Governance

Policy:

Content provided on the AAPM website in members-only sections, which requires logging in as an AAPM member to access, is restricted and shall only be made available to AAPM members in good standing. To ensure that members-only content is not shared with non-members, the following specific policies must be adhered to by all AAPM members and affiliated groups. Violation of this policy may result in termination of rights to access members-only material.

• AAPM members-only content shall not be disseminated in electronic form or printed form to any non-member individual or organization.
• Links to any members-only material must be routed through a url that is provided by AAPM to ensure that only members who are logged in can access the content at the respective link.
• Storage of AAPM members-only content on external drives or servers, to which access is provided to non-members, is expressly prohibited. 

Exception to the above policy:

The AAPM Professional Survey may be shared with a member’s employer or potential employer for the express purpose of evaluating and negotiating the member’s professional compensation package. Sharing is allowed only in printed form; electronic copies are not to be distributed. The information shared should be limited to the minimum number of pages needed, and the member must mark “Confidential information. Property of the American Association of Physicists in Medicine (AAPM).” on the printed copy and request the employer or potential employer to destroy the provided copy when the discussions on compensation are concluded.

Rationale and examples:

Some members-only materials are provided to members under terms of a legal agreement, including copyright and ownership agreements, and sharing of such material violates those agreements, which may have legal consequences for AAPM and its members, including loss of access to these valuable resources. Examples include: NCRP, ICRU and ICRP documents; articles published in Medical Physics.

Sharing of materials such as the PDF of the member directory violates AAPM’s policies on privacy of member information.

Sharing of professional surveys and the AAPM newsletter provides access to AAPM-specific information that is intended for members only and dilutes the value of membership if non-members can obtain the information without being a member. These materials are prepared with a significant investment of AAPM and volunteer resources for the benefit of AAPM’s members.