Courses

3 credits | Fall Semester
Course Instructor: Dr. Jorgensen

3 credits | Fall Semester
Course Instructor: Dr. Fricke

Required Course, all tracks: Part one of a two-part course. The course covers the mathematical and physical principles and applications of medical imaging. Modalities included are Radiography, Fluoroscopy, Computed Tomography (CT) and Tomosynthesis.

3 credits | Spring Semester
Course Instructor: Dr. Fricke

Required Course, all tracks: Course covers the mathematical principles, physical principles, and applications of medical imaging. Imaging modalities covered are Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI); Ultrasound Imaging (US), including the fundamentals of the nuclear medicine gamma camera; Single Photon Emission Tomography (SPECT); Positron Emission Tomography (PET); the Nuclear Medicine Hot Laboratory; and the systemic delivery of nuclear isotope in quantities that require a written directive (such as metaiodobenzylguanidine, MIBG) for treatment.

3 credits | Spring Semester
Course Instructor: Matthew H. Williams

This graduate-level radiation therapy physics course covers principles of radiation physics as applied to radiation therapy. In-depth discussions on radiation interactions with matter, production of X-rays, principles of linear accelerators, photon beam dosimetry, electron beam dosimetry, radiation detection, radiation dose calibration, brachytherapy principles and techniques, and special treatment techniques including SRS/SBRT, IMRT, VMAT, and proton beam therapy.

1 credit | Spring Semester
Co-requisite: MPHY 6502 or MPHY 6504
Course Instructor: Matthew H. Williams

Reviews the production and use of radioactive isotopes in therapy.

3 credits | Fall Semester
Course Instructor: Dr. Fricke

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) has defined the minimum academic preparation and responsibilities of the Radiation Safety Officer. These duties are outlined in the Suggested State Regulations, American Association of Physicists in Medicine (AAPM) reports, and NRC and National Council on Radiation Protection & Measurements (NCRP) recommendations. Local leaders in the field will deliver guest lectures to report on their experiences and future expectations. Students will also interact with local radiation safety officer(s) of the District of Columbia meeting for networking and socializing. The goal of this meeting will be for the DCRSOs to share stories of issues that required forward thinking and planning by the RSO.

3 credits | Spring Semester
Course Instructor: Dr. Fricke

This is a graduate-level diagnostic imaging course open to all Georgetown graduate students enrolled in the Health Physics and Medical Physics programs. The focus of this course is the registration and accreditation and processes for radiological machines. An in-depth look at program requirements locally (District of Columbia, Maryland and Virginia) and nationally (American College of Radiology, Joint Commission). Students will be able to identify the elements of initial registrations and certifications as well as continuing recertification and finally decommissioning requirements. MPHY 6507 is a required course for the Master of Medical Physics Degree, and an elective available to students in Health Physics and other Biomedical Graduate Education programs.

2 credits | Fall Semester
Course Instructor: Dr. Fricke

This anatomy course is clinically focused, specifically addressing topics and issues relevant to diagnostic imaging and radiation therapy. As most medical physics students do not have a strong biology background, the narrow goal of this course is to prepare students for the anatomy portions of medical physics board examinations. Dr. Notario will direct the course, and there will be invited lecturers drawn from the faculty from the departments of Radiology, Radiation Medicine, and Biochemistry and Molecular & Cellular Biology.

2 credits | Spring Semester
Course Instructor: Dr. Fricke

Patient Safety and Code of Ethics for Health Physicists and Medical Physicists. Includes HIPAA, the Belmont report, dose reporting and patient counseling. Students will learn appropriate communications with patients and radiation workers. Concepts covered include risk-benefit analysis, reporting of adverse events, the conduct of clinical research, and publication of results. Other topics include the patient’s right to know, the process of consent, and benefice to and respect for the whole person.

3 credits | Fall Semester
Course Instructor: Dr. Benevides

This course introduces students to the fundamental physical principles underlying all of radiation science. It focuses on the principles of radiation science that are relevant to health physics, medical physics, and nuclear nonproliferation. Lecture topics include atomic structure, nuclear structure, radioactivity, interactions of radiation with matter, production of X-rays, sources of radiation, radioactive decay, radioisotope production, radiation quantities, and basic radiation dosimetry. This course is foundational for medical physics and health physics.

3 credits | Fall Semester
Co-requisite: RASC 6500
Course Instructor: Dr. Jorgensen

This course provides in-depth coverage of the fundamental principles that drive radiation protection guidelines. Students gain a detailed understanding of the biological and physiological factors that influence radiation protection strategies. Internally ingested, breathed and absorbed radioactivity are covered in-depth, including organ-specific dose calculations resulting from organ-seeking radioisotopes. External radiation exposures are assessed, including considerations of how source geometry affects the whole body and organ dosimetry. The relationships between biological, physical and effective half-lives of radioisotopes are explained, characterized and calculated. Radiation quality weighting factors are discussed. Distinctions between dose, equivalent dose and effective dose are explained and calculated. The use of time, distance and shielding as tools in radiation protection is reviewed. The course also covers dose limits from various types of equipment. Example practical safety situations from NCRP 147 are also introduced.

3 credits | Spring Semester
Course Instructors: Dr. Jorgensen and Dr. Notario

This is a graduate-level biology course open to all Georgetown graduate students, radiation oncology residents and qualified undergraduate upperclassmen. This course focuses on the interactions of ionizing radiations with living matter, including in-depth discussions of biochemical and cellular events leading to detectable radiation injury to cells, tissues, organs, whole-body systems and human populations. Drug/radiation interactions are also covered. Both radiation public health and clinical practice issues are addressed.

