Medical physicist, dosimetrist, and radiation oncologists are experiencing phenomenal growth in their job availability. This is mostly due to the projected increase in the elderly population. Other supporting factors for job growth include retirees in the field of medicine and transfers to other areas in the field itself.
A qualified medical physicist has the ability to practice alone in one or more sub areas of medical physics. These areas include:
Diagnostic Radiological Physics – Attributes include: determining the application of diagnostic equipment, evaluating associated equipment used in production, the quality of the images, and the medical health physics that are associated.
Therapeutic Radiological Physics – Attributes include: therapeutic use of x-rays and gamma rays, evaluation of the equipment used in the manufacturing of these machines, the quality and the medical health physics that are associated
Medical Health Physics – Attributes include: safety concerns in the use of x-rays and gamma rays for both therapeutic and diagnostic reasons. However, they are not involved in the administrating of radiation to patients. Health Physics should also be qualified on the instrumentation that is required to conduct surveys on radiation equipment.
Medical Nuclear Physics – Attributes include: the evaluation of therapeutic and diagnostic for radionuclides, any equipment used in the process of production, the quality of images, and the medical health physics that are associated.
According to the Medical Dosimetrist Certification Board, to be recognized as a Certified Medical Dosimetrist you must become eligible in one of three ways. For the first option, you must be registered as an active radiation therapist and then proceed to complete two years of training under the supervision of a Certified Medical Dosimetrist. The second way is to have an associate or bachelor’s degree with three years of training under the professional guidance of a Certified Medical Dosimetrist. The last way is to go through an accredited 12 month program in Medical Dosimetry and then follow up with six months of hands-on training under the professional guidance of a Certified Medical Dosimetrist.
Being aware that some clinics and hospitals are experiencing some budget cutbacks due to lack of funding by private individuals and persons opting not to undertake elective surgeries may cause worry and stress for radiation oncologists, physicists, and dosimetrists. By having access to a dosimetrist search firm’s worldwide database, you should soon realize that your initial stress was excessive or inappropriate. Projections for increase in these fields are set to reach almost 30% growths over the next few years. The added benefits of a dosimetrist search firm include free access for both employers and employees, easy search options, and the ability to privately conduct those searches.
