AAPM Website Development for International Information Exchange

Abstract

Rapidly growing international collaboration in Medical Physics leads to increasing globalization of our profession. To facilitate the information exchange necessary for the further development of international ties in Medical Physics, AAPM International Affairs Committee (IAC) plans significant expansion of its information webpages. The material that we plan to add includes:• links to our sister societies abroad,• regulations and work methodologies in other countries to be used as a reference,• training programs in Medical Physics,• schedules of refresher courses in other countries,• licensing issues overseas,• possible avenues in international collaboration• exchange programs• online educational materials,• personal contact information etc.We see the informational aspect of our work as a global task and propose formation of International Information Subcommittee. If approved, the subcommittee will have its first meeting in August 2013. The Subcommittee will establish working relations with other IAC subcommittees as well as with International Medical Physics Organizations and our sister societies in other countries. The result of this work will be a systematic collection of international information and placing it in the form of links to AAPM website. This task will be handled more efficiently with the help of other physicists and members of international community. We are soliciting comments, new ideas and new information that could be included on the website.This lecture will provide an overview of the plan for development of international information exchange and information that is going to be included. We will be providing our contact information and soliciting help from the participants. We are interested in new suggestions and possibly other information sources that could be suggested by the colleagues.Learning Objectives:1. Understand the future trends in globalization of Medical Physics profession.2. Learn about AAPM International Affairs Committee (IAC) efforts to help this globalization.3. Find out about the types of information that is going to be included in the IAC webpages.4. Be prepared to collaborate on the web site development.