Position Summary

The Department of Radiology at the College of Physicians and Surgeons of Columbia University Irving Medical Center invites applications for a Medical Physicist Assistant (MPA) position with a focus on providing diagnostic imaging physics support for ionizing radiation modalities in Radiology. In this role, the MPA will assist the team of seven medical physicists in the routine clinical quality assurance, acceptance testing, preparation for regulatory inspection, QA data collection, QA equipment management, and associated report and record generation. Based on the qualifications, the MPA may also contribute to data analysis and software tool development.
The MPA shall work under general supervision that meets the requirements and a scope of practice aligned with guidelines established by the American Association of Physicists in Medicine (AAPM) Medical Physics Practice Guidelines Report 10a and AAPM Policy AP-131-A. All pertinent medical physics tasks performed by the MPA will be reviewed and co-signed by a licensed medical physicist as their supervisor, and the MPA will report to the Chief Medical Physicist or their designee. Continuous on-the-job training to ensure competency will be provided. Salary will be commensurate with qualifications and experience. 

Responsibilities

After appropriate instructions and training, and under the direct or personal supervision of a qualified medical physicist (QMP), responsibilities and duties will include:

• Clinical medical physics support of diagnostic X-ray imaging modalities to maintain compliance with regulatory and accreditation requirements.
• Assistance with routine quality assurance surveys, including acceptance testing on all types/modalities of diagnostic imaging equipment, especially CT, special procedure rooms, and R/F units. Recording measurements using either Microsoft Excel or a web-based reporting and analysis system and generating the survey reports.
• Support of administrative efforts regarding inspections and regulations and collaboration with the departments of Radiation Safety and Biomedical Engineering.
• Oversee the inventory and record-keeping of equipment utilized for physics quality assurance procedures. In collaboration with the QMP, ensure the timeliness of required equipment calibrations.
• Providing support in record-keeping, scheduling, and maintenance and processing of electronic records.
• When appropriate, assist the medical physics group in clinical development, research initiatives, and operations optimization projects.

Qualifications

Education: At least a bachelor’s degree in physics, engineering, or a related technical science. Master’s degree candidates with a diagnostic medical physics background and experience will be preferred. Candidates should have familiarity with and working knowledge of radiology imaging equipment of all modalities, including fluoroscopy (II/FPD), radiography (CR/DR), mammography, CT, and ultrasound.

Experience: The candidate should be fluent in Microsoft Office applications such as Excel, Word, and PowerPoint. Ability to code in Python and familiarity with medical platforms such as PACS are a plus.

General: Demonstrable skills in technical problem-solving. Competency in performing requisite tasks and following policies and procedures as provided. Ability to lift equipment from the floor to a waist height of 35 lbs. The candidate should be flexible, responsive, and responsible; have excellent communication skills; be a quick learner; and feel comfortable in a challenging working environment. Some travel to satellite locations as well as work after hours and on weekends/holidays will be required occasionally.

To formally apply for the position, please contact Professor Klaus A. Hamacher at kah2212@cumc.columbia.edu to submit your application.

About NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital - Columbia University Irving Medical Center

Columbia University Irving Medical Center consists of a main campus with a 1300-bed hospital located in Manhattan, a community hospital, and a number of satellite medical offices. The imaging equipment consists of 21 MRI units, 20 CT scanners including 4 PET/CTs and 3 SPECT/CTs, 23 special procedures suites, 37 fixed radiography and R/F rooms, 10 digital mammography units, and numerous mobile radiographic, mobile fluoroscopy, and ultrasound units. In total, there are more than 225 X-ray tubes. The diagnostic radiology physics group is comprised of two PhDs and four MS-level physicists, as well as two medical physics residents. ACR accreditation is maintained for mammography, MRI, ultrasound, nuclear medicine, PET, and CT. Most of the equipment and facilities were recently modernized.

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