A Message from Dr. Alison Harris, President of the CAR
As the third woman President of the CAR, I am honoured to have the opportunity to represent all of you, from coast to coast to coast, with our amazing diversity of practice types and wide range of experiences. I see many positive things on the horizon as we collectively continue to drive the value of radiology and ensure that our specialty thrives. I would like to thank and acknowledge Dr. Ania Kielar, Past-President for her leadership and helping to pave the way for me in this new and exciting role.
I would like to acknowledge the following departing Board Members for their dedication to radiology in Canada and to the CAR over the last several years. I am very thankful for their commitment to the organization and wish them success in their future endeavours:
- Gilles Soulez, (Past-President)
- Carlos Torres, (ON Representative)
- Sheldon Wiebe, (SK Representative)
- Catherine Everett, (ACR Representative)
- Kathleen MacMillan, (Resident Representative)
I am thrilled to welcome the following incoming Board Members and look forward to working together:
- Luigi Lepanto, (Secretary Treasurer (QC))
- Tanya Chawla, (ON Representative)
- Carolyn Flegg, (SK & MB Representative)
- Rui Ning Gong, (Resident Representative)
- Johnson Lightfoote, (ACR Representative)
As I enter the first months of my term, my priorities for the CAR reflect the topics supported by the Board of Directors. These priorities centre on radiology workforce challenges, advocacy, the CAR Journal (CARJ) and artificial intelligence (AI).
The Shortage of Radiology Workforce Continues to Be an Issue in Canada
All provinces across the country are expressing challenges in terms of wait times and the shortage of health human resources (HHR). Radiology departments and clinics are having difficulties recruiting technologists and radiologists. The CAR has partnered with the Canadian Association of Medical Radiation Technologists (CAMRT), Sonography Canada, and our provincial counterparts on how to address this strain on the healthcare system. The CAR is focused on bolstering the radiology workforce so that patients can have improved access to medical imaging. Members from across the country are telling us that there are significant backlogs and burnout is on the rise. The situation continues to be dire. The lack of new equipment and abundance of referrals are also ongoing challenges. Many radiology departments do not have access to modern medical imaging equipment or new technologies which would improve efficiency. This is resulting in burnout and extremely high wait times. There are new, innovative methods to have technologists work from home and manage multiple sites while supervising technologist assistants who are doing the imaging in hospitals. The CAR continues to advocate at the federal level for these resources for our members.
CAR Health AI Validation Network (HAIVN) Framework
The CAR is working on solidifying our stakeholder relationships to garner support from the healthcare community for the safe integration of AI. AI can provide efficiencies in medicine, recognizing that the technologies that are being introduced need to be validated and that there is ongoing human oversight. The CAR’s proposed solution is the implementation of national guidelines as these technologies are integrated and to proceed cautiously when relying on clinical domain expertise in healthcare.
The Radiology and Fellow Section (RFS) and the Medical Student Network (MSN)
The RFS and MSN continue to forge ahead with new initiatives and have many goals including a long-standing commitment to education. Both groups have grown and expanded resulting in a number of medical students enrolling in radiology programs. The focus is to support our trainees and to recruit new medical students into radiology as a profession. The RFS and medical students were an injection of additional enthusiasm at this year’s annual meeting in Montreal.
The Annual Scientific Meeting Has a New Chair
I would like to welcome Dr. Chris Fung as our incoming Chair. A huge thank you goes to Dr. Tanya Chawla for her leadership over the past few years and a job well done. Dr. Fung began his term immediately following CAR 2025.
The CARJ Is Expanding its Reach
Under the direction of Editor-in-Chief Dr. Michael Patlas, submissions to the CARJ continue to increase, as do the total of international collaborations. I look forward to the forthcoming special issue focused on environmental sustainability. Thanks to the many reviewers and editors who make the work of the Journal possible.
I am grateful for the many working groups and standing committee volunteers who spend countless hours on advocacy, education, guidelines, and research, helping to shape the future of radiology. The Board of Directors remains engaged and committed to the advancement of radiology in Canada as well as providing value for members.
Dr. Alison Harris
President
Canadian Association of Radiologists