In response to Dr. Malicki

Abstract

I believe the issues raised by Dr. Malicki regarding the education and training of radiation therapists are important indeed; however, this must be divided into two separate categories of education and training. The first is the initial education and training for entry level radiation therapists; the second is continuing medical education for practicing radiation therapists who must gain additional skill sets over the course of their career as the discipline of radiation oncology advances with new technologies and treatment paradigms. A career pathway for radiation therapists. Does it really exist?: In regard to Kresl et al. (Int J Radiat Oncol Biol Phys 2004;60:8–14)International Journal of Radiation Oncology, Biology, PhysicsVol. 62Issue 1PreviewKresl et al. (1) have given an interesting analysis on labor shortages of radiation therapists, medical physicists, technicians, and oncology nurses in the United States and in a few other countries. Most of the problems that are presented and discussed by the authors seem to be important and pertinent. However, I would like to add another problem for discussion, namely that of the lack of professional career opportunities, especially for radiation therapists. I believe that more attention should be paid to this important problem and to finding a proper solution to it. Full-Text PDF