The Primary Purpose of this Position: This position support the therapeutic goals set by the physicians for the patients under their care, by the use of principles and accepted protocols of physics. Medical Physics is that branch of physics that is associated with the practice of medicine. The Organizational Location of the Position is: Radiology Oncology Service, VA North Texas Health Care System (VANTHCS), Dallas, Texas.

Duties

Duties include but are not limited to: Performs the clinical practice of therapeutic medical physics in its entirety with considerable discretion and independent judgment. Oversees the chain of events from image acquisitions to treatment verification and delivery to assure consistent geometry and optimal treatment delivery. Provides assessments and monitoring of image quality throughout this chain of events. Acquires and stores data for treatment plans such that the information is secure and retrievable Designs and/or oversees the design, and fabrication of treatment aids and beam modifies as needed. Calculates and/or supervises the calculation of dose distributions and machine settings for patient treatments. Establishes protocols to ensure high quality patient dosimetry and determination of actual delivered dose. Work Schedule: Monday - Friday, 8:00am to 4:30pm OR 7:30am to 4:00pm Telework: Not Available Virtual: This is not a virtual position. Functional Statement #: 00000 Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Authorized Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not Authorized Financial Disclosure Report: Not required

Requirements

Qualifications

Basic Requirements: United States Citizenship: Non-citizens may only be appointed when it is not possible to recruit qualified citizens in accordance with VA Policy. Board Certification. Persons hired or reassigned to TMP positions in the VHA must be board certified in the field of therapeutic medical physics by an approved certifying body. The board certificate must be current and the applicant must abide by the certifying body's requirements for continuing education. (More details in Additional Information below) English Language Proficiency. TMPs must be proficient in spoken and written English Grade Determinations: GS-12 Therapeutic Medical Physicist (Entry Level) Experience, Education, and Board Certification. None beyond the basic requirements. Assignments. The employee works under the direction of a board-certified TMP. The employee provides direct evaluation of radiation therapy patients with regard to safety and accuracy of delivery through determination of the methodology for accurate positioning of the patient and assessment of the feasibility of delivery of the prescribed plan. The employee organizes treatment plans, chooses the modality, and oversees the delivery of treatment. The employee implements radiation therapy of marked difficulty and responsibility because the underlying radiotherapy planning and delivery process has multiple potential failure modes of a highly complex nature. The employee is responsible for the technical aspects of external beam and brachytherapy treatment procedures from treatment simulation to treatment planning to the actual treatment delivery. The employee provides limited leadership, guidance and oversight of the work of medical dosimetrists and radiation therapists. The employee also performs the following actions to oversee radiation therapy treatment planning: monitors and improves treatment processes; evaluates treatment plans for conformance to department standards, ensures the accuracy of treatments and integrity of data recorded in the patient's medical records; performs patient-specific treatment validation measurements; and documents medical physics policies and procedures for the delivery and quality assessment of advanced treatment procedures such as intensity modulated radiation therapy, stereotactic body radiation therapy, and brachytherapy. Demonstrated Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities. In addition to meeting the basic requirements, the candidate must demonstrate the following KSAs: Knowledge of the scientific and technical principles and properties of radiotherapy devices for external beam radiotherapy. This includes specialized knowledge of the clinical applications of these devices. Ability to exercise independent judgment in the calibration and commissioning of external beam photon and electron beam delivery devices for clinical use. This includes specialized knowledge of the acceptance testing and commissioning of radiation therapy treatment simulation equipment such as Computerized Tomography (CT) simulators. Scientific and technical knowledge of electronic data handling techniques and software. Ability to exercise independent judgment in the safe operation of radiotherapy equipment and quality assurance. This includes specialized knowledge of sources of uncertainty associated with treatment delivery and how to minimize the deviation between planned and delivered treatments; configuration of test equipment and associated software; and expected equipment performance for external beam radiotherapy treatment, brachytherapy, and simulation equipment. Detailed scientific and technical knowledge of radiotherapy treatment planning principles, treatment planning algorithms, and treatment delivery. Knowledge of scientific and technical aspects of brachytherapy delivery systems and radiation sources. Ability to exercise