Training Of Medical Physicists Research Articles

O57. Current opportunities for Medical Physics Internship training in South Africa

Introduction Two year Medical Physics (MP) Internships (practical clinical training) are established in South Africa (SA), and are a requirement prior to registration, as a MP, with the Health Professions Council of SA (HPCSA). Over the past decade there has been an increasing demand for registered MPs in SA, thus the number of people in available academic programs has increased. Filling of state funded internship posts has declined and some posts have been scrapped. Recently there is anecdotal evidence of a transition in post availability as the number of graduates applying for any advertised internship post seems to have increased. The aim of this study is to determine current opportunities and intake of students and interns into training and education programs so as to facilitate informed planning of future opportunities. Materials and methods All HPCSA Accredited Departments of MP were contacted and requested to provide information about their current education and Internship programs. The information was summarised and analysed. All information was treated confidentially. Results There are currently about 120 active registered MPs in SA. There are 21 Interns registered against HPCSA Accredited Internships. These are either employed in State funded Internships, self-funded, funded by National Research Foundation Internship Bursaries, or by private sector bursaries. There are currently 29 BSc Honours students with MP subjects (or equivalent courses aimed at internship registration), 25 MSc Students, and 11 PhD students. Structured MSc programs were considered as equivalent to research based MSc programs. Conclusion This study highlights several points. The eight accredited training institutions offer diverse programs and have widely different organizational and training structures, even while complying with the HPCSA accreditation process. Post graduate research programs are active. There is a shortage of Internship opportunities for MP training countrywide. Increased private sector involvement and filling of State posts are suggested solutions. Two year Medical Physics (MP) Internships (practical clinical training) are established in South Africa (SA), and are a requirement prior to registration, as a MP, with the Health Professions Council of SA (HPCSA). Over the past decade there has been an increasing demand for registered MPs in SA, thus the number of people in available academic programs has increased. Filling of state funded internship posts has declined and some posts have been scrapped. Recently there is anecdotal evidence of a transition in post availability as the number of graduates applying for any advertised internship post seems to have increased. The aim of this study is to determine current opportunities and intake of students and interns into training and education programs so as to facilitate informed planning of future opportunities. All HPCSA Accredited Departments of MP were contacted and requested to provide information about their current education and Internship programs. The information was summarised and analysed. All information was treated confidentially. There are currently about 120 active registered MPs in SA. There are 21 Interns registered against HPCSA Accredited Internships. These are either employed in State funded Internships, self-funded, funded by National Research Foundation Internship Bursaries, or by private sector bursaries. There are currently 29 BSc Honours students with MP subjects (or equivalent courses aimed at internship registration), 25 MSc Students, and 11 PhD students. Structured MSc programs were considered as equivalent to research based MSc programs. This study highlights several points. The eight accredited training institutions offer diverse programs and have widely different organizational and training structures, even while complying with the HPCSA accreditation process. Post graduate research programs are active. There is a shortage of Internship opportunities for MP training countrywide. Increased private sector involvement and filling of State posts are suggested solutions.

Sustainability of the European training and education of the medical physics expert in diagnostic radiology (EUTEMPE-RX)

Introduction EUTEMPE-RX ( http://www.eutempe-rx.eu/ ) is an EU funded project that provides state-of-the-art education for Medical Physicists in diagnostic and interventional radiology at expert level. Its sustainability is crucial for the high level of education and training of Medical Physicists in this specialty hence ensuring radiation safety in Europe and beyond. Purpose To present the plans for a sustained continuation of EUTEMPE-RX under the umbrella of the EUTEMPE Network. Materials and methods The work-out of a business plan for sustainability of the EUTEMPE-RX course modules is a project task. Given the overwhelming level of satisfaction expressed by the present EUTEMPE-RX participants, the quality EUTEMPE-RX manual was considered the best basis for future actions. The present modules will be repeated and parallel programmes will be developed for Nuclear Medicine and Radiation Oncology. Results The major sustainability achievements so far have been the creation of a Memorandum of Understanding for continued efforts among current project partners and the foundation of the EUTEMPE network. The structure, quality manual and terms of reference for the Boards and Committees of the EUTEMPE Network have been established and the population of these is being solicited. The programme for the second round of EUTEMPE-RX modules will be available soon. Conclusion A sustainability business plan for EUTEMPE-RX is being developed. The EUTEMPE-RX modules will be repeated in the near future and possibly expanded to other specialties of medical physics. Demand will decide the sustainability of EUTEMPE Network. Disclosure The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest.

