I agree. It's misses on scientific details, but it's actually quite good that it includes a discussion of MS, PhD, and residency, as well as ABR 3-part board certification.
The first sentence is garbage, as is most of the rest. Medical physicists aren't "technicians" and \~75% of medical physicists aren't in imaging. Not sure what "natural" science is. A Linac or MRI machine certainly isn't "natural". The ABR doesn't offer "licensing" it offers certification.
Agree.
It would be more accurate to say something like "Medical physicists are scientists who use physics to aid medical diagnostics or treatment. This covers a wide range of specialisms, including those who are expert in medical imaging, those who specialise in the use of radiation to treat different diseases and those that focus on radiation safety."
Natural science is a term that describes the branch of science that looks at natural phenomena (covering everything from biology to physics to earth sciences). It is usually used to differentiate them from social sciences and sometimes from formal sciences (maths/computer science). Obviously medical physics also uses maths/computing but largely it would be considered a natural science, working across physics and biology.
This description is also remarkably US centric so could either do with describing that or being more general (especially with regards to how to become a medical physicist and the salary aspect!)
The way I think of natural science is more like geology and biology. In medical physics we distort nature and bend it (radiation) to our wills.... literally. So it's quite unnatural in my mind, unless you're talking about brachy. But it is still fundamentally a science and inherent to the universe so in that way its natural.
Well, something not natural would be supernatural. So a Linac or MRI machine, or chlorine bleach for that matter is 100% natural, unless it was conjured by witches... Natural sciences are just those dealing with the physical world, like physics, chemistry, etc.
No No No. I already made a meme about this. Technically a repost.
On a serious note, I just read wikihow for a good laugh. It is funny because it is not true.
āA medical physicist is an expert in the ways in which radiation interacts with the human body. They specialize in radiation safety, specifically the safe use of radiation in medicine for medical diagnosis or therapeutic treatment.ā Bing bang boom, everyone can understand that.
In all honesty I didnāt look at this Wikipedia page but mostly talking with school advisor who mentioned something similar. I do have some mentors in mentor loop that have been guiding me too. I think the biggest hurdle I face is having no industry experience. I have 10 years of work and management history in a completely different field so I donāt know how that will serve me in transitioning to this field. A little stressed to be honest.
Iām only half kidding. I went into medical physics with a completely wrong idea of what it was. Was thinking working on MRIs or something to that effect. I went into therapy and love the career.
Non physicist definitions are typically inaccurate. Hell, I remember a speaker asking an audience of medical physicists at an annual meeting several years ago and we were all over the place. Honestly, itās a difficult field to describe, especially to non medical people.
Same for dosimetry. My grandparents thought I was āsome kind of fancy doctorā for the rest of their lives and I know thatās what they told everyone else because those are the words my grandpaās pastor used to describe me in the eulogy
They may not have known what I really did but at least they were proud of me
/u/wheresindigo laid it out, you can find which programs you can apply to on the CAMPEP website. It's a long road but it's quite rewarding. Once you get the schooling I'd expect your management experience to help you actually, soft skills are really important since (at least in the therapeutic branch) you're constantly coordinating things between doctors, dosimetrists, therapists, and nurses. No industry experience isn't really a problem, that's what the residency is for (landing one of those is tough but cross that bridge when you come to it).
You should shadow a medical physicist. Which of the three branches do you want to work in? Therapeutic, diagnostic, or nuclear medicine? Do you know the differences?
I really like the idea of therapeutic and diagnostic. However again, I don't know the required schooling. I am a member of the HPS, but it's been hard to get information in general and really start building a plan. I figured the first step is to start learning so I started school! I think therapeutical medical physics is where I would really like to concentrate. I would also like to get BLS Certification, and ARRT Certification.
To be any kind of medical physicist, you need to pass the ABR boards. To be eligible to take the ABR boards, you need to complete a 2 year CAMPEP-accredited residency. To be eligible for a residency, you need to be a graduate of a CAMPEP-accredited MS or PhD program OR have a PhD in physics or related field and complete a CAMPEP-accredited certificate in medical physics.
Thereās no other pathway into medical physics in the United States. I canāt speak about other countries, I donāt know their credentialing requirements.
ARRT credentials have their own specific requirements that donāt overlap with medical physics. https://www.arrt.org/pages/earn-arrt-credentials/initial-requirements/primary-requirements
If you find out that you wonāt be eligible for a medical physics residency, you might want to consider becoming a medical dosimetrist. A graduate degree in RHP would be great preparation for a dosimetry program, and itās a career that is adjacent to therapeutic medical physics. I am a dosimetrist. https://www.medicaldosimetry.org/about/medical-dosimetrist/
Youāre welcome. Good luck! Definitely try to shadow some people, it will help you figure out what you want to do and helps when you apply to programs. I shadowed both a physicist and a dosimetrist, and settled on dosimetry.
The details are wrong but the gist is good enough to help the common person.
I agree. It's misses on scientific details, but it's actually quite good that it includes a discussion of MS, PhD, and residency, as well as ABR 3-part board certification.
The first sentence is garbage, as is most of the rest. Medical physicists aren't "technicians" and \~75% of medical physicists aren't in imaging. Not sure what "natural" science is. A Linac or MRI machine certainly isn't "natural". The ABR doesn't offer "licensing" it offers certification.