independent judgment in radiation shielding techniques for external beam delivery systems. This includes specialized knowledge of detection and survey methods for external beam delivery systems. This also includes knowledge of regulatory requirements and guidelines for radiation shielding and protection. Knowledge of multi-modality medical imaging to include a detailed scientific and technical understanding of megavoltage photon beam imaging, CT, radiographic imaging, magnetic resonance imaging, and positron emission computed tomography. GS-13 Therapeutic Medical Physicist (Full Performance Level) Experience. In addition to the basic requirements, completion of a minimum of 1 year of progressively complex experience equivalent to the next lower grade level. Assignments. The full performance level TMP is board certified and performs the clinical practice of therapeutic medical physics in its entirety with considerable discretion and independent judgment. The employee plans, delivers, verifies, and monitors quality assurance of radiotherapy at all levels of complexity. Specific tasks include: recommending an optimal modality and treatment technique for the patient; evaluating the quality, safety, and accuracy of radiation treatments planned and delivered to patients, thus ensuring that radiation dose is carried out correctly and completely; and safely operating all radiation planning and delivery devices. The employee plans and directs a specialized program encompassing all physics and clinical aspects of external beam and brachytherapy treatment procedures from treatment simulation to treatment planning to the actual treatment delivery. The incumbent oversees radiation therapy treatment planning; designs and approves treatment plans; monitors the accuracy of treatment data recorded in the patient's medical records; provides consultation to the radiation oncologist regarding difficult treatment cases; performs patient-specific treatment validation measurements; and develops medical physics policies and procedures for the delivery and quality assessment of advanced treatment modalities such as intensity modulated radiation therapy, stereotactic body radiation therapy, and brachytherapy. Demonstrated Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities. In addition to the experience above, the candidate must demonstrate the following KSAs: Knowledge regarding the safe and efficient use of all radiotherapy devices for external beam radiotherapy. The ability to evaluate and ensure correct and safe operation of radiotherapy equipment through complex problem diagnosis and scheduled quality assurance. Knowledge of the scientific, clinical, and technical applications of high dose rate and low dose rate brachytherapy treatment simulation, planning, dosimetry, and treatment methods. Expertise in the professional, scientific, and technical aspects of shielding methods for external beam radiation delivery systems, radiation survey methods, developing procedures, setting action levels, delivering radiation safety training, developing and documenting competencies, and reporting. This includes an in-depth knowledge of regulatory requirements and guidelines for radiation shielding and personnel protection. Ability to exercise independent professional judgment in the performance and evaluation of calibration, acceptance testing, and clinical commissioning procedures for all types of external beam photon and electron beam delivery systems. Skilled in the evaluation of acceptance testing and commissioning results of CT simulators. Technical skills in 3-D treatment planning, intensity modulated radiation therapy treatment planning, and stereotactic body radiation therapy planning. This includes specialized knowledge of clinical process steps and resource requirements for planning and delivery of radiation oncology treatments. Ability to process information from multi-modality imaging datasets for treatment planning, treatment verification, and radiotherapy response assessment. More Qualification Standards in the Additional information section below. . . .

Education

*IMPORTANT: A transcript must be submitted with your application if you are basing all or part of your qualifications on education.*

Education. Master's degree or higher in a physics, science, or engineering discipline recognized by an accredited college or university with at least 30 semester hours in medical physics, health physics, radiological science, physics, engineering, chemistry, or biology; or an equivalent foreign degree and coursework substantiated by the National Association of Credential Evaluation Services.

NOTE: If your school has changed names, or is no longer in existence, you must provide this information in your application.

NOTE Only education or degrees recognized by the U.S. Department of Education from accredited colleges, universities, schools, or institutions may be used to qualify for Federal employment. You can verify your education here: http://ope.ed.gov/accreditation/. If you are using foreign education to meet qualification requirements, you must send a Certificate of Foreign Equivalency with your transcript in order to receive credit for that education. For further information, visit: http://www.ed.gov/about/offices/list/ous/international/usnei/us/edlite-visitus-forrecog.html.

Contacts

• Address Dallas VA Medical Center 4500 South Lancaster Road Dallas, TX 75216 US
• Name: VISN 17 SSU USAS Group
• Email: [email protected]