Successes and challenges of e-learning practical introduction in medical physics education and training

Introduction The presentation is based on over 15 years everyday use of e-learning in the teaching process. It incorporates the findings of several feedback collections and assessments (by students and teachers). Purpose The successes of practical introduction of e-learning in medical physics, as well as the challenges faced in this process, will be useful to a wide audience of educators. Methods The presentation describes the methods used for development of e-learning materials; the paradigm and the process of practical use; the testing and assessment of e-learning. Statistics from the use of these materials and their web sites will be used to support the findings. Results The results include the implementation of c.250 e-learning practical tasks. The paradigm plus quick dissemination was found essential for their success. Similarly, the flexibility built into the e-learning materials, allowed potential modification and easy implementation. The uncomplicated e-platform led to increased longevity of the materials, also allowing updates. The international implementation of the e-learning materials (c.70 countries) was supported by the introduction of Multilingual Dictionary of Medical Physics Terms. The greatest challenge was associated with the constantly changing e-learning software format, this being the main reason for the short life of most e-learning materials. Interactive teaching materials are specially affected by this issue. Conclusion The presentation underlines the need of e-learning in medical physics and shows the link between its application and the growth of medical physicists globally. e-Learning is presented as essential for education/training, especially when it is blended with classical learning.

Reducing total education and training time without loss of quality: The education and training model in Malta

The number of Medical Physicists in Malta was until recently much lower than that recommended by the European Guidelines on the Medical Physics Expert. This was impacting the extent, effectiveness, safety and efficiency of clinical services. The Maltese Ministry of Health and University of Malta together partnered a project the objective of which was to produce an Education and Training scheme for the Clinically Qualified Medical Physicist which followed the recommendations of the ‘European Guidelines on the Medical Physics Expert’ project, EFOMP Policy Statement 12.1 and IAEA Training Course Series 37, 47 and 50 whilst optimizing costs and ensuring future-proofing. We present the innovative scheme as a model of academic and public administration cooperation in the service of patients. The project was part financed by the European Social Fund. It is hoped that the model will help other countries in Europe where Medical Physics Education and Training is not yet developed to set up similar cost-effective schemes.

SU‐F‐E‐14: Global Radiation Oncology Education and Training in Medical Physics Powered by Information and Communication Technologies

Purpose:Recent publications have highlighted the potential of Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) to catalyze collaborations in cancer care, research and education in global radiation oncology. This work reports on the use of ICTs for global Medical Physics education and training across three countries: USA, Tanzania and KuwaitMethods:An online education platform was established by Radiation Oncology Faculty from Harvard Medical School, and the University of Pennsylvania with integrated Medical Physics Course modules accessible to trainees in Tanzania via partnership with the Muhimbili University of Health and Allied Sciences, and the Ocean Road Cancer Institute. The course modules incorporated lectures covering Radiation Therapy Physics with videos, discussion board, assessments and grade center. Faculty at Harvard Medical School and the University of Massachusetts Lowell also employed weekly Skype meetings to train/mentor three graduate students, living out‐of‐state and in Kuwait for up to 9 research credits per semester for over two semesters towards obtaining their graduate degreesResults:Students were able to successfully access the Medical Physics course modules and participate in learning activities, online discussion boards, and assessments. Other instructors could also access/co‐teach the course modules from USA and Tanzania. Meanwhile all three graduate students with remote training via Skype and email made major progress in their graduate training with each one of them submitting their research results as abstracts to be presented at the 2016 AAPM conference. One student has also published her work already and all three are developing these abstracts for publication in peer‐reviewed journals.Conclusion:Altogether, this work highlights concrete examples/model on how ICTs can be used for capacity building in Medical Physics across continents, for both education and research training needed for Masters/PhD degrees. The developed modules and model will be scaled to benefit many more trainees and other developing countries.

TU‐D‐201‐09: Is the MS Degree Still a Viable Option for Clinical Medical Physics Education and Training?

