Author: Wamied T. Abdel-Rahman, Iqbal AlAmri, Lma Alahmare, Ghada Aldosary, Marwa Alghamdi, Lujain Aljadou, Yarah Alkhulaif, Abdullah A. Alshreef, Ohoud Alsubaie, Hoton Alsufyani 👨🔬
Affiliation: Loma Linda University Medical Center, Princess Nourah Bint Abdulrahman University, King Fahad Specialist Hospital, KAMC- Ministry of National Guard Health Affairs, SQCCCRC, KASCH- Ministry of National Guard Health Affairs 🌍
Purpose: The shortage of qualified medical physicists in many developing countries is due to multiple factors such as lack of awareness or access to graduate and residency training programs. An outreach program targeting local undergraduate students in an Eastern Mediterranean (EMRO) country was launched to increase visibility on medical physics (MP) and its career pathways.
Methods: A three-day outreach program was established and promoted. First, a virtual MP career panel hosted eight diversely specialized medical physicists: radiotherapy, diagnostic, radiation safety, regulatory, research, industry. Participants were then matched with mentors and invited to attend a local conference’s MP sessions. A hands-on activity was organized where students applied basic physics concepts to construct radiotherapy lung shields. Finally, a virtual session was held to discuss residency training/ certification and application processes.
Participants completed a short survey inquiring about current training challenges faced (multiple choices allowed) and their experiences within the program.
Results: Ninety-four students applied to the program: female=90%, non-local=13%. Students learned about the program from social media (58%), university announcements (31%) or colleagues (11%). Due to eligibility and capacity constraints, 46 students were accepted. On a five-point Likert scale, 42% and 20% of students said the career panel will very likely or likely influence their career choice, respectively. 77% and 15% said they are very likely or likely to continue in MP, respectively. Most were interested in specializing in radiotherapy (69%), radiation safety (11%) then industry (8%). The three top challenges faced by students are: lack of opportunities in training (85%), mentorship (57%) or research (50%).
Conclusion: The first MP outreach program was launched in the EMRO region. Students enjoyed the interactive activities and reported plans to continue to MP graduate education. Challenges identified are being shared with local MP societies to inform supportive actions for the next generation of medical physicists.