At the COMP ASM 2024, a presentation titled "Levelling the Playing Field: Access to Resources for Medical Physicists Everywhere" highlighted the initiatives and progress of Medical Physics for World Benefit (MPWB). The presentation focused on MPWB's vision, mission, and recent activities.
Key Points from the Presentation:
1. MPWB Vision and Mission:
- Vision: A world with access to safe and effective applications of physics and technology in medicine.
- Mission: Support the effective and safe use of physics and technologies in medicine, especially in low-to-middle income countries (LMICs) through education, training, mentoring, and collaboration.
2. Organizational Structure and Leadership:
- Founded by Jacob Van Dyk and co-founders Yakov Pipman, Jerry White, David Wilkins, Parminder Basran, and Robert Jeraj.
- Current Board of Directors includes: Tomas Kron (Australia), PresidentAfua Yorke (USA), President-elect
John Schreiner (Canada), Past-President
Nancy Barrett, Advisor, CEO
Monique Van Prooijen (Canada), Secretary/Treasurer
Navid Khaledi (Canada), Director of Communications
Eduard Gershkevitsh (Estonia), Director of Fund Raising
3. Support for LMICs:
- Focus on individualized education, training, and mentoring.
- Emphasis on building long-term relationships and providing nimble assistance and consultation.
4. Membership Growth:
- Significant increase in membership from 244 in 2022 to 561 in 2024, demonstrating the growing global reach and impact of MPWB.
5. Webinar Series:
- MPWB has hosted numerous webinars covering topics like radionuclide dosimetry, high dose rate brachytherapy, and the impact of COVID-19 on medical physics practice.
6. New MSc Program in Kenya:
- In collaboration with Academic Without Borders (AWB) and Meru University of Science and Technology (MUST), MPWB assisted in developing a new MSc in Medical Physics program in Kenya.
- The program was approved by MUST and is awaiting full approval from the Kenyan Commission for University Education (CUE).
7. Virtual Mentorship Program:
- MPWB aims to establish a sustainable mentorship program with defined goals, performance metrics, and global reach.
- Initial efforts are focused on developing policies and matching mentors with mentees.
8. Other Key Projects:
- Participation in the first Jamaican Association for Physics in Medicine sponsored Caribbean Conference.
- Collaboration with training programs in Argentina and coordination with the Federation of African Medical Physics Organizations (FAMPO) to enhance medical physics training in Malawi, Zimbabwe, and beyond.
9. Open Syllabus Project:
- Addressing the need for accessible, high-quality educational resources for medical physics residents in LMICs.
- Development of an open syllabus capturing core competencies and linking to online educational resources.
2024 MPWB session COMP penult.pdf