Purpose:Recent publications have questioned the value of the MS degree and its future in medical physics education. This study investigates the residency placement rate (RPR) for CAMPEP‐accredited MS programs as a metric to evaluate this degree as judged by residency programs.Methods:By CAMPEP Standard 2.10, accredited graduate programs must present placement data on their program webpage and update it annually. We used these data to calculate the RPR of 43 programs into CAMPEP‐accredited residency programs over a five year period (2010–2014). We further analyzed these rates by length of accreditation and degree program, when available. These placement data were validated against annual CAMPEP reports.Results:The cumulative RPR for MS graduates over the past five years is 22.4%. For individual programs, high placement was correlated with accreditation duration. Six graduate programs have never placed a resident – all were accredited after 2010. Of the 43 programs examined, only 4 have placed >40% of their graduates into residencies while placing at least 3 residents per year. These programs account for 39% of all MS residents placed, have a combined 51% placement for their MS graduates, and place MS graduates at rates significantly higher than the RPR for PhD graduates (36.2%). The RPR of the remaining 37 MS programs is 16%.Conclusion:The MS degree remains a viable option for clinical medical physics education and training, at least at several very successful programs. Thus, contrary to the perception among many entrants to medical physics education, one doesn't need a PhD to obtain a residency. However, prospective students are encouraged to carefully evaluate individual program statistics prior to entry. Moving forward, the profession should evaluate the relative success of MS medical physicists in both residency and clinical practice to determine whether to eliminate or cultivate this aspect of our educational infrastructure.

Medical physics practice and training in Ghana

Medical physics has been an indispensable and strategic stakeholder in the delivery of radiological services to the healthcare system of Ghana. The practice has immensely supported radiation oncology and medical imaging facilities over the years, while the locally established training programme continues to produce human resource to feed these facilities. The training programme has grown to receive students from other African countries in addition to local students. Ghana has been recognised by the International Atomic Energy Agency as Regional Designated Centre for Academic Training of Medical Physicists in Africa. The Ghana Society for Medical Physics collaborates with the School of Nuclear and Allied Sciences of the University of Ghana to ensure that training offered to medical physicists meet international standards, making them clinically qualified. The Society has also worked together with other bodies for the passage of the Health Profession’s Regulatory Bodies Act, giving legal backing to the practice of medical physics and other allied health professions in Ghana. The country has participated in a number of International Atomic Energy Agency’s projects on medical physics and has benefited from its training courses, fellowships and workshops, as well as those of other agencies such as International Organization for Medical Physics. This has placed Ghana’s medical physicists in good position to practice competently and improve healthcare.

The European Federation of Organisations for Medical Physics Policy Statement No. 6.1: Recommended Guidelines on National Registration Schemes for Medical Physicists

This EFOMP Policy Statement is an update of Policy Statement No. 6 first published in 1994. The present version takes into account the European Union Parliament and Council Directive 2013/55/EU that amends Directive 2005/36/EU on the recognition of professional qualifications and the European Union Council Directive 2013/59/EURATOM laying down the basic safety standards for protection against the dangers arising from exposure to ionising radiation. The European Commission Radiation Protection Report No. 174, Guidelines on Medical Physics Expert and the EFOMP Policy Statement No. 12.1, Recommendations on Medical Physics Education and Training in Europe 2014, are also taken into consideration.The EFOMP National Member Organisations are encouraged to update their Medical Physics registration schemes where these exist or to develop registration schemes taking into account the present version of this EFOMP Policy Statement (Policy Statement No. 6.1“Recommended Guidelines on National Registration Schemes for Medical Physicists”).

ПОДГОТОВКА МЕДИЦИНСКИХ ФИЗИКОВ ДЛЯ КЛИНИЧЕСКИХ БАЗ В МОСКОВСКОМ ГОСУДАРСТВЕННОМ УНИВЕРСИТЕТЕ ИМЕНИ М. В. ЛОМОНОСОВА

ПОДГОТОВКА МЕДИЦИНСКИХ ФИЗИКОВ ДЛЯ КЛИНИЧЕСКИХ БАЗ В МОСКОВСКОМ ГОСУДАРСТВЕННОМ УНИВЕРСИТЕТЕ ИМЕНИ М. В. ЛОМОНОСОВА

Overview of medical physics teaching in Brazil

Introduction:Brazil has seen a rise in the number of undergraduate courses in Medical Physics in recent years, as well as initiatives for the organization of graduation programs and clinical residencies in this multidisciplinary area. The purpose of the present study was to perform a data survey on academic training in Medical Physics in Brazil in the undergraduate, graduate, and residency levels until 2012.MethodsThe relevant information was requested for the leads of the training/teaching programs, which filled specific electronic forms. The data survey was accomplished by sending the forms to 38 educational institutions.ResultsThe majority (90%) of the contacted institutions returned their specific requested information. It was estimated an offer of 400 enroll admissions per year in the group of institutions that offer undergraduate programs in Medical Physics. Federal or state public educational institutions offer around 61% of these admissions and 39% are offered by private universities. The average number of candidate competition was estimated on 3.6 ± 3.9 applicants per place in undergraduate programs, and the student’s complete the courses in 5.1 ± 0.7 years. The average number of undergraduate degrees awarded per year is 10.6 ± 7.3. At least 80% of educational programs have compulsory internships in their curricula with average duration of 307 ± 99 hours. In the graduation programs it was verified that the average time for concluding the programs were 2.2 ± 0.2 years, 4.1 ± 0.2 years and 4.7 ± 0.6 years for the MSc, PhD and direct-PhD, respectively. The programs have CAPES ratings varying from 4 to 7. Finally, until 2012 the residence programs offered 31 positions per year and the professional development programs (not residence) provide 7 positions per year.ConclusionIt is understood that the presented numerical results offer a reliable scenario for the diagnosis of opportunities and scholarships distributions in each region of the country. These results may provide support for the improvement of resource distribution and the definition of public policies that can guide the adequacy of the distribution of courses in the three modalities of Medical Physics Education in the country.

