Reforming Medical Physics and Radiopharmaceutical Science Training Through a Programmatic Approach to Assessment

Programmatic assessment approaches can be extended to the design of allied health professions training, to enhance the learning of trainees. The Australasian College of Physical Scientists and Engineers in Medicine worked with assessment specialists at the Australian Council for Educational Research and Amplexa Consulting, to revise their medical physics and radiopharmaceutical science training programs. One of the central aims of the revisions was to produce a training program that provides standardized training support to their registrars throughout the 3 years, better supporting their registrars to successfully complete the program in the time frame through providing timely and constructive feedback on the registrar's progression. We used the principles of programmatic assessment to revise the assessment methods and progression decisions in the three training programs. We revised the 3-year training programs for diagnostic imaging medical physics, radiation oncology medical physics and radiopharmaceutical science in Australia and New Zealand, incorporating clear stages of training and associated progression points. We discuss the advantages and difficulties that have arisen with this implementation. We found 5 key elements necessary for implementing programmatic assessment in these specialized contexts: embracing blurred boundaries between assessment of and for learning, adapting the approach to each specialized context, change management, engaging subject matter experts, and clear communication to registrars/trainees.