A national survey on the medical physics workload of external beam radiotherapy in Japan†.

Several staffing models are used to determine the required medical physics staffing, including radiotherapy technologists, of radiation oncology departments. However, since Japanese facilities tend to be smaller in scale than foreign ones, those models might not apply to Japan. Therefore, in this study, we surveyed workloads in Japan to estimate the optimal medical physics staffing in external beam radiotherapy. A total of 837 facilities were surveyed to collect information regarding radiotherapy techniques and medical physics specialists (RTMPs). The survey covered facility information, staffing, patient volume, equipment volume, workload and quality assurance (QA) status. Full-time equivalent (FTE) factors were estimated from the workload and compared with several models. Responses were received from 579 facilities (69.2%). The median annual patient volume was 369 at designated cancer care hospitals (DCCHs) and 252 across all facilities. In addition, the median FTE of RTMPs was 4.6 at DCCHs and 3.0 at all sites, and the average QA implementation rate for radiotherapy equipment was 69.4%. Furthermore, advanced treatment technologies have increased workloads, particularly in computed tomography simulations and treatment planning tasks. Compared to published models, larger facilities (over 500 annual patients) had a shortage of medical physics staff. In very small facilities (about 140 annual patients), the medical physics staffing requirement was estimated to be 0.5 FTE, implying that employing a full-time medical physicist would be inefficient. However, ensuring the quality of radiotherapy is an important issue, given the limited number of RTMPs. Our study provides insights into optimizing staffing and resource allocation in radiotherapy departments.

Current status of the educational environment to acquire and maintain the professional skills of radiotherapy technology and medical physics specialists in Japan: a nationwide survey.

This study aimed to investigate the educational environment of radiotherapy technology and medical physics specialists (RTMP) in Japan. We conducted a nationwide questionnaire survey in radiotherapy institutions between June and August 2022. Participants were asked questions regarding the educational system, perspectives on updating RTMP's skills and qualifications, and perspectives on higher education for RTMP at radiotherapy institutions. The results were then analyzed in detail according to three factors: whether the hospital was designed for cancer care, whether it was a Japanese Society for Radiation Oncology (JASTRO)-accredited hospital, and whether it was an intensity-modulated radiation therapy charged hospital. Responses were obtained from 579 (69%) nationwide radiation therapy institutions. For non-qualified RTMP, 10% of the institutions had their own educational systems, only 17% of institutions provided on-the-job training, and 84% of institutions encouraged participation in educational lectures and workshops in academic societies. However, for qualified RTMP, 3.0% of institutions had their own educational systems, only 8.9% of the institutions provided on-the-job training, and 83% encouraged participation in academic conferences and workshops. Less than 1% of the facilities offered salary increases for certification, whereas 8.2% offered consideration for occupational promotion. Regarding the educational environment, JASTRO-accredited hospitals were better than general hospitals. Few institutions have their own educational systems for qualified and non-qualified RTMP, but they encourage them to attend educational seminars and conferences. It is desirable to provide systematic education and training by academic and professional organizations to maintain the skills of individuals.

Discussion about the management for radiotherapy technologist / 中国医学装备

Objective: To explore the management methods for radiotherapy technologist, and standardize the management for the team of radiologic technologist. Methods: The effect of technologist in the radiotherapy and the current situation of team construction for radiotherapy technologist were analyzed. Quality control circle method was depended on to enhance the medical service quality in routine work. And emergency manoeuvre was adopted to enhance disposal capability for sudden events in the train management of work staff. Results: In routine management, the new radiologic technologists and the technologist with experiences were required as uniform standards. While in the training management, they were discriminatory. And these methods contribute to establish the team of radiologic technologist. Conclusion: To standardize the management for the team of radiologic technologist, and enhance the management level of the team will contribute to ensure the accurate execution of radiotherapy plan and enhance the service quality of them.

Radiotherapy patients with identification study on continuous quality improvement / 中华放射肿瘤学杂志

Objective To study the recogniting patients identity for the safety and reliability of radiotherapy. Methods Through PDCA 4 footwork, namely, plan, do, check, action the technicians in the hospital to improve patients' identity verification.Results After 4 months of PDCA cycle,the patient identity verification qualified rate increase gradually,from 88.17% up to 99.07%,the privacy of patients satisfaction rate rose from 52. 69% to 98. 15%. The patients identification accuracy rate of 100%, technicians working efficiency has been greatly improved. Conclusions The measure of patient identification can improve the working process of radiotherapy for safety and efficiency and can get better privacy protection.