4 credits | Spring Semester
Prerequisite: RASC 6500
Course Instructor: Dr. Benevides

In this course, students achieve hands-on familiarity with standard radiation detectors, electronics and spectral analysis software used in radiation detection, including Geiger-Mueller counters, solid-state detectors for alpha and beta particle detection, sodium iodide scintillation gamma-ray detectors, and High Purity Germanium gamma-ray detectors. Neutron detectors and neutron monitors are also covered.

3 credits | Fall Semester (MPHY 6601) & Spring Semester (MPHY 6606)
Course Instructor: Dr. Fricke

Application of medical physics to diagnostic imaging in a hospital setting under close supervision. Students will get hands-on experience with radiological equipment. The use of equipment will be demonstrated with considerations about technique factors and dose. Trade-off between power and current and dose will be explored on various configurations of X-ray, fluoroscopic, and computerized axial tomographic equipment. Students will become familiar with total air kerma, dose area product, CT Dose index, and Dose length product. Time distance and shielding will be discussed and demonstrated to give the medical physicist the knowledge on how to recommend clinical arrangements. During the second term, students will be introduced to MRI and Ultrasound equipment as well as display monitors. Students will use the equipment to perform imaging techniques. Topics of resolution, frequency heating and time of exam will be discussed and demonstrated. Image noise and artifact reduction techniques will be examined.

3 credits | Fall Semester
Prerequisite: RASC 6500
Course Instructor: Dr. Fricke

This is a graduate-level diagnostic imaging course open to all Georgetown graduate students enrolled in the Health Physics or Medical Physics programs. The focus of this course is the science of radiological imaging equipment quality testing. In depth discussions on the energizing energy production and energy detection aspects in terms of quality.  Equipment studied include ionizing radiation equipment of the following types: x-ray, fluoroscopy, mammography, and computed tomography.

3 credits | Spring Semester
Prerequisite: RASC 6500
Course Instructor: Dr. Fricke

This is a graduate-level diagnostic imaging course open to all Georgetown graduate students enrolled in the Health Physics or Medical Physics programs. The focus of this course is the science of radiological imaging equipment quality testing. In-depth discussions on the energizing energy production and energy detection aspects in terms of quality.  Equipment studied include ionizing radiation equipment of the following types: Display Monitors, MRI and Ultrasound.

This course is offered through the Georgetown University’s Master’s of Medical Physics program. It is a required course for the Master’s of Medical Physics Degree, but also offered as an elective to students in Health Physics and other BGE graduate programs.

3 credits
Course Instructor: Yuriy Gusev

To develop understanding of Biomedical Imaging Informatics, its goals, standards, methods and applications. This course will enable students to identify various imaging modalities and associated data types, understand imaging data standards, navigate through on-line resources for medical imaging, and become familiar with tools for imaging information processing and analysis for major practical applications of biomedical imaging. This course is about understanding major types of imaging data, methods for processing imaging information and analysis tools; and integration with other types of health data.

1-3 credits
Course Director: Stanley Fricke

The student gains firsthand working experience in medical physics by conducting projects under the guidance of Georgetown faculty at Georgetown facilities – the Center for Translational Imaging and the Proton Therapy Center – or at other Washington-area hospitals and research centers.

3 credits
Course Instructor: Dr. Fricke

This is a unique program that offers a pediatric specialty. Students shadow practicing licensed medical physicists and the hospital’s Radiation Safety Officer by working in a pediatric diagnostic radiology department in a hospital setting. Special attention is given to the differences in technique factors, pediatric setup for ACR testing, and how to manage anesthesia equipment in the setting of pediatric radiology.

3 credits
Course Instructor: Dr. VanMeter

Functional brain imaging techniques are important tools for neuroscientists and clinicians. This course focuses on functional MRI with an emphasis on understanding the relationship between the underlying neuronal changes and the signal changes measured using fMRI. Other topics will include experimental design, fMRI data analysis, and interpretation of results. Students will also discuss the application of this technique to clinical and neuroscience research. The course will include lectures and hands-on labs. Students will conduct and participate in an fMRI experiment including design, implementation, data acquisition and data analysis. A project report will be required, to include review of pertinent neuroscience literature, discussion of the methodological issues covered during the lectures, and presentation and analysis of the experimental findings.

3 credits
Course Instructor: Dr. Anca Dragomir

This course introduces biostatistical theory and applications to graduate students whose primary area of study is not in biostatistics. In the first part of the course, the students learn basic concepts and principles regarding probability and randomness, sampling, descriptive statistics, and data exploration and visualization. In the second part of the course, based on these concepts and principles, the students learn statistical inference methods, including tests for proportions and means, simple linear regression, and ANOVA.

3 credits
Course Instructor: Dr. Benevides

Upon successful completion of this course, the student will be able to understand:

• Atomic and nuclear structures
• Radioactivity, modes of decay and statistical nature of radioactive decay
• Interaction of radiation with matter
• Criticality
• Ionizing radiation exposure of the population of the United States
• Derived quantities and units in radiation sciences
• Fundamental principles of radiation dosimetry (external and internal)
• Human exposure to ionizing radiation and early/late effects
• Science, guidance (i.e., NCRP recommendations), policy and federal regulations pertaining to radiation protection
• Isotope production