Advancing Nuclear Medicine Through Innovation (2007) / Chapter Skim
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8 Education and Training of Nuclear Medicine Personnel
8 Education and Training of Nuclear Medicine Personnel
Pages 118-130
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From page 118... ...
Creation of new agents will require interdisciplinary teams of molecular, cellular, and structural biologists, bioinformatics specialists, and synthetic and radiopharmaceutical chemists. Improved instrumentation of combined-modality imaging for humans and animals will rely on highly specialized medical physicists and engineers.
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From page 119... ...
Thus, there are qualitative questions about training candidates for careers in nuclear medicine research as well as quantitative ones that relate to the need for additional specialists. Because of the multidisciplinary nature of nuclear medicine research and clinical practice, the committee undertook a broad look at the required personnel, from research technologists to clinician-scientists.
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From page 120... ...
. Most radiopharmaceutical chemists in the field are recruited from graduate and postgraduate university programs in organic, inorganic, medicinal, and analytical chemistry and add radiochemical skills through their postdoctoral experience.
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From page 121... ...
Feedback and discussions with all of our constituents revealed concerns about the lack of radiochemistry personnel at academic institutions and in industry. Industry representatives stated that there is a need for organic and medicinal chemists with strong backgrounds in radiochemistry to provide the expertise needed for drug discovery and development (personal communication, William Clarke, GE Healthcare)
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From page 122... ...
According to the Society of Nuclear Medicine, 468 pharmacists held such certification in the United States in 2003. With a new emphasis on research in molecular imaging at academic medical centers, the increasing expansion of commercial radiopharmaceutical companies supplying hospitals with unit doses, and the rapid expansion in commercial positron emission tomography (PET)
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From page 123... ...
or Ph.D. degrees in subspecialty areas of medical physics, such as medical nuclear physics, diagnostic radiological physics, medical health physics, and therapeutic radiological physics.
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From page 124... ...
The majority of specialists who perform diagnostic nuclear medicine procedures have completed residencies in nuclear medicine approved by the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education. They receive certification through the American Board of Nuclear Medicine or through approved residencies in diagnostic radiology and certification by the American Board of Radiology, sometimes also with Special Competency certification in nuclear medicine.
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From page 125... ...
One broad division within nuclear medicine can be found between nuclear medicine physicians who are predominantly involved in diagnostic imaging and those involved in targeted radionuclide therapy. However, even within diagnostic imaging, nuclear medicine has changed considerably with the advent of combined-modality imaging.
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From page 126... ...
Traditional nuclear medicine, radiology, cardiology, neurology, and other specialty programs are currently not training a sufficient number of multidisciplinary imaging specialists to accomplish the desired outcome. Trainees today are not being given proper incentives to pursue an academic research career or to lead clinical trials because clinical departments preferentially reward clinical work over research.
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From page 127... ...
A nuclear medicine physician not also trained in clinical oncology cannot handle such patients alone, and close collaboration with clinical oncologists is a prerequisite. Likewise, medical and radiation oncologists often need assistance from nuclear medicine physicians, particularly in understanding results, advantages and limitations of dosimetry, radiation protection, and radiation side effects.
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From page 128... ...
Nuclear medicine physicians specializing in brain imaging will need additional skills in the interpretation of morphological imaging examinations, while neurologists, neurosurgeons, and neuroradiologists will need to develop an understanding of tracer imaging probes and tracer kinetics in relation to morphological imaging results. Technologists Skilled technical personnel to conduct nuclear medicine exams are necessary in both the clinical and research settings.
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From page 129... ...
This shortage has been further exacerbated by an increasing reliance on small-animal radiotracer imaging in drug discovery and research in academic medical centers and in the biotechnology and pharmaceutical industry. Industry representatives informed the committee that the number of small-animal imaging facilities in their research has dramatically increased within the past several years without a commensurate increase in the number of trained or qualified individuals.
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From page 130... ...
8.4 RECOMMENDATIONS RECOMMENDATION 1: Train nuclear medicine scientists. To address the shortage of nuclear medicine scientists, engineers, and research physicians, the NIH and the DOE, in conjunction with specialty societies, should consider convening expert panels to identify the most critical national needs for training and determine how best to develop appropriate curricula to train the next generation of scientists and provide for their support.
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