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February 2004
Vol. 22/No. 2
What does it mean to
be accredited?
Questions arose during
the last SVU Town Hall meeting regarding what it means for an ultrasound
program to be accredited (in regards to ARDMS prerequisites). Students
and educators need to be aware that there is a difference between
programmatic accreditation and institutional accreditation.
Programmatic accreditation includes documenting institutional support
of an educational program AND ensuring specific processes are followed
and designated outcomes are achieved by the educational program
and its graduates.
Institutional accreditation focuses more broadly on the institutional
processes and outcomes, without special attention to specific educational
programs.
At the current time, ARDMS only recognizes programmatic accreditation
of formal sonography education programs (by discipline: general,
vascular or echocardiography) by the Commission on Accreditation
of Allied Health Education Programs (CAAHEP) or the Canadian Medical
Association (CMA) as meeting the requirements for Prerequisite 2.
For more information about the benefits of programmatic accreditation
visit CAAHEP
and CMA.
In addition, SDMS
provides additional useful information regarding questions to ask
(and have answered) when selecting a formal sonography educational
program.
For your convenience a summary of the ARDMS certification process
for first-time applicants is provided:
All first-time applicants applying to ARDMS for examination must
submit the following
1. completed application form
2. appropriate application fee(s)
3. required documentation to determine certification eligibility
of education and full-time clinical/vascular training experience
First-time applicants who have successfully completed a formal sonography
educational program in the respective discipline accredited by theCommission
on Accreditation of Allied Health Education Programs (CAAHEP) or
the Canadian Medical Association (CMA) apply under Prerequisite
2 immediately upon graduation.
First time applicants who specify the satisfaction of a non-CAAHEP
or CMA accredited sonography educational program will be required
to apply under one of the remaining Prerequisites (1,3A, 3B, 4A,
4B, 5A or 5B). The ARDMS Information and Examination Application
Booklet can be printed from the ARDMS website at www.ardms.org,
under the “Applicant” section. Please refer to pages
13, 14 and 15 for information regarding education and experience
requirements.
Please note that all documents from first-time applicants educated
in foreign countries outside of the U.S. and Canada must be in English
and evaluated by a Foreign Transcript Evaluation Agency that converts
educational credentials into their U.S. or Canadian equivalents.
After December 31, 2004, Prerequisite 5A and 5B will be eliminated.
To be considered for Prerequisite 5A or 5B, a first-time applicant
must meet its qualifications; submit a completed application, all
required support documentation and appropriate fee(s) on or before
December 31, 2004.
Policy Description Date: January 8, 2003
By Kari E. Boyce, PhD, RDMS
Past-Chair, ARDMS Board of Directors;
Gwen Henderson, ARDMS Director of Registrant
Services; and Robin Dennis, ARDMS CME Coordinator
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