Overview
The CAMPEP-accredited Physics Residency Program in Radiation Oncology at Stony Brook Medicine is a two-year training program. It was established in 2009. The two years are dedicated to hands-on clinical physics training for physicists having a graduate degree. Didactic lectures and seminars are part of the program in order to provide additional teaching of clinical radiation oncology.
Our comprehensive program is equipped with the latest radiotherapy procedures: intensity modulated radiation therapy, stereotactic body radiotherapy, total body irradiation, low dose rate brachytherapy using I-131, high dose rate brachytherapy for gynecologic malignancies, skin and HDR prostate etc.
Residents, under the supervision of medical physicists and other healthcare professionals, will participate in the routine clinical duties of a radiation oncology physicist. At the conclusion of the program, residents will be able to demonstrate competency in all areas of radiation oncology physics and will be prepared/eligible to take the certification examination of the American Board of Radiology in Therapeutic Radiology Physics.
Organizational Structure
Department of Radiation Oncology at Stony Brook Medicine currently has two service sites, one at main campus and another at Southampton. Clinical training is currently provided at the main campus. All physics residents will report to the Physics Residency Program Director. The Physics Education Committee oversees the operation and the evaluation of the program. In addition to regular teaching conferences, seminars, journal clubs and chart rounds, physics residents will have the opportunity to attend all of the courses offered by the department, including a year-round radiation physics course offered to medical residents.
Training
Program Completion Requirements
Stony Brook Medicine physics residency training program follows the “Essentials and Guidelines for Hospital Based Medical Physics Residency Training Programs” as outlined in AAPM Report #90. Upon completion of the program, the residents are expected to demonstrate competency in practicing fundamental clinical radiation oncology physics procedures and to have a comprehensive understanding of all clinical topics in radiation oncology physics. The residents are expected to be prepared to pass the American Board of Radiology exams. For this, 24 months of clinical training and education is provided.
Clinical Rotations
The physics residents work closely with faculty physicists and clinical staff in the Radiation Oncology Department. Each resident participates in clinical procedures and QA measurements. The resident will follow a clinical rotation schedule, and each rotation consists of several educational modules with defined goals and evaluation methods. Competency in every module must be demonstrated, and each resident's performance will be evaluated by the teaching faculty at each rotation completion.
|
Rotations |
Description |
Mentor/Duration |
|
Orientation & Introduction to Department Systems |
Observation at treatment machines and simulators |
1-2 weeks |
|
Imaging |
CT Simulation, Image Fusion, Data Transfer, DICOM |
1 month |
|
In Vivo Dosimetry |
Calibration and use of OSLD and Diode |
2 weeks |
|
IMRT QA |
Patient specific IMRT dose verification |
3 months |
|
Total Body Irradiation |
Techniques for total body irradiation |
1 month |
|
Basic Dose Calculations |
Manual (hand) calculations of various simple beam arrangements |
1month |
|
Treatment Planning, external beam 3D |
Use of Eclipse TPS |
3 months |
|
Treatment Planning IMRT |
Use of Eclipse TPS |
3 months |
|
Electron Beam Planning |
Use of Eclipse TPS along with measured output factors |
1 month |
|
Stereotactic Radiosurgery |
Radiosurgery using EDGE |
|
|
Stereotactic Body Radiation Therapy |
Simulation, treatment planning and delivery of SBRT |
|
|
Radiation Protection and Shielding |
Shielding calculations for radiation therapy vault |
2 weeks |
|
Applied Health Physics |
Radiation safety tasks including dose rate surveys and receipt of radioactive materials |
|
|
Brachytherapy |
HDR: daily QA and quarterly QA |
3 months |
|
Measurement Instrument QA |
Intercomparison of dosimetry systems |
3 months |
|
Linac Monthly QA |
Monthly linac QA for Varian systems |
12 months |
|
Linac Annual QA |
Annual linac QA for Varian systems |
2 months |
|
CT Annual QA |
CT annual QA for Siemens CT |
2 months |
|
Patient Chart Checks |
Standard plans; patient specific MU and plan checks |
1 month |
|
Quality and Process Improvement |
Workflow enhancement |
3 months |
|
Regional Physics Practice |
Experience in working in a Proton center |
1-2 weeks |
Didactic Education
Besides formal coursework, all residents will be encouraged to attend departmental and regional AAPM conferences. This is designed to help the residents to develop knowledge of routine clinical operations in radiation oncology physics. These conferences include weekly chart rounds, cancer center grand rounds, visiting professors lectures, radiation safety in-services, and journal clubs. At the discretion of the Physics Education Committee, residents will have the opportunity to attend refresher courses offered at the AAPM annual meetings, AAPM summer school, and ASTRO annual meetings, etc.
