Medical Physics Residency Program

Provision Healthcare in Knoxville, TN has partnered with Erlanger Health in Chattanooga, TN to provide a uniquely comprehensive residency program in medical physics.

The Provision-Erlanger Medical Physics Residency Program offers training across:

• 2 Varian linacs
• 1 Elekta linac
• 1 Cyberknife
• 1 Varian Acuity simulation room
• HDR and LDR brachytherapy
• Proton therapy with an IBA delivery system

This combination of radiation modalities and treatment cases provides Medical Physics residents with comprehensive training in radiation therapy. Each site trains one resident for 18 months, with a 6-month rotation at the affiliate site. The Provision resident focuses on proton therapy while on-site and completes the SRS and Brachytherapy rotations at Erlanger. The Erlanger resident focuses on conventional therapy with a 6-month rotation in proton therapy at Provision. The training staff is committed to preparing medical physics residents for certification through the ABR exam. The training staff includes seven DABR certified medical physicists, along with support from physicians, dosimetrists, therapists, administration, and other clinical staff.

Provision Healthcare is located on the beautiful Dowell Springs campus in Knoxville, TN and has two centers, Provision Radiation Therapy and Provision CARES Proton Therapy. Provision Radiation Therapy provides photon and electron therapy treatments using an Elekta linear accelerator – 6, 10, and 15 MV Xrays and 6, 9, 12, 15, 18, and 20 MeV electrons. Provision CARES Proton Therapy offers a state-of-the-art proton therapy facility equipped with pencil beam scanning in three treatment rooms, one fixed-beam and two gantries. The clinic is also equipped with two Siemens large bore CT scanners used for photon and proton treatment simulations. Radiation oncology at Erlanger has existed for over 35 years as Chattanooga’s first radiation therapy center and continues to provide state of the art care to its patients through a wide range of modalities. Three physicists and four dosimetrists provide physics planning and support for a patient load ranging between 50 and 70 daily treatments.

As the region’s only teaching hospital, Erlanger serves a large indigent population, and treats many of the area’s more complicated cases. In conjunction with Children’s Hospital at Erlanger, the Radiation Oncology Department is the only cancer center in the region offering pediatric therapy. SRS and SBRT are delivered through gantry-based linac systems as well as the region’s only CyberKnife, which is a major contributor to the international RSSearch Patient Registry. Brachytherapy has been offered since the department’s inception, and includes GYN, skin, breast, and eye plaque treatments. Residents play a major role in direct patient care and are quickly integrated into the department workflow.

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For more information about our program, please feel free to email us at [email protected].