Angelia Oliveira, chair of radiation therapy department, presenting her research at the ASTRO conference.
ANGELA OLIVEIRA / COURTESY
By Karen Flores, Staff Writer
The Manhattan University radiation therapy department attended the American Society for Radiation Oncology Conference in Washington D.C. to speak about their achievements.
According to astro.org the society is, “the premier radiation oncology society in the world with more than 10,000 members who are physicians, nurses, biologists, physicists, radiation therapists, dosimetrists and other health care professionals who specialize in treating patients with radiation therapies.”
The site goes on to explain that it, “is dedicated to improving patient care through professional education and training, support for clinical practice and health policy standards, advancement of science and research and advocacy.”
Students who were interested in attending the conference were asked to fill out an application, which included writing an essay as well as looking at other qualifications. One senior and one junior from MU were chosen to attend.
Kasey Howard, a junior radiation therapy major, was one of the two students chosen to attend the meeting. She shared that her uncle, an MU alumus, was the reason why she decided to venture into a career involving radiation therapy.
“The reason why I did it is I always liked healthcare, but could not see myself being a doctor or a nurse so I looked into other fields,” Howard said. “I read about radiation therapy and thought it was really interesting. At the time, one of my close family members, my uncle, was sick, and he just started receiving radiation therapy. He was an MU alumni. Manhattan University is one of the few schools that offers radiation therapy and I decided to come here.”
Angela Oliveira, another MU alum, is the chair for the department of radiation therapy technology. She was invited to present at the conference this year and her topic was centered around bridging the gap for enhanced radiation therapy education.
“This national conference for radiation therapy professionals is where we can connect and collaborate and network on new advancements in the field,” Oliveira said. “I was invited to present this year in Washington, D.C. and the topic was from classroom to clinic, bridging the gap for enhanced radiation therapy education. It really focused on ways that we could connect the two areas so that students have a better experience in the clinic after they’ve completed their didactic coursework during their undergrad.”
Oliveira was a radiation therapist for 14 years prior to moving into higher education. She saw that there was a disconnect between what students learned in the classroom and what they learned when being in a clinical setting.
“I really noticed the significant gap between the preparedness of students from when they started their coursework compared to when they entered the clinic,” Oliveira said. “Being able to research and study this area actually helped us make improvements within our program, which we’ve seen a really positive improvement from just speaking to our clinical educators and our instructors here at the college.”
Within the radiation therapy technology department, students get the chance to shadow someone inside a radiation therapy clinic prior to their acceptance in the program. Oliveira explained that this is something that is crucial for students who are trying to figure out what they wish to pursue a career in.
“I think that’s really important because our profession is so specific, and it’s really important that applicants and students know exactly what they’re getting into,” Oliveira said. “We’re dealing with a very sick population, so it’s important that they have an understanding of that, and this is also a career for someone who is looking for deep patient interactions. That’s a really big part of our job as radiation therapists, someone who’s looking to help others and improve the patient experience.”
Victoria Humann, the clinical coordinator of the radiation therapy technology department, shared a bit about what students do within the major in order to prepare for a career in radiation therapy.
“The clinic aspect is required for radiation therapy and students have to do 240 days of clinics,” Humann said. “We assign them into their clinics so they know when they come into our program that they are responsible to do those days. This is a great field, it’s a small field but if patient care is something you are interested in and you enjoy the sciences and math this is a career you should look into.”
Howard reflected on her experience at the conference and expressed feeling very inspired by seeing her professor present her work to everyone and meeting those who have already gained valuable experience from being in the field.
“Seeing my professor present in a national conference put into perspective how these are experiences and goals I could achieve too,” Howard said. “Her teacher pushed her to go to these presentations and now she is the one speaking while being a program director. It makes me feel like I can do what she has done as being able to network with some of the biggest names in the radiation therapy field are experiences that I will never forget. I hope that donors and alumni continue to sponsor and fund for students to go to these kinds of conferences because it was such a great experience.”