Medical Physicist Job Description, Key Duties and Responsibilities

This post provides exhaustive information on the medical physicist job description, to boost your knowledge of what they do.

It highlight the key duties, tasks, and responsibilities that typically make up the medical physicist  work description.

It also presents the major requirements you may be asked to meet to be hired for the medical physicist job by most employers/recruiters.

What Does a Medical Physicist Do?

The medical physicist job description entails designing new medical equipment, as well as reviewing existing equipment and their manuals.

This is to ensure consistent quality and performance with Radiation Safety requirements.

The medical physicist’s role also involves providing physicians and radiation oncologists with consultation and training on effective use of medical equipment.

They are responsible for the development and implementation of policies, procedures, protocols, and standards.

The medical physicist is responsible for training of new employees.

Medical physicists develop the annual budget with input from all users.

These include radiation oncologists and radiologists, facility administration, other staff members, patients, and families.

Budgets are reviewed regularly to ensure maximum cost effectiveness in light of changing needs

It is the duty of the medical physicist to maintain and update the Radiation Safety Information System database to include the personnel, equipment, and radiation exposures of all members of staff.

They ensure that physicians, nurses, pharmacists, and other staff members are given appropriate training in handling new technologies and procedures.

The medical physicist is responsible for the review, development, implementation, and assessment of Health Physics policies at the College.

More on Medical Physicist Job Description

They maintain contacts with external organizations, including government departments, professional societies and non-profit organizations, to generate support for the programs.

Medical physicists plan and coordinate activities in cooperation with faculty members from other college departments.

These include Research & Development and Clinical Training Programs.

The medical physicist duties also include the maintenance and upkeep of radiation safety equipment and materials, such as linear accelerators, cyclotrons, shielding, dosimeters, and other devices.

They also support the Radiation Safety Committee in the implementation of relevant Radiation Safety requirements to different departments.

The medical physicist develops study plans for students who are going to pursue a career in Radiation Safety.

They recruit, evaluate, and educate graduate students, preparing them to work as Radiation Safety staff members.

Medical physicists are in charge of all tasks related to maintaining radiation protection at a college.

They make sure that personal dosimeters meet radiation protection requirements.

As a medical physicist, you have to ensure the safety of all staff involved with the handling and treatment of radioactive materials.

Additional Duties Performed by Medical Physicist

It is the duty of the medical physicist to ensure that ionizing radiation is delivered to patients in accordance with adopted procedures and regulations.

This results in the delivery of non-therapeutic radiation.

They perform systems analysis to ensure that computers, software, and other systems are functioning properly with respect to Radiation Safety requirements.

The medical physicist job description also entails developing procedures and processes related to Radiation Safety protections within Radiotherapy Physics program area.

It is also their duty to maintain records in relation to radiation protection and awareness programs.

The medical physicist ensures that radiation exposure limits are enforced for personnel.

They review and monitor the results of tests performed by the Radiation Safety committee and develop new procedures to ensure maximum safety.

Radiation safety courses are arranged by medical physicist in order to enhance worker’s knowledge on Radiation Safety, decrease level of accidents, reduce risk exposure, etc.

The medical physicist is responsible for writing reports on accidents or incidents relating to patient treatment with radioactive materials, etc.

Medical Physicist Job Description Sample/Example/Template

The medical physicist job description consists of the following duties, tasks, and responsibilities:

• Provides physicians and radiation oncologists with consultation and training
• Develops study plans for students who are going to pursue a career in Radiation Safety
• Ensures that personal dosimeters meet radiation protection requirements
• Reviews and monitors the results of tests performed by the Radiation safety Committee
• Develops new procedures to ensure maximum safety
• Reviews and monitors medical equipment (such as CT scanners) installation, repair, maintenance and service
• Designs new equipment; reviews existing equipment to ensure consistent quality
• Implements protocol for treatment of patients with radioactive materials, etc.
• Updates the College’s Radiation Safety Information System database, including personnel, equipment, and radiation exposures of all members of staff
• Develops procedures to minimize radiation exposure to personnel
• Enforces and ensures compliance with the Radiation Protection regulations for patients, clients and staff
• Ensures that personal dosimeters meet Radiation protection requirements
• Evaluates the medical physics computer program to ensure its proper operation
• Develops study plans for students who are going to pursue a career in Radiation Safety.

Medical Physicist Job Description for Resume

Have you worked before in the position of a medical physicist or are presently working in that role and are writing a resume for a new job?

If you have, then you can apply the sample medical physicist job description above in making an effective Professional Experience section for your resume.

This will help highlight the duties and responsibilities that you performed working as a medical physicis in your resume’s Professional Experience.

This will show to recruiters/employers that you have been successful performing the medical physicist job.

And this can greatly improve your chances of being hired for the new job, especially if the new job that you are applying for requires candidates to have some work experience as a medical physicist.

Medical Physicist Requirements: Skills, Knowledge, and Abilities for Career Success

If you are seeking the medical physicist’s job, here are major requirements most recruiters may want you to meet to be hired:

• Masters in Radiation Protection and Safety
• A PhD in Radiation Protection or Physics
• Four years of relevant professional experience
• Current certification from American Board of Radiology
• Experience in radiation therapy unit or department
• Interpersonal skills, organization and communication skills, leadership skills and problem-solving competency
• Demonstrated ability to work well under pressure
• Strong organizational, planning, and time management skills
• Demonstrated ability to work well with team members and independently
• Experience in teaching or tutoring physics or radiotherapy related students
• Ability to write about radiation protection, safety issues and procedures in a manner that can be understood by lay people such as patients, clients, staff
• Capability of designing and drafting new apparatus or equipment
• Knowledge of Radiation Protection regulations for patients and clients etc.

Medical Physicist Salary

According to Glassdoor, the national average compensation for a medical physicist in the United States is $141,434 per year.

Conclusion

Medical physicists play a very important role in diagnosis, treatment, and prevention of cancer in accordance with Radiation Protection regulations.

The medical physicists are responsible for education, enforcement, and monitoring the application of Radiation Protection regulations.

If you are interested in the medical physicist career, then this post is useful to you; it helps you to understand the work they do so you can decide if being a medical physicist is what you want to be.

This post is also helpful to recruiters/employers looking to hire competent individuals for the medical physicist role in their organizations.

They can apply the sample medical physicist job description on this page in making one, which they can use in the hiring process for the position.