EFOMP project on the role of biomedical physics in the education of healthcare professionals

The policy statements describing the role of the medical physicist (and engineer) published by organizations representing medical physics (and engineering) in Europe include the responsibility of providing a contribution to the education of healthcare professionals (physicians and paramedical professions). As a consequence, medical physicists and engineers provide educational services in most Faculties of Medicine / Health Science in Europe. In 2005, the EFOMP council took the decision to set up a Special Interest Group to develop the role of the medical physics educator in such faculties and to work with other healthcare professional groups to produce updated European curricula for them. The effort of the group would provide a base for the progress of the role, its relevance to contemporary healthcare professional education and provide input for future EFOMP policy documents regarding this important aspect of the role of the medical physicist. The present communication will present the group, summarise its latest research and indicate future research directions.