EFOMP policy statement 18: Medical physics education for the non-physics healthcare professions

Carmel J Caruana; Richard A Amos; Diego Burgos; Stan Heukelom; Marija Z Jeremic; Petro Julkunen; Violeta Karenauskaite; Loredana Marcu; Emmanouil Papanastasiou; Csilla Pesznyak

doi:10.1016/j.ejmp.2023.102602

EFOMP policy statement 18: Medical physics education for the non-physics healthcare professions

Phys Med. 2023 Jul:111:102602. doi: 10.1016/j.ejmp.2023.102602. Epub 2023 May 25.

Authors

Affiliations

¹ Medical Physics, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Malta, Malta. Electronic address: carmel.j.caruana@um.edu.mt.
² Department of Medical Physics and Biomedical Engineering, University College London, London, UK.
³ Medical Physics Department, Hospital Universitario San Cecilio and Department of Radiology, Granada University, Granada, Spain.
⁴ Radiotherapy Department, Amsterdam UMC, Amsterdam, the Netherlands.
⁵ University Clinical Center Kragujevac, Department of Nuclear Medicine, Kragujevac, Serbia.
⁶ Department of Technical Physics, University of Eastern Finland and Diagnostic Imaging Centre, Kuopio University Hospital, Kuopio, Finland.
⁷ Laser Research Centre, Faculty of Physics, Vilnius University, Lithuania.
⁸ Faculty of Informatics and Science, University of Oradea, Oradea, Romania; School of Health Sciences, University of South Australia, Adelaide, Australia.
⁹ Faculty of Health Sciences, School of Medicine, Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, Thessaloniki, Greece.
¹⁰ National Institute of Oncology and Budapest University of Technology and Economics, Budapest, Hungary.

PMID: 37244072
DOI: 10.1016/j.ejmp.2023.102602

Abstract

Although Medical Physics educators have historically contributed to the education of the non-physics healthcare professions, their role was not studied in a systematic manner. In 2009, EFOMP set up a group to research the issue. In their first paper, the group carried out an extensive literature review regarding physics teaching for the non-physics healthcare professions. Their second paper reported the results of a pan-European survey of physics curricula delivered to the healthcare professions and a Strengths-Weaknesses-Opportunities-Threats (SWOT) audit of the role. The group's third paper presented a strategic development model for the role, based on the SWOT data. A comprehensive curriculum development model was subsequently published, whilst plans were laid to develop the present policy statement. This policy statement presents mission and vision statements for Medical Physicists teaching non-physics users of medical devices and physical agents, best practices for teaching non-physics healthcare professionals, a stepwise process for curriculum development (content, method of delivery and assessment), and summary recommendations based on the aforementioned research studies.

Keywords: EFOMP policy statement; Education of healthcare professions; Medical physics curriculum development; Non-physics healthcare professions.

MeSH terms

Curriculum
Delivery of Health Care
Education, Medical*
Health Physics* / education
Humans
Policy