Dear Fellow IOMP Members,

Questions I am frequently asked are "What does the IOMP do?" and "Why do we need the IOMP?" These are not easy questions to answer because, quite frankly, the IOMP has always been a low-key organization. Most of what we have done has been behind-the-scenes with little (probably too little) fanfare. Our major problem has been limited access to members: we meet as a group only once every three years at our World Congress, and then with only a small fraction (about 10%) of our members, and we communicate with members via Medical Physics World only every six months. Consequently, the majority of IOMP members are unaware of most of our activities. A second problem is that membership in the IOMP is more "transparent" than it is for other organizations: members are not required to apply for membership and are not asked to pay annual dues. It is your national societies who apply for membership and it is they who pay your annual dues for you each year (about $2.40 US per member each year). Most members are not even aware of this, it is so "transparent.' '

This lack of recognition has always been of concern to me, as 1 know it has been to all IOMP Officers, past and present. Your current Officers, Gary Fullerton, Oskar Chomicki, and I have been working hard to rectify this situation. We now have a very powerful new tool at our disposal: the Internet. This allows us to open a continual dialog with members. We realize that many members are not able to access this resource today, but "tomorrow they surely will. With this in mind we have developed, and are continuing to enhance, our Internet web site www.iomp.org. Secretary-General Gary Fullerton, especially, has made outstanding contributions. Without question, with Gary's leadership, the IOMP web site will soon become the major resource for medical physics communication and information transfer, professional development, and education. The future is limitless with such a resource.

Speaking of the future, we are rapidly approaching our next World Congress, WC2000. Apart from scientific exchanges and renewal of friendships, this is where we conduct most of the business of the IOMP. This is where our committees and Governing Council meet. This is where we elect new Officers to lead us into the future and it is vitally important that these Officers represent all of our constituents. The members of the Nominating Committee (PastPresident Keith Boddy, Vice-President Oskar Chomicki, Secretary-General Gary Fullerton, Lila Carrizales (Venezuela), Akira Ito (Japan), Wynand Strydom (South Africa) and myself) seek suggestions for candidates to be nominated for the position of Vice-President and Secretary-GeneraL Although suggestions are welcome from individual members, we would prefer to receive proposals from your national organizations, if possible. Please send suggestions to any of the above Committee members by September Ist, 1999. We need your input.

Since I started this Message with some questions, let me conclude by providing some answers. Following are some of the activities of the IOMP and its representatives during the past six months:

These are just a few of the activities of the IOMP over the past six months. You will find more in the reports of your other Officers and Committee Chairs elsewhere in this issue of Medical Physics World.

Have I answered the questions?

• President's Message
• Secretary-General's Report
• Officers and Council of the IOMP
• Treasurer's Report
  
• Vice President's Report
  
• Request For Support International Scientific Exchange Program -- The Physics of Radiation Therapy Bangkok, Thailand
  
• Letter From the President of
  IUPESM
  
• IOMP/AAPM Libraries Report
  
• MPW Information
  
• Report From the Education and Training Committee (ETC)
• Report of the Professional Relations Committee (PRC)
  
• Editor's Corner -
  Maria Sklodowska-Curie's
  Achievements -- Part III
• Explaining Radiation to Patients - The BERT Approach
  
• lOMP Solicits Suggestions
  For Awards
  
• IPEM Journals From lOP
  Publishing: Recent
  Developments & Innovations
  
• Donations of Used Equipment -
  A PRC Report
  
• 6th International Conference
  on Medical Physics
  Patras Medical Physics 99
  
• The Impact of the Year 2000
  Problem in Clinical Environment
  
• Report on the Latin American
  Medical Physicists (ALFIM)
  Meeting in Mexico,
  November 1998
  
• Calendar of Events
  
• International Organization For Medical Physics Corporate Affiliates, 1999
  
• Report on WHO Radiotherapy
  Consultants Meeting

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