News Archive

8 March 2023
Women in Radiation Protection Section Update

Rachel Pope Nichols, Section President

Annual Meeting Special Session

The Women in Radiation Protection (WiRP) Section is looking for speakers who are interested in presenting in our special session at the 2023 Health Physics Society (HPS) Annual Meeting in July. Based on feedback from our January section meeting, we will have a three-hour special session that will be broken down into three one-hour sections tentatively covering the following:

  1. Supervisory/managing skills (issues will include teambuilding while remote, managing remote groups, and creating work-life balance).
  2. Hard skills for switching health physics specialties (what skills are needed for each specialty, whether you learn them on the job or need to know them beforehand, how managing skills translates from one field to another, challenges when switching specialties, credentialling available to make you more marketable).
  3. Putting it all together, using soft and hard skills in the workplace (such as pregnancy consultations with radiation workers, how to develop the workforce to meet the needs of the changing health physics field).

Each section will have three to four speakers with a 10-minute presentation, followed by about 30 minutes of discussion. If you would like to present or know someone who we should reach out to, please email me!

Elections

We are currently soliciting nominations for the following positions:

  1. Director 2023–2026
  2. President-elect 2023–2024, then President 2024–2026

Contact me with any nominations you have.

Inclusivity Award

Submissions for the WiRP Inclusivity in Health Physics Award are open! Email submission packets to me. Below is a description of the award and requirements for the nomination packets. The winner will be announced before the annual meeting.

The Inclusivity in Health Physics Award is given annually by the WiRP Section to a member of the HPS who, in the past year, has made significant efforts in widening participation and promoting inclusion within health physics and related disciplines. Such efforts might include (but are not limited to) (1) improving the experience, involvement, and/or development of under-represented persons and/or (2) fostering attitudes, relationships, or environments that are welcoming and accessible to all. Nominees may be at any career stage and are not required to be a member of the section. Self-nominations are encouraged. The package for this award should include:

  • Letter of nomination including why the person is deserving of this award.
  • At least two letters of support.
  • Nominee's one-page biosketch.

April Lunch Seminar

Leading up to the 2023 HPS Annual Meeting, WiRP would like to host a lunch seminar tentatively scheduled for 13 April 2023. The seminar will be focused on challenges and requirements for different specialties in health physics followed by a group discussion. If you would like to present or have a recommendation for speakers, reach out to me.

Annual Meeting Social Event

We are currently working on having a social event one night during the annual meeting with themed cocktails. So be on the lookout for that. If you have any suggestions for local bars or restaurants in the area, and if you have some punny names for cocktails referencing HPS women, email me!