WE-C-203-01: Workforce Study Report

Abstract

The AAPM has been engaged in a wide‐ranging study with the Center for Health Workforce Studies at the School of Public Health, University at Albany, New York to assess the impact of changing internal and external environmental forces on the medical physics workforce. The major objectives of the research conducted during 2009–2010 are to: 1. Analyze the roles, responsibilities, education, and career paths of medical physicists. 2. Identify financial and other factors which might affect the establishment and maintenance of accredited residency programs that will be required in 2014 for the training of medical physicists seeking certification by the American Board of Radiology (ABR). 3. Develop accurate projections of the future supply and demand for medical physicists. 4. Suggest strategic options for the AAPM and other stakeholders to assure an appropriate supply of adequately trained and qualified medical physicists. The investigation has included an extensive review of historical data pertaining to medical physicists, interviews with professional stakeholders, a survey of currently practicing U.S. medical physicists and comprehensive modeling activities to better understand the implications of the new ABR education and training requirements. In this Workshop we describe the various methodologies used to acquire workforce‐related data and present conclusions derived from the analyses. This information should facilitate the development of effective strategies to address impending supply and demand issues for the medical physics profession. Research sponsored by the American Association of Physicists in Medicine