Description
HEALTH PHYSICIST
Discover Vanderbilt University Medical Center:
Located in Nashville, Tennessee, and operating at a global crossroads of teaching, discovery and patient care, VUMC is a community of individuals who come to work each day with the simple aim of changing the world. It is a place where your expertise will be valued, your knowledge expanded, and your abilities challenged. It is a place where your diversity — of culture, thinking, learning and leading — is sought and celebrated. It is a place where employees know they are part of something that is bigger than themselves, take exceptional pride in their work and never settle for what was good enough yesterday. Vanderbilt's mission is to advance health and wellness through preeminent programs in patient care, education, and research.
Department Summary
Vanderbilt Environmental Health and Safety (VEHS) mission is to partner with the VUMC/VU community to facilitate and promote safety, health and environmental protection. VEHS accomplishes this task by providing expertise in the following EH&S technical disciplines: radiation safety; occupational safety, emergency preparedness; industrial hygiene; fire and life safety; training; hazardous materials management; and biological safety.
Department Served
Vanderbilt Environmental Health and Safety (VEHS) department provides Vanderbilt University Medical Center (VUMC) with the necessary consultation and technical resources to support regulatory and accreditation compliance efforts in the areas of safety, and health. VEHS also provides consultative and safety support services to Vanderbilt University (VU) on a contractual basis.
Your Role:
- To provide health physics support for clinical and research activities at VUMC and VU involving ionizing radiation.
Major Duties and Responsibilities :
- Provide health physics support for radiation therapy patient program
- Lead the decontamination of radiation therapy rooms
- Perform audits of clinical and research areas
- Review research protocols and perform hazard assessment for these protocols
- Assist with radiation safety databases
- Develop standard operating procedures for health physics activities
- Perform effluent evaluations (sanitary sewer, NESHAPs, etc.)
- Develop and deliver radiation safety-related training as needed
- Assist with the radiation dosimetry monitoring program
- Assist with X-ray inspection program
- Assist with the radioactive waste program
- Other duties as assigned
Supervisory Responsibilities:
No direct reports. Indirect supervision of technicians, students, and consultants.
Communication:
Internal:
Frequent contact with all levels of administration, faculty, and staff including the presentation of information where detailed explanation is required to obtain cooperation.
External:
Frequent contact with consultants and vendors.
Patient/Student Contact:
Frequent contact with patients and students.
Physical Requirements:
Be able to lift 50 lbs. Ability to pass respirator fit-testing requirements.
Working Environment:
Persons in this position will frequent areas where potential exposure to biological and infectious agents, hazardous chemicals, and ionizing radiation may occur. Some work outside normal business hours will be required on occasion.
Position Qualifications
Required:
- A Bachelor's degree in health physics, physics, chemistry, biology, or a related field and two years direct experience in health physics or a Master's degree in health physics, physics, chemistry, biology, or a related field.
- Experience should be in a research university, healthcare, or similar setting.
- Equivalent combination of experience and education accepted.
Licensure/Certification:
- Ability to obtain certification from the American Board of Health Physics.
Job related skills:
- Applicant must possess excellent written and verbal communication skills for effective report writing, training, and consulting.
VUMC Recent Accomplishments
Because we are committed to providing the best in patient care, education and research, we are proud of our recent accomplishments:
- US News & World Report: #1 Hospital in Tennessee, #1 Health Care Provider in Nashville, #1 Audiology ( Bill Wilkerson Center ), 12 adult and 10 pediatric clinical specialties ranked among the nation's best, #15 Education and Training
- Truven Health Analytics: among the top 50 cardiovascular hospitals in the U.S.
- Becker's Hospital Review: one of the "100 Greatest Hospitals in America"
- The Leapfrog Group: grade "A" in Hospital Safety Score
- National Institutes of Health: among the top 10 grant awardees for medical research in the US
- Magnet Recognition Program: Vanderbilt nurses are the only group honored in Tennessee
- Nashville Business Journal: Middle Tennessee's healthiest employer
- American Hospital Association: among the 100 "Most Wired" medical systems in the US
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