Covenant Health

Junior Medical Physicist, Proton Therapy Services

Full Time, 80 Hours Per Pay Period, Day Shift 

Thompson Oncology Group Overview:

As a member of Covenant Health and Thompson Cancer Survival Center, Thompson Oncology Group is part of the region’s largest cancer-fighting network, with more imaging centers, more board-certified physicians and surgeons, and more cancer and radiation centers closer to where you call home. All Thompson Oncology Group practices are committed to excellence and ongoing quality improvement.

Thompson Oncology Group (TOG) is a leader in medical oncology services and provides patients access to all proven, drug-based treatments and the latest clinical trial medicines. Our team of board-certified, fellowship-trained medical oncologists and certified advanced practice providers deliver on-site care and treatment, including chemotherapy, immunotherapy, targeted therapy, and hormone therapy, at affiliated infusion centers throughout our region.

Department Description:

Covenant Health is looking for an outstanding medical physicist to join the radiation oncology team, which is the largest nonprofit provider of radiation therapy services in the state of Tennessee.  This opening is for a medical physics position with primary responsibilities at the Covenant Health Proton Therapy Center, with opportunities at other Covenant Health radiation oncology departments in and around Knoxville.

The Covenant Health Proton Therapy Center uses IBA, RaySearch, Mosaiq, and RadFormation products. The primary job responsibilities involve delivering external beam proton therapy using an IBA Proteus 3-room system. The successful candidate will join a team comprising a senior medical physicist, two junior medical physicists, a medical physics resident, a medical physics assistant, 5 medical dosimetrists, and a medical dosimetry assistant.

The larger Covenant Health Medical Physics Team includes 14 ABR physicists, 3 physics assistants, 14 certified dosimetrists, 3 medical physics residents, and numerous graduate students from the CAMPEP program at the University of Tennessee. Covenant Health currently has 5 Varian linacs, 4 Elekta linacs, 3 Flexitron HDR systems, a GammaKnife Icon, an IBA Proteus Plus three-room proton therapy clinic (2 gantries and 1 fixed beam), and a separate ProNova 230 MeV cyclotron with a non-clinical research beam-line that has been used for radiation effects testing.

This large medical physics group gives you the benefits of a large, experienced, and diverse medical physics team, while working day-to-day in a small group environment.  Our broad range of equipment and services will enable you to expand your skill sets in all aspect of radiation oncology. Most importantly, you will have a great work-life balance with time to spend at home or enjoying the local attractions.

Knoxville has a beautiful and walkable downtown, varied nightlife, active neighborhoods, and eclectic shopping and restaurants. Knoxville offers abundant recreational attractions (e.g. lakes, mountains, rivers), cultural attractions, low cost of living, and high-quality residential neighborhoods. Knoxville is located within 11-hours of drive time of 49.4% of the U.S. population, and within easy driving distance to Nashville, Atlanta, Asheville, Lexington, and the Great Smoky Mountains.

Position Summary:

The Jr. Medical Physicist is a mid-level medical physics position for individuals that have completed medical physics training (such as a residency program) but have not yet completed the multiple-year American Board of Radiology (ABR) certification process. The Jr. Medical Physicist performs clinical duties in radiation therapy under the supervision of a Board-Certified Medical Physicist and/or Authorized Medical Physicist. The responsibilities of the Jr. Medical Physicist include: quality assurance; radiation measurements; the determination of delivered dose; external beam treatment planning; equipment calibrations, quality assurance inspections, chart checks, and dosimetric checks.

Recruiter: Jennifer Gordon || apply@covhlth.com

• Performs routine quality assurance of radiation therapy treatment systems, including but not limited to external beam equipment, treatment planning equipment, brachytherapy equipment, simulation equipment, and radiation detection equipment.
• Performs and/or reviews conventional, Intensity Modulated Radiation Therapy (IMRT), and/or pencil beam scanning (PBS) proton treatment planning with the Radiation Oncologist(s), Medical Physicist(s), and/or Medical Dosimetrist(s).
• Assurance of the accuracy of treatment unit parameters and settings used for a patient's treatment, including the correct transfer of parameters from between simulation, treatment planning, the electronic chart, and the treatment unit.
• Performs patient-specific quality assurance, including but not limited to Intensity Modulated Radiation Therapy (IMRT), In-Vivo Dosimetry, and Electron Cut-Outs.
• Assists the Radiation Therapists and Dosimetrists as needed in resolving physics and dosimetry issues radiated to patient treatment delivery.
• Helps maintain the electronic medical record and records and verifies systems for radiation therapy.
• Provides clinical guidance to the Radiation Therapists during the simulation, respiratory gating, and image-guided radiation therapy (IGRT) process.
• Assists in special treatment procedures such as Stereotactic Radiotherapy, Total Skin Electron Irradiation, High Dose Rate Brachytherapy, and Low Dose Rate Brachytherapy.
• Follows policies, procedures, and safety standards. Completes required education assignments annually. Works toward achieving goals and objectives, and participates in quality improvement initiatives as requested.
• Performs other duties as assigned.

Minimum Education:           

M.S. degree in Medical Physics or related field. PhD preferred.

Minimum Experience:

Two (2) years of post-degree clinical experience in radiation therapy physics

Licensure Requirement:      

None. American Board of Radiology or American Board of Medical Physicists preferred.