Time is moving swiftly towards the 2008 midyear meeting. Planning for the 2005 midyear in New Orleans, for which I was the local liaison, began in 2003. Next January, we will have a booth in the exhibit area to promote the Oakland midyear. That is only nine months away. Linnea Wahl, our newsletter editor who is also a member of our cohost chapter, the Northern California Chapter, has agreed to serve as a liaison between the two Health Physics Society (HPS) entities. Thank you, Linnea!
The previous topical meeting on radiation-generating machines was held in San Jose, California, in 1997. Given that 11 years will have passed since the society has revisited this important topic, it is fundamental that we clearly identify the most appropriate title for the 2008 midyear. Much has changed in the past decade: industrial accelerators have become commonplace and the medical applications of accelerators are amongst the forefront of treatment regimens. Therefore, this is a second request for an appropriate title that would clearly encompass the global aspects of accelerator use. The title "X-ray generating machines" seems somewhat archaic. Please send your title suggestions directly to me. We appreciate your willingness to participate and contribute to this process. Also, if you have suggestions for session topics, we would be grateful for those as well.
It is also time to inform your students about the H. Wade Patterson Award. This award is presented annually for the best student paper associated with the use, measurement, and general health physics issues of accelerators. The award was initiated as a tool to entice young health physicists into the special world of accelerators. If you have a student with an appropriate paper to be given at the annual meeting in Providence, Rhode Island, please have them e-mail a copy of their abstract so that we won’t miss their presentation and that they might be considered for this award. We are hoping that this award will be recognized at the awards banquet.
This brings me to a third topic. There is a world-wide scarcity of newly trained accelerator health physicists. Some positions have remained unfilled for more than two years. As we look at progress in high-energy accelerators, it is clear that there is a dearth of suitably trained individuals with specific accelerator experience. I would be interested in hearing from our international colleagues on this topic as well. Please feel free to e-mail me.