Sample Letter to B Readers

Attachment 14 –

Sample letter to B Readers (recertification examination)

WILLIAM F. QUICK, M.D.

RADIOLOGY DEPARTMENT

894 WEST 6TH STREET

ANYCITY, KY 445345

Dear Doctor QUICK:

Our records indicate that your current certification as a NIOSH certified B Reader will expire on August 31, 2015. It will be necessary for you to renew your certification prior to that date in order to remain a NIOSH certified B Reader. Renewal is accomplished (every four years) with a recertification examination, offered to those physicians who are currently B Readers and wish to retain that status. Examinations are given at our Morgantown, WV, facility, and in conjunction with the American College of Radiology Seminar on the Pneumoconioses which is held every few years. As with the original examination, a set of the ILO 2000 Standard Chest Radiographs are required for reference when taking the examination.

Recertification exams will be conducted in accordance with the enclosed schedule. Those who do not pass the recertification exam prior to the expiration date of their present certification will be removed from the NIOSH list of approved B Readers when their certification expires. If the recertification examination is taken, and not passed, the candidate will have until the current certification expiration date to take and pass the original examination to retain B Reader status. Candidates who fail to sit for the recertification examination, or who do not achieve a passing score on that examination, will be removed from the list and are required to re-establish B Reader status by passing the original B Reader examination. Further details are included in the NIOSH B Reader Certification Policy which is enclosed.

If you are attending the American College of Radiology Seminar (contact the ACR for date and location

1-800-227-5463), and are planning to schedule your B Reader recertification examination at that time, please indicate this intent on your seminar registration (note "Recert"), so you can be placed with one of the renewal groups. The ACR requires that you be a symposium registrant in order to take the exam.

If you wish to renew your B Reader status in Morgantown, WV, please choose a date, complete the scheduling form (enclosed) and return to me by fax (304-285-6058) or mail. You must include a copy of your medical license. Exams must be scheduled at least two weeks in advance. Space is granted as available. Your scheduled date and time will be confirmed by letter.

Sincerely yours,

Jennifer L. Eddy

Medical Records Technician

Coal Workers' Health Surveillance Program

Surveillance Branch

Division of Respiratory Disease Studies