Earlier this year, the SDMS leadership sent a “Members Needs and Interest Survey” to more than 20,000 SDMS members asking for their ideas and feedback on how the Society can best meet members’ needs and address their interests. From these results, and with the input of more than 40 SDMS leaders, members, and staff, the SDMS Strategic Plan was updated. The new Strategic Plan reflects goals and objectives which will help guide the Society in the next three to five years. The SDMS Strategic Plan is posted on the SDMS Web site and is available for review or you can print a copy for your use.

The Society's newsletter, SDMS News Wave, will no longer appear in the Journal of Diagnostic Medical Sonography. Instead, it will be a monthly electronic document (In PDF format) which will be fully integrated with SDMS Sound News.

The Latest News
Without the time constraints of printing and mailing, the content of SDMS News Wave will be more up-to-date, ensuring that members get the latest news as soon as possible. In addition, SDMS News Wave will be published every month, instead of every other month, to keep our members well informed.

More Coordination, Less Duplication
Look for a new and improved SDMS Sound News in your email inbox as well. SDMS Sound News and News Wave will work together seamlessly to keep you informed.

Efficient Use of Your Membership Dollars
Through electronic distribution, the thousands of membership dollars that would otherwise go to paper and ink can be redirected to even more SDMS member benefits, while at the same time increasing the amount and timeliness of the news you receive. It’s a win-win situation. The trees saved would agree as well.

Everything Has Its Place
The Journal of Diagnostic Medical Sonography will be exclusively for peer-reviewed medical and scholarly articles and case studies. SDMS Sound News will be the “table of contents” and launching point to SDMS News Wave, national sonography news, and more. SDMS News Wave will continue to feature in-depth feature articles, society news and interviews, and a monthly list of new members.

Keeping your computer up-to-date with the latest security patches is critical to protecting your privacy and data (whether at work or at home). When was the last time you patched your computer’s Windows operating system? Have you installed the latest version of Adobe Reader and Adobe/Macromedia Flash? Each month, a number of vulnerabilities are identified in the software you use everyday making the latest software updates critical to your safe use of the Internet.

Did you know that your computer (and privacy) can be compromised by simply opening a specially-crafted PDF file sent to you in email by an unsuspecting friend? Thousands of computers have been compromised with this kind of attack. Once compromised, hackers may steal information (e.g., credit card or banking information) or install software and then use your computer to attack other computers…and you won’t suspect a thing!

We highly recommend that you take the steps today to ensure that your computer is up-to-date. This will ensure that you can access all the resources from SDMS (e.g., Sonographer Salary and Benefits Survey Report and SDMS Annual Conference presentations) and make your use of the Internet much safer. At a minimum, you should check the following software for updates:

• Antivirus – make sure your antivirus software is configured for automatic updates
• Microsoft Update (Windows XP, Vista; Microsoft Office 2003/2007, etc.)
• Adobe Reader*
• Adobe Flash*

Any computer using Windows 95, Windows 98, or Windows ME should not be used to access the Internet. Note that Microsoft also plans to stop selling Windows XP today (June 30, 2008) and end support for most customers April 14, 2009. If you feel that your computer needs to be replaced rather than trying to upgrade it or you need to buy software, SDMS members can receive special ‘employee’ discounts through:

Attendees:
Registration for the 2008 SDMS Annual Conference is now open! To register online or to find out more about the conference, including deadlines, pricing and other information that will help you plan your trip to Connecticut this fall, please visit: http://www.sdms.org/meetings/.

Vendors:
Check out our exhibitor and sponsorship opportunities still available at http://www.sdms.org/meetings/resources/2008EP.pdf.

The SDMS and the American Society of Association Executives are proud to announce that Mary Rodriguez, Director of Accounting & Human Resources, has earned the Certified Association Executive (CAE™) credential. The CAE is the highest professional credential in the association industry. Less than five percent of all association professionals have earned the CAE.

7. SDMS Sonography Puzzles

SDMS Sonography Puzzles are a series of online crossword and word search puzzles that sonography educators can incorporate into their educational programs or can be used by students and sonographers just for fun. The puzzles are interactive and a fun way to learn sonography-related terminology.

A new puzzle will be added each month and announced in SDMS Sound News. The puzzles may feature a broad or specific topic theme (e.g., anatomy or kidney anatomy). The interactive puzzles can be completed online (using Adobe's free Flash player) or you can print the puzzle for later use.

This month's puzzle, titled Abdominal Vasculature Structures was submitted by the Diagnostic Medical Sonography Program Class of 2008 at Kaskaskia College, Centralia, IL.

The News & Notes column includes links to web-based news articles of interest to sonographers. The articles do not necessarily represent the opinions or policies of the SDMS. To submit articles, send the URL to webmaster@sdms.org.

• Ultrasound weighs fracture risks for elderly women
  http://www.dimag.com/showNews.jhtml?articleID=208700805&cid=DIMAG-news-weekly-062408



• Bedside ultrasound provides easy way to monitor lungs of heart failure patients
  http://www.dimag.com/ultrasound/showArticle.jhtml?articleID=208800536&art_type=ctnew&cid=DI-Ultra-062608



• Ultrasound goes out of this world
  http://www.sciencealert.com.au/features/20081006-17465.html