Other Education
Any resident accepted into the program must satisfactorily have completed, or will complete, the appropriate courses required by the American Board of Radiology. If courses are required, the program duration increases correspondingly. Our department is closely linked with other academic departments, research collaborations are encouraged.
Graduation
Upon completion of the program, a certificate will be awarded subject to the following requirements:
Satisfactory completion of clinical rotations as documented in the rotation evaluation form, with all checklists signed by the supervising physicist and Physics Residency Program Director.
Preparation and presentation of at least four talks each year on clinical physics rotations.
Satisfactory attendance in all required clinical and medical physics courses, seminars and conferences including medical physics seminars, radiation safety in-services, chart rounds, and clinical morning conferences.
Benefits
HR
Highlights:
Vacation and Benefits: HR
Office space: Each resident has a personal desk space with a dual monitor computer which has access to patient information and the Internet.
Stony Brook iPhone: Each resident receives a Stony Brook Medicine issued iPhone from the start to end of the residency.
High performance computing: Machine learning and AI projects are supported by Stony Brook High Performance Computing Clusters facility.
Application:
We are seeking candidates with a PhD/MS in Medical Physics, Physics, or related fields for one medical physics resident position. The physics resident will work with a team of physicists and dosimetrists to be trained in all aspects of clinical radiation therapy physics. This position is designed to include two years of clinical training.
Candidates must have a PhD or MS degree from CAMPEP accredited graduate programs in medical physics, or have a PhD degree in physics, biophysics, radiological sciences, engineering, or a related field and have completed a CAMPEP-accredited certificate diploma. Candidate applications will be reviewed by the Physics Education Committee. The selected applicants will be interviewed online by the program director and/or designated committee members and then invited for an on-site interview. The physics faculty will rank the candidates interviewed who will be notified about the admission decision in a timely fashion.
It is the continuing policy of Stony Brook Medicine that all terms and conditions of employment, including but not necessarily limited to, recruitment, appointment, promotion, compensation, benefits, transfers, training, education, and social and recreational programs will be administered without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, age, national origin or ancestry, disability, or status as a disabled.
Residents
Current Physics Residents
Yizhou (Andrew) Zhao, MS – May 2023 - June 2025 (2 Years Clinical Training)
Medical Physics Resident Program Statistics
Previous Physics Residents
|
Name |
Year of Graduation |
Current Place |
|
Renee Cattell |
2022 |
Stony Brook Medicine |
|
David Kahn |
2020 |
Karmanos Cancer Institute - McLaren |
|
James Han |
2017 |
St. Joseph's Health |
|
Sarah Burleson |
2015 |
Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center |
|
Elizabeth Van Wie |
2013 |
Radformation |
|
An Ting Hsia |
2010 |
Stony Brook Medicine |
|
Matthew Worth |
2009 |
The Valley Hospital |
|
Sarah Walsh |
2008 |
Health Canada's Consumer and Clinical Radiation Protection Bureau |
|
Tejas Telivala |
2007 |
ProHEALTH |
More Info
You may obtain additional information about the Radiation Physics Residency Program by contacting:
Xin Qian
Program Director
Radiation Oncology
Stony Brook Medicine
100 Nicolls Road
Stony Brook, NY 11794
Email: xin.qian@stonybrookmedicine.edu