exceeds your expectations, you are encouraged to submit course and faculty proposals for the 2007 Annual Conference in Las Vegas, NV. All proposals will be considered by the CMC during the 2007 Annual Conference planning meetings.

Recognizing the importance of increasing public awareness of diagnostic medical sonography and promoting its value in health care, the Society of Diagnostic Medical Sonography has joined together with other sonography-related organizations to sponsor Medical Ultrasound Awareness Month every October.

All of the sponsoring organizations are encouraging members of the medical community to participate in Medical Ultrasound Awareness Month by familiarizing and educating their patients and the public about diagnostic medical sonography through specially planned activities and educational materials.

For 2006, the SDMS is proud to offer t-shirts, tote bags, mugs, buttons, posters, and pens on a rope. Please note that we have a limited supply of MUAM items, and we may run out of the more popular items or sizes. You can also visit www.sdms.org/resources/muam to download a free promotion kit, and a free computer desktop wallpaper image.

On September 20 the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee unanimously approved the Senate RadCARE bill (s.2322). The bill is now positioned to be considered by the full Senate. S.2322 sets minimum credentialing and education standards for allied health professionals involved in medical imaging and radiation therapy, including diagnostic medical sonographers. The credentialing and educational standards reflected in the bill must be met in order to receive reimbursement for medical imaging services performed on patients covered under Medicare, Medicaid or any program under the jurisdiction of the U.S. Dept of Health and Human Services.

The United Kingdom’s Society of Radiographers (SOR) has developed a set of Work-Related MSI Prevention Standards based on the work product from the SDMS 2003 Consensus Conference on Sonographer Musculoskeletal Injury. The SOR plans on using these standards throughout the UK health/hospital system.

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), through their National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH), has completed a 4-year research and review effort with the publication of “Preventing Work-Related Musculoskeletal Disorders in Sonography". According to the CDC; “Sonographers are at risk for developing work-related musculoskeletal disorders such as inflammation of the tendons (tendonitis) or tendon sheaths (tenosynovitis), bursitis, muscle strains, and pathology of the nerves in the supper extremities, neck and back. NIOSH recommends appropriate engineering controls, work practices, hazard communication, and training to prevent these work-related musculoskeletal disorders.”

EARN FREE CME CREDITS!
Each issue of the Journal of Diagnostic Medical Sonography (JDMS) includes at least one CME article and a CME test answer form that members can mail to SDMS with a $10 processing fee (or $25 processing fee for non-members). But why bother?

SDMS members can complete the CME test answer form online and receive your CME credits instantly, for FREE!

Now Available:

• Sept/Oct 2006
  Surface EMG Evaluation of Sonographer Scanning Postures
  Category: Other [OT]
  CME Credits: 1.0

• Sept/Oct 2006
  Sonographic Evaluation of the Portal and Hepatic Systems
  Category: Abdomen [AB]
  CME Credits: 1.5

The News & Notes column includes links to web-based news articles of interest to sonographers. To submit articles, send the URL to webmaster@sdms.org