Careers in Medical Physics - Oregon State University

[Pages:19]Careers in Medical Physics:

A Resource Guide

Provided to Janet Tate, Oregon State University Per kind favor of

Miriam Lambert, M.S., Medical Physicist at NW Kaiser Permanente

January 2016

Careers in Medical Physics:

A Resource Guide

Medical Physics Specialties

? Therapeutic (also called Therapy Physics)

? Focuses on treating cancer with radiation (high energy x-rays, electrons, or protons).

? Diagnostic (also called Imaging Physics)

? Focuses on the diagnosis of cancer (CT scanners, MRI machines, low energy xrays).

? Medical Nuclear Physics

? Focuses on the diagnosis and treatment of cancer using radioactive isotopes.

Therapy Physics

? Clinical and/or research work dedicated to the treatment of cancer.

? In the clinic, work with radiation oncologists and therapy staff to treat cancer patients.

? Commission and calibrate treatment machines, primarily electron or proton accelerators.

? Do quality assurance to verify each patient is treated correctly. ? Most work done during the day, but some evening and weekend

work required.

Diagnostic or Imaging Physics

? Clinical and/or research work dedicated to the diagnosis of cancer. ? In the clinic, take responsibility for commissioning new CT scanners, x-

ray, mammography, or MRI machines. Perform monthly quality assurance tests on each imaging machine to ensure high quality images while minimizing radiation dose to the patient. ? Majority of routine work done during breaks or after hours. May require a greater amount of evening or weekend work than therapy or nuclear medicine physics.

Medical Nuclear Physics

? The smallest branch of medical physics. ? Clinical and/or research work dedicated to the diagnosis and

treatment of cancer using radioactive isotopes produced in a nuclear reactor. ? Most work at universities with clinical reactors.

Medical Physicist Career Options

? University

? Most positions require a PhD in Medical Physics ? or a PhD in another field and a residency in Medical Physics. ? Many research medical physicists split their time between research and hands-on clinical work. ? The old "publish or perish" criterion still applies.

? Clinic

? Many positions do not require a PhD ? a two year Master's degree and a residency are just fine. ? Lots of hands-on clinical work and routine QA. Very little time or resources are available for original research. ? No pressure to publish unless you want to and can do research when the clinic is slow.

? Industry

? Very few positions require a PhD. ? Some positions may only require a Bachelor's degree in Physics. ? ABR certification may not be necessary. ? The work may more closely resemble engineering or programming than traditional physics research. ? Opportunity to work on new technology without the hassle of grant applications!

? Government

? Many positions do not require a PhD. ? Mostly regulatory work ? writing new state or federal rules for radiation treatment or imaging machines. ? Health Physics work ? auditing clinics to verify they are operating within guidelines.

Thousand $

250

200

150 131.4

124.2 100

50

0 Master's Junior

Let's Talk $$$

Average Medical Physicist Salary as of 2014

170.4 129.2

182.2

172.7

196.8 190.6

Clinic or University Industry

PhD Junior

Master's Senior

Degree and Years of Experience Junior: 0 - 4 years Senior: 5+ years

PhD Senior

 ................
................

In order to avoid copyright disputes, this page is only a partial summary.

Google Online Preview   Download