Governance and leadership

Interventional radiologists, as members of the medical profession, have ethical responsibilities not only to patients but also to society, other health professionals and themselves. The following principles have been adopted by the Society of Interventional Radiology as guidelines for honorable behavior by all interventional radiologists.

1. Interventional radiologists shall be dedicated to providing competent medical service with compassion and respect for human dignity.
2. Interventional radiologists shall deal honestly with patients and colleagues and help to ensure that patients are not exposed to fraudulent or deceptive practices or providers.
3. Interventional radiologists shall respect the law and also recognize a responsibility to seek changes in those requirements that are contrary to the best interests of the patient.
4. Interventional radiologists shall respect the rights of patients, colleagues and other health professionals, and they shall safeguard patient confidences within the constraints of the law. Protected patient information must not be shared or identifiable.
5. Interventional radiologists shall participate in continuing medical education activities to maintain current scientific and professional knowledge; make relevant information available to patients, colleagues and the public; obtain appropriate consultation; and use the talents of other health professionals when indicated.
6. Interventional radiologists shall, except in emergencies, be free to choose whom to serve, with whom to associate and the environment in which to provide medical services. Discrimination on the basis of race, color, gender, age, sexual orientation, socioeconomic status, religion or national origin is inappropriate and illegal.
7. Interventional radiologists shall recognize the responsibility to participate in activities that contribute to the improvement of the community and the betterment of public health.
8. Interventional radiologists shall perform research with integrity and report results honestly. No claim shall be made to research or intellectual property that is not theirs. Plagiarism or the use of others’ research without permission and recognition of the source is unethical.
9. Interventional radiologists shall not use any forum or medium of public communication to advertise themselves through deceptive, misleading or untruthful information.
10. Interventional radiologists who choose to provide expert testimony in professional liability cases shall be as objective as possible. Expert testimony must be informed, truthful and accurate. It is unethical for physicians to accept compensation for expert witness testimony that is linked to the outcome of the case.
11. Interventional radiologists shall take steps to avoid conflicts of interest in their clinical practice and research. Actual and potential conflicts must be disclosed appropriately. Decisions about treatments shall be based solely on medical considerations and patient needs.
12. Interventional radiologists shall, while caring for a patient, regard responsibility to the patient as paramount.
13. Interventional radiologists shall support access to medical care for all people.

It is the policy of SIR to encourage every member's full compliance with these principles, counsel members as appropriate and assist them to achieve full compliance with these principles.

SIR is a nonprofit, national scientific organization committed to its mission of improving health and quality of life through the practice of interventional radiology. SIR is organized to promote education, research and communication in the field of interventional radiology while providing strong leadership in the development of healthcare policy.

SIR has a strict policy of compliance with federal and antitrust laws. The antitrust laws of the United States prohibit agreements, combinations and conspiracies that restrain trade among competitors. SIR members may be considered to be competitors for purposes of antitrust challenges even if their practices are not in the same geographic areas. The penalties for violations of the antitrust laws are severe for medical societies and their members.

In all SIR activities, each member, as well as SIR staff, shall be responsible for following the association’s policy of strict compliance with the antitrust laws. The SIR officers and committee chairs shall ensure that this policy is known and adhered to in the course of activities pursued under their leadership. Antitrust compliance is the responsibility of every SIR member and SIR staff.

The Society of Interventional Radiology and the Society of Interventional Radiology Foundation are committed to improving patient outcomes through image-guided therapy. To limit the potential for bias, SIR and SIR Foundation abide by a strict conflict of interest disclosure, review and management policy. The overall goal of establishing guidance for the management of possible conflicts is to ensure the integrity of the decision-making processes of the Society and all related entities. Decision-making that is not biased by financial or professional interests, whether perceived or actual, is critical to protecting the repute of the Society and Foundation and to maintaining public and member confidence in their objectivity. This document outlines the process SIR and SIR Foundation follow in addressing and resolving conflicts of interest; serves as a guidepost for management to the Conflict of Interest Subcommittee; and incorporates, by reference, other documents adopted by SIR and SIR Foundation relating to or addressing conflict of interest disclosure, review and management issues.

To provide opportunities to all interested SIR members, thereby increasing overall member engagement, and to reduce potential conflicts, volunteers are limited to serve as a member or chair (section or committee) on no more than three volunteer groups at a time within SIR and SIR Foundation unless the appointment is in an ex officio capacity or other short-term, project-specific work group or task force. After completing two terms on a specific section or committee, a volunteer must wait a full governance year to reapply to that same group. However, volunteers may apply for membership on other SIR or SIR Foundation volunteer groups. 

All Society of Interventional Radiology materials, including those in print and those posted on its websites as well as those distributed digitally, are subject to copyrights owned or licensed by unless indicated otherwise. SIR may provide limited permission for users to reproduce, retransmit or reprint (for such user's own personal use only) part or all of any document as long as the copyright notice and permission notice contained in the document or portion thereof are included in such reproduction, retransmission or reprinting. All other reproduction, retransmission or reprinting of all or part of any document in print, otherwise disseminated or posted on any SIR website is expressly prohibited without written consent from SIR.

The names, logos and other trademarks of SIR may not be used by any other party without prior, written permission. These names, trademarks, service marks and logos may not be used in any advertising, publicity or otherwise to indicate, suggest or imply SIR relationships, sponsorship of or affiliation with any entity, individual, product or services, without prior express written permission.