Kathleen Mears Memorial Lecture: ASET and OSET, patterns and parallels

OSET is the international Organisation of Societies for Electrophysiological Technology, a federation of professional societies from around the world. Just as ASET grew out of the national physicians' society, OSET grew out of an international physicians' consortium. Both ASET and OSET are independent groups that address the many issues specific to technologists, from entry-level education to standards of practice and legal conditions of practice. The present "members" of OSET are the technologist societies of Australia, Canada, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Italy, Netherlands, Norway, Sweden, Switzerland, the U.K., and the U.S.; the individual members of those societies are members of OSET by extension. OSET holds a week-long Congress every four years, hosted by one of the member societies. Technologists from all over the world gather to share information via platform papers and posters. Just as ASET meetings provide an opportunity for technologists to learn from each other, formally and informally, so the OSET Congresses extend that sharing beyond national borders. Between Congresses, OSET work is done by committees. Some of the published results of this committee work are statements of minimal and optimal standards of training in EEG and evoked potentials, guidelines for digital EEG, guidelines for infection control, and guidelines for intraoperative monitoring. The last two Congresses have had sessions on education in the OSET countries; present committee work is continuing to study this issue to develop a truly international statement of competencies, i.e., what technologists must be able to do to perform electrophysiologic studies anywhere in the world.