WE-AB-213-00: Developments in International Medical Physics Collaborations in Africa and Latin America

WE-AB-213-00: Developments in International Medical Physics Collaborations in Africa and Latin America

WE-AB-213-05: Closing Remarks

WE-AB-213-05: Closing Remarks

WE-AB-213-02: Status of Medical Physics Collaborations, and Projects in Latin America

WE-AB-213-02: Status of Medical Physics Collaborations, and Projects in Latin America

WE-AB-213-04: IAEA Support to Medical Physics in Africa and Latin America: Achievements and Challenges

WE-AB-213-04: IAEA Support to Medical Physics in Africa and Latin America: Achievements and Challenges

WE-AB-213-03: Challenges and Opportunities

WE-AB-213-03: Challenges and Opportunities

WE-AB-213-01: AAPM Projects and Collaborations in Africa

WE-AB-213-01: AAPM Projects and Collaborations in Africa

European Federation of Organisations for Medical Physics (EFOMP) Policy Statement 12.1: Recommendations on Medical Physics Education and Training in Europe 2014

In 2010, EFOMP issued Policy Statement No. 12: “The present status of Medical Physics Education and Training in Europe. New perspectives and EFOMP recommendations” to be applied to education and training in Medical Physics within the context of the developments in the European Higher Education Area arising from the Bologna Declaration and with a view to facilitate the free movement of Medical Physics professionals within Europe. Concurrently, new recommendations regarding qualifications frameworks were published by the European Parliament and Council which introduced new terminology and a new qualifications framework – the European Qualifications Framework (EQF) for lifelong learning. In addition, a new European directive involving the medical use of ionizing radiations and set to replace previous directives in this area was in the process of development. This has now been realized as Council Directive 2013/59/Euratom of 5 December 2013 which has repealed directive 97/43/Euratom. In this regard, a new document was developed in the context of the EC financed project "European Guidelines on the Medical Physics Expert" and published as RP174. Among other items, these guidelines refer to the mission statement, key activities, qualification framework and curricula for the specialty areas of Medical Physics relating to radiological devices and protection from ionizing radiation. These developments have made necessary an update of PS12; this policy statement provides the necessary update.

Medical Physics Residency Consortium: collaborative endeavors to meet the ABR 2014 certification requirements

In 2009, Mary Bird Perkins Cancer Center (MBPCC) established a Radiation Oncology Physics Residency Program to provide opportunities for medical physics residency training to MS and PhD graduates of the CAMPEP‐accredited Louisiana State University (LSU)‐MBPCC Medical Physics Graduate Program. The LSU‐MBPCC Program graduates approximately six students yearly, which equates to a need for up to twelve residency positions in a two‐year program. To address this need for residency positions, MBPCC has expanded its Program by developing a Consortium consisting of partnerships with medical physics groups located at other nearby clinical institutions. The consortium model offers the residents exposure to a broader range of procedures, technology, and faculty than available at the individual institutions. The Consortium institutions have shown a great deal of support from their medical physics groups and administrations in developing these partnerships. Details of these partnerships are specified within affiliation agreements between MBPCC and each participating institution. All partner sites began resident training in 2011. The Consortium is a network of for‐profit, nonprofit, academic, community, and private entities. We feel that these types of collaborative endeavors will be required nationally to reach the number of residency positions needed to meet the 2014 ABR certification requirements and to maintain graduate medical physics training programs.PACS numbers: 01.40.Fk, 01.40.gb

Education and training of medical physicists in Europe

Education and training of medical physicists in Europe

Education and training of medical physicists in Middle East Kingdom of Bahrain as an example

Education and training of medical physicists in Middle East Kingdom of Bahrain as an example