Announcement: Dr  Rafiul Islam  award

Dear MTDS Members,
We would like to inform you that the Dien Van Dijk award 2018 was granted to Dr Cynthia Cowling.

Our rationale for awarding the DIEN VAN DIJK AWARD to Cynthia Cowling is aligned with the criteria as outlined on the ISRRT website but was also based on her systematic contributions and efforts towards the enhancement of radiographers and the promotion of radiography and research from various positions she has held in education and practice.

The MTDS board’s decision is substantiated by Ms Cowling’s:

• active involvement in contextualizing and delivering curriculum for radiography students in tertiary institutions
• lifelong support and promotion of the radiography profession in Africa, India, Asia and Arabic countries where among others she assisted in the education of radiographers with the coordination of education programs in Durban, Trinidad (Caribbean region), Tanzania and western Pacific in Fiji
• dedicated work as a consultant for the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) where she designed an associate degree program in radiography in Guyana and coordinated workshops in Uganda and Haiti.
• focused workshops in improving the practice of radiography worldwide, including 84-member countries during her term as ISRRT Director of education from 2006 till 2014
• constructive leadership as chairperson of the World Radiography Education Trust Foundation WRETF since 2014.
• article “Global review of radiography” (Radiography 19:2 May 2013 p.90-91), by which valuable information has been distributed toward the up scaling of radiography ranking in the International Labor Office (ILO) Qualification Framework
• input for the production of self-accreditation tools and social media as a means of interactive professional development in radiography

We feel, Ms Cowling’s has achieved so much for our profession and thus is worthy of the Dien Van Dijk award.