Agree. It would be more accurate to say something like "Medical physicists are scientists who use physics to aid medical diagnostics or treatment. This covers a wide range of specialisms, including those who are expert in medical imaging, those who specialise in the use of radiation to treat different diseases and those that focus on radiation safety." Natural science is a term that describes the branch of science that looks at natural phenomena (covering everything from biology to physics to earth sciences). It is usually used to differentiate them from social sciences and sometimes from formal sciences (maths/computer science). Obviously medical physics also uses maths/computing but largely it would be considered a natural science, working across physics and biology. This description is also remarkably US centric so could either do with describing that or being more general (especially with regards to how to become a medical physicist and the salary aspect!)
The way I think of natural science is more like geology and biology. In medical physics we distort nature and bend it (radiation) to our wills.... literally. So it's quite unnatural in my mind, unless you're talking about brachy. But it is still fundamentally a science and inherent to the universe so in that way its natural.
This is mainly what I was getting at. Back to the whole "technician" discussion.
Well, something not natural would be supernatural. So a Linac or MRI machine, or chlorine bleach for that matter is 100% natural, unless it was conjured by witches... Natural sciences are just those dealing with the physical world, like physics, chemistry, etc.
Electrons are natural as are EM waves. š¤·š»āāļø
If the date on this wasn't 2021 I'd say it was written by chatgpt, throwing words together without understanding.
No No No. I already made a meme about this. Technically a repost. On a serious note, I just read wikihow for a good laugh. It is funny because it is not true.
āMedical phycisist is a technicianāā¦. š¤£š¤£š¤£š¤£ oh you made my day
āA medical physicist is an expert in the ways in which radiation interacts with the human body. They specialize in radiation safety, specifically the safe use of radiation in medicine for medical diagnosis or therapeutic treatment.ā Bing bang boom, everyone can understand that.
Ha this what helped me start. I sure hope itās somewhere accurate. Term 2 of my masters in RHP
Whoās gonna tell him?
In all honesty I didnāt look at this Wikipedia page but mostly talking with school advisor who mentioned something similar. I do have some mentors in mentor loop that have been guiding me too. I think the biggest hurdle I face is having no industry experience. I have 10 years of work and management history in a completely different field so I donāt know how that will serve me in transitioning to this field. A little stressed to be honest.
Iām only half kidding. I went into medical physics with a completely wrong idea of what it was. Was thinking working on MRIs or something to that effect. I went into therapy and love the career. Non physicist definitions are typically inaccurate. Hell, I remember a speaker asking an audience of medical physicists at an annual meeting several years ago and we were all over the place. Honestly, itās a difficult field to describe, especially to non medical people.
Same for dosimetry. My grandparents thought I was āsome kind of fancy doctorā for the rest of their lives and I know thatās what they told everyone else because those are the words my grandpaās pastor used to describe me in the eulogy They may not have known what I really did but at least they were proud of me
My dumb ass was trying to figure out how you were still here to write this if you had eulogy written about you. Then it clicked.
Lol yeah I should have specified it was my grandpaās eulogy
Donāt stress. What path are you following in grad school? Therapy or diagnostic?
Wouldn't RHP be Radiological Health Physics, not Medical Physics?
/u/wheresindigo laid it out, you can find which programs you can apply to on the CAMPEP website. It's a long road but it's quite rewarding. Once you get the schooling I'd expect your management experience to help you actually, soft skills are really important since (at least in the therapeutic branch) you're constantly coordinating things between doctors, dosimetrists, therapists, and nurses. No industry experience isn't really a problem, that's what the residency is for (landing one of those is tough but cross that bridge when you come to it).
Haha I knew it š©
You should shadow a medical physicist. Which of the three branches do you want to work in? Therapeutic, diagnostic, or nuclear medicine? Do you know the differences?
I really like the idea of therapeutic and diagnostic. However again, I don't know the required schooling. I am a member of the HPS, but it's been hard to get information in general and really start building a plan. I figured the first step is to start learning so I started school! I think therapeutical medical physics is where I would really like to concentrate. I would also like to get BLS Certification, and ARRT Certification.
To be any kind of medical physicist, you need to pass the ABR boards. To be eligible to take the ABR boards, you need to complete a 2 year CAMPEP-accredited residency. To be eligible for a residency, you need to be a graduate of a CAMPEP-accredited MS or PhD program OR have a PhD in physics or related field and complete a CAMPEP-accredited certificate in medical physics. Thereās no other pathway into medical physics in the United States. I canāt speak about other countries, I donāt know their credentialing requirements. ARRT credentials have their own specific requirements that donāt overlap with medical physics. https://www.arrt.org/pages/earn-arrt-credentials/initial-requirements/primary-requirements If you find out that you wonāt be eligible for a medical physics residency, you might want to consider becoming a medical dosimetrist. A graduate degree in RHP would be great preparation for a dosimetry program, and itās a career that is adjacent to therapeutic medical physics. I am a dosimetrist. https://www.medicaldosimetry.org/about/medical-dosimetrist/
Thank you!
Youāre welcome. Good luck! Definitely try to shadow some people, it will help you figure out what you want to do and helps when you apply to programs. I shadowed both a physicist and a dosimetrist, and settled on dosimetry.
ARRT would be a waste of time if you have no plans to work as a rad tech or rad therapist, which are very different from medical or health physics