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Due to tremendous growth in magnetic resonance imaging and the need for quality assurance in this ever-changing area of imaging care, the American College of Radiology (ACR) is developing a modular MRI accreditation program. Due to tremendous growth in magnetic resonance imaging and the need for quality assurance in this ever-changing area of imaging care, the American College of Radiology (ACR) is developing a modular MRI accreditation program. In 2006, the ACR Council approved a resolution requiring that the current ACR MRI accreditation program be redesigned into a modular program to best meet the needs of current MR practice.

This new approach offers facilities a more flexible accreditation program that recognizes that facility practice patterns vary, depending on the patient population served and the number of magnets utilized. Facilities will have six modules to choose from, so they can match their accreditation to their practice on each magnet. Breast MR, which is currently also under development, was specifically excluded from this modular concept because it fits better within the framework of the other breast imaging accreditation programs.

"The ACR Modular MRI Accreditation Program represents a commitment not only to high quality standards for performance of MR, but to the College's continued effort to be responsive to the needs of medical imaging facilities, physicians, and patients in an ever-changing medical landscape," said A. Joseph Borelli, Jr., M.D., chair of the ACR committee on MR accreditation.

The modules for MR Accreditation are:

• MR Body
  
• MR Head
  
• MR Angiography (MRA)
  
• MR Spine
  
• MR Musculoskeletal
  
• MR Cardiac

Accreditation for MRI through the ACR requires the submission of both clinical and phantom data from each magnet submitted for accreditation. As with the current program, modular MRI will require that every magnet at a facility must pass the accreditation criteria before the facility is accredited. The program will offer a list of both routine and specialty examinations for clinical review. Specific examination selection, including a minimum and maximum number of required examinations, will depend upon the number of modules (from a facility) being evaluated for accreditation at the same time.

ACR MRI accreditation is developed and supervised by a committee of ACR members, each an expert in the field of MR imaging. For each module within the new program, a subcommittee has been appointed. These subcommittees are in the process of developing the scoring criteria for the evaluation of clinical images in each module. As with all ACR accreditation programs and modules, once the scoring criteria are developed, the modular MRI accreditation program will be pilot-tested. This program will launch in the first half of 2008.

ACR accreditation is an efficient process of both self-assessment and independent external expert audit, based on ACR guidelines and technical standards, which assesses the qualifications of personnel, policies and procedures, equipment specifications, QA activities, patient safety, and, ultimately, the quality of patient care.

The purpose of accreditation programs is to set quality standards for practices and help them continuously improve the quality of care they provide to their patients. ACR accreditation provides an objective, peer reviewed assessment of facilities through evaluation of personnel qualifications, equipment requirements, quality assurance and quality control procedures, and evaluation of clinical and phantom image quality.

Leonard Lucey, ACR Senior Director, Diagnostic Modality Accreditation, said the changes should ease workload pressures for practices by enabling them to seek accreditation for just those specialties offered to patients. "It shouldn't cause more burden, actually less burden, as it will make it easier for them to get accredited, and provides greater flexibility." Lucey added that the changes should also make it easier to meet the demands of insurance companies, by more specifically showing what work had been carried out.