The Medical Physics program at the University of New Mexico is a new exciting program offered by of the Department of Chemical and Nuclear Engineering and the Health Sciences Department of Radiology. The degree is a Master of Science Chemical/Nuclear in Engineering with a concentration in Medical Physics.
Department of Chemical and Nuclear Engineering
Nuclear Engineering Laboratories
Computer FacilitiesDepartment of Radiology
Facilities
University Hospital Equipment
Cancer Research and Treatment Center
The Department of Chemical and Nuclear Engineering seeks to provide high quality graduate education to all of our students. Our faculty and students work creatively and diligently to carry out exciting research on the frontiers of chemical engineering and nuclear engineering. Bio- engineering and medical physics are gaining prominence in the programs under department.
Nuclear engineering is an exciting, rapidly evolving field, which requires engineers with an understanding of physical processes of nuclear energy and an ability to apply concepts in new and creative ways. Nuclear engineers are primarily concerned with the control, monitoring, and use of energy released in nuclear processes. Some nuclear engineers work on the design and safety aspects of environmentally sound, passively safe proliferation resistant nuclear fission reactors. Others are looking to future energy solutions through development and implementation of nuclear fusion systems. Still others are helping in the exploration and utilization of outer space by developing long term, reliable nuclear energy sources. With the renewed concern in environmental science, nuclear engineers are working on safe disposal concepts for radioactive waste and on methods for reduction of radiation releases from industrial facilities. As the areas of radiology and radiation oncology become increasingly more complex the need for trained medical physicists with a solid engineering background is more important than ever. In conjunction with the Health Sciences Department of Radiology our students choosing this Medical Physics track will gain a solid foundation in radiation medicine.
The nuclear engineering laboratories are equipped with a nuclear training reactor; a hot-cell facility with remote manipulators; a pulsed neutron generator; a graphite pile; several solid state detectors for alpha, beta, and gamma radiation; computer based data acquisition, analysis and control systems; and supporting radiation measurements systems. In addition to the well-equipped laboratories on campus, the advanced reactors and radiation equipment of Sandia National Laboratories, Lovelace Respiratory Research Institute, Los Alamos National Laboratory, are utilized for instruction and research.
Computers provide the basic computational tool for today's modern engineer. The department maintains a computer pod equipped with state-of-the-art PC computers connected to The University of New Mexico network and the Internet. Additional computers are available in one of the many University of New Mexico computer pods maintained by The University of New Mexico's Computer and Information Resources and Technology Division. The UNM high performance computer center participates in the new Internet II high speed communication system.
Based at the UNM Health Sciences center in Albuquerque the department of Radiology provides radiological services for University Hospital, the UNM Cancer Research and Treatment Center, Carrie Tingley Hospital, and the UNM Children's Hospital. University Hospital is the tertiary referral center for the state of New Mexico and the surrounding area, and is also the state's only level-1 trauma center.
All the major subspecialties of radiology are encompassed by the department's numerous board-certified faculty, including thoracic radiology, angiography/interventional radiology, musculoskeletal radiology, nuclear medicine, pediatric radiology, mammography, gastrointestinal radiology, ultrasound, genitourinary radiology, abdominal CT / MRI imaging, neuroradiology, and neurointerventional radiology. Our staff of neuroscientists and biophysicists at the Center for Functional Brain Imaging conducts some of the most advanced neurological research in the world on magnetic source imaging.
Our office of Radiologic Physics and Research provides support for the many research projects sponsored by the department. These endeavors have resulted in a variety of publications, including journal articles and multiple books.
University of New Mexico Hospital is a fully accredited 368-bed primary teaching facility. It is the state's only Level I Trauma Center and houses the Regional Burn Center, the UNM Cancer Research and Treatment Center, which has been designated a cancer research and treatment center by the NCI, and the Children's Hospital of New Mexico. The 212,000 square foot, five-story Ambulatory Care Center opened in 1991 and houses more than 60 specialty clinics.
In 2007, UNMH opened a new 400,000 square foot Children’s and Critical Care Pavilion. This facility contains adult and pediatric emergency rooms, a trauma center, a birthing center (antepartum, labor & delivery, postpartum, newborn nursery), neonatal ICU, pediatric acute care, pediatric ICU, pediatric surgery, adult critical care (medical/cardiac, surgical/burn/trauma, and neurosciences ICUs).
Imaging support for the Pavilion is comprised of onsite general radiography, fluoroscopy, CT, MRI and ultrasound services, with an integrated PACS system transmitting radiologic exams to the main Radiology Department in the University Hospital.
University Hospital is equipped with the latest imaging technology including:
This laboratory is equipped with 3 ultrasound units, and 2 kilovoltage x-ray units, a variety of phantoms and dosimetry equipment. The laboratory has 2 dedicated treatment planning systems. The medical physics library is well equipped. Nuclear medicine counting equipment is included.
The Cancer Research & Treatment Center (CRTC) is an integral component of the School of Medicine of the Health Sciences Center at the University of New Mexico. Chosen as the State of New Mexico's official Cancer Center in 2004, the UNM CRTC is the State's premier outpatient clinic serving cancer patients in all 33 counties of New Mexico and the surrounding region. In 2005 CTRC became one of 40 NIH sponsored cancer centers throughout the United States. We are dedicated to studying the genetic, environmental and biological causes of cancer to benefit all citizens in our multi-ethnic population. The main focus of the UNM CRTC is on cancer research including clinical trials, treatment, screening, diagnosis and prevention.
Started in 1972 with just a few cancer doctors and a handful of nurses, the UNM CRTC has grown into two large facilities with over 300 faculty and staff. Our main facility is the UNM Cancer Research & Treatment Center, funded by the National Cancer Institute and the State of New Mexico. We use a team approach for patient care which means doctors and nurses from different specialties consult with each other to ensure that patients can get all of their cancer concerns taken care of under one roof.
Our second building, the Cancer Research Facility, is dedicated to scientific discovery and the New Mexico Tumor Registry. The Tumor Registry was started in 1966 as part of the Federal government's mandate to track all patients with cancer so that statistics can be kept on the incidence of cancer in all regions of our country.
The UNMH Cancer Research and Treatment Center is equipped with the latest imaging technology including:
Although office and laboratory space are at a premium within UNM Hospital, research in both radiation oncology and diagnostic radiology benefit from the Program’s presence in the clinical environment. The Diagnostic Medical Physics group provides QA on all diagnostic X-ray sources operated by UNM Hospital on an annual basis. About 600 new patients per year are treated with photon and electron beams from 2 linear accelerators at the UNMH site. As a medical physics graduate student you will work closely with the radiation physicist supporting this activity. The diagnostic X-ray physicists work closely with both staff radiologists and a number of the X-ray equipment manufacturers in the innovation of new diagnostic techniques. The MR research group works at the UNM Mind Institute in close collaboration with the physicians on new MR imaging and spectroscopy techniques.
