Therapeutic Medical Physics Residency

The Novant Health Cancer Institute Therapeutic Medical Physics residency program is a CAMPEP approved two-year training program based on guidance from the American Association of Physicists in Medicine (AAPM) Task Group 249.

The aim of the program is to train residents to become productive clinical therapeutic medical physicists. Upon completion of the residency program, candidates should be qualified to sit for Part 2 of the American Board of Radiology (ABR) therapeutic medical physics exam.

Program sites and equipment

The primary clinical site for the residency program will be Novant Health Weisiger Cancer Institute in Charlotte, North Carolina. The 630-bed, not-for-profit regional cancer center and its affiliate sites in Charlotte treat approximately 1,100 patients per year in its department of radiation oncology using:

• Four Varian True Beam linear accelerators (LINACs)
• Two Philips Big Bore CT scanners
• Two Simens Somatom CT scanners
• Elektra Nucletron HDR Afterloader

The secondary site for the program will be Novant Health New Hanover Regional Medical Center, an 855-bed, not-for-profit hospital and tertiary care center in Wilmington, North Carolina. Together with its affiliates, the New Hanover Regional Medical Center treats approximately 1,600 patients per year in its department of radiation oncology using:

• A Varian Halcyon medical LINAC
• A Varian True Beam Edge LINAC
• Two Varian iX LINACs
• Two Philips Brilliance Big Bore CT scanners
• An Elekta Nucletron HDR after-loader

Rotations

Residents at Weisiger Cancer Institute will spend 70 percent of their clinical time at Weisiger Cancer Institute, 20 percent at the Novant Health Forsyth Medical Center in Winston-Salem, North Carolina and 10 percent at New Hanover Regional Medical Center at Wilmington, North Carolina.

Residents at New Hanover Regional Medical Center will spend 70 percent of their clinical time there, 20 percent at Novant Health Cancer Institute Radiation Oncology in Supply, North Carolina and 10 percent at Weisiger Cancer Institute in Charlotte, North Carolina.

Admissions requirements

The program will accept M.S. or PhD graduates from graduate programs accredited by the Commission on Accreditation of Medical Physics Educational Programs Inc. (CAMPEP), or candidates who have completed enough coursework to satisfy the CAMPEP alternative pathway to enter a CAMPEP-accredited residency program.

Candidates seeking entry into the field of Medical Physics via the CAMPEP alternative pathway must provide evidence of completing a certificate program in medical physics with their residency application.

Program leadership

The Novant Health Cancer Institute Therapeutic Medical Physics residency program is led by:

Lalith K. Kumaraswamy, PhD., DABR

Program Director

Dr. Kumaraswamy is the director of physics at Novant Health Cancer Institute’s department of radiation oncology. He received his undergraduate degree at McMaster University in Hamilton, Canada and received his PhD at the department of medical physics at the University at Buffalo.

Before joining Novant Health Cancer Institute, Dr. Kumaraswamy was employed at Roswell Park Cancer institute in Buffalo, New York as clinical assistant professor. In that position he mentored several MS and PhD students in the department’s CAMPEP-accredited graduate medical physics program. He is the author or co-author of more than 20 publications and has given numerous presentations at local and national conferences.

Dr. Kumaraswamy is also an active member of the American Association of Physicists in Medicine (AAPM) and currently serving on several committees as chair or vice-chair. He is interested in clinically oriented research involving applications in quality and safety in radiation oncology.