Prof. Arun Chougule PhD, FIUPESM, FIOMP, FAMS, FCMPI
Immediate Past President of AFOMP
Chair ETC IOMP
Chairman IOMP Accreditation Board
Member Board of Directors IMPCB
Past President of AMPI
arunchougule11@gmail.com
Accept my heartiest congratulations to each one of you on the occasion of silver jubilee of AFOMP and good wishes for the medical physics profession. It is indeed a time to celebrate, reflect, and look forward to the future with renewed energy and commitment.
As you all know that Asia Oceania Federation of Organisations for Medical physics [AFOMP] was established on 28 May 2000, twenty-five years ago by visionary and foresighted medical physics educators–founding fathers of AFOMP. It is worth to mention the initiatives and efforts of Dr. KY Cheung, Dr. Yimin Hu, Late Dr. Kiyonari Inamura, Dr. Akira Ito, Dr. Kwan Hoong Ng, Late Dr. Barry Allen, and Dr. Anchali Krisanachinda and many more from AFOMP region. The idea of regional organization for medical physics from Asia –Oceania region was first conceived during the international conference on Medical Imaging and precision radiation therapy at Guangzhou, China on 5th October, 1999. During the conference the discussions took place for forming a regional medical physics organization and the seeds of establishing AFOMP were sowed.
Initially AFOMP started with eight founding countries medical physics organisations from Australia& New Zealand, China, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Korea, Taiwan and Singapore. During WC2000 at Chicago, six more country medical physics organisations joined AFOMP and AFOMP was admitted to International Organisation of Medical Physics [IOMP] on 26 July 2000 as third Regional Organisation [RO] of IOMP.
Today AFOMP is the largest regional organization under the IOMP umbrella, representing 20 national medical physics organisation [NMO] and two affiliate NMO’s. Further AFOMP represents over 11000 medical physicists across a vast and diverse geographical expanse, with enormous variations in healthcare infrastructure and access to radiation technologies. A journey of service, a legacy bright, AFOMP’s 25 years – a guiding light started to serve the region.
AFOMP region hosts about 4.5 billion people [60 % of world population] in about 50 countries. The region is multilingual, multiple religious faiths and full of heterogenic in socioeconomic, educational, healthcare and research areas.
This regional diversity is both a strength and a source of unique challenges, making AFOMP a dynamic and essential force in shaping global medical physics.
Diversity of the region
1. Cultural and linguistic diversity
- AFOMP spans countries with vastly different languages, cultures, traditions, and health systems
- From technologically advanced nations like Japan, South Korea, and Australia to emerging economies such as Nepal, Bangladesh, and Laos, the range of contexts in which medical physicists operate is extraordinary
- Cultural richness enhances cross-border learning, mutual respect, and regional collaboration
2. Healthcare system variability
- Some countries have well-established radiotherapy and diagnostic imaging infrastructure, while others are still developing basic cancer care services
- This disparity creates both a need for support and solidarity and an opportunity for knowledge transfer and twinning programs
3. Educational and professional diversity
- Education levels, clinical training programs, and certification processes vary widely.
- Some countries have structured graduate programs in medical physics; others rely heavily on on-the-job training
Challenges in the AFOMP region
1. Resource imbalance
- Limited access to radiotherapy machines, imaging equipment, and QA tools in many low-income countries
- Rural-urban divide within countries leads to uneven distribution of medical physics services
2. Shortage of qualified Medical Physicists
- Many countries in the region face an acute shortage of trained personnel, especially in public hospitals
- Retention is also a concern, as trained physicists often migrate to developed countries
3. Inconsistent professional recognition
- Medical physics is not recognized as a distinct profession in several countries.
- Lack of regulatory frameworks, formal licensing, and career pathways weakens the workforce structure
4. Language and communication barriers
- Language differences can limit participation in regional training programs and online education.
- Need for multilingual resources and inclusive communication
5. Varying levels of government support
- Not all governments recognize the importance of medical physics in patient safety and cancer care
- Advocacy and awareness are ongoing needs
AFOMP’ has set its objectives and mission for
- Promoting medical physics education and training
- Encouraging scientific research and development
- Facilitating professional networking and knowledge sharing
- Strengthening radiation protection and safety standards
- Advocating for the role of medical physicists in healthcare
To achieve these objectives AFOMP has established six committees namely- Science Committee [SC], Education and Training Committee [ETC], Professional Relations Committee [PRC], Funding Committee [FC], Awards and Honors Committee [AHC], Publication Committee [PC].
Over the years AFOMP has brought out six Policy statements covering various aspects of medical physics professions such as
Policy Statement 1:The role, responsibilities and status of the clinical medical physicist in AFOMP
Policy Statement 2: Recommended clinical radiation oncology medical physicist staffing levels in AFOMP countries
Policy Statement 3: Recommendations for the education and training of medical physicists in AFOMP countries
Policy Statement 4: Recommendations for continuing professional development systems for medical physicists in AFOMP countries
Policy Statement 5: Career progression for clinical medical physicists in AFOMP countries
Policy Statement 6: Code of ethics for medical physicists in AFOMP Countries.
This drives AFOMP’s mission to harmonize educational standards and capacity building. To harmonise the medical physics curriculum in AFOMP region, a committee was established in 2022 and now the AFOMP Curriculum for Medical Physics Postgraduate Program is finalised and available at (https://afomp.org/2024/12/09/afomp-curriculum-for-medical-physics-post-graduate-program/).
For official communication channels, disseminating information and the activities of AFOMP a dedicated revised AFOMP website (www.afomp.org) was launched in 2019 and again revised in 2025.
To encourage exchange of knowledge, ideas and networking AFOMP started annual meetings –Asia- Oceania Conference of Medical Physics- AOCMP since 2001 regularly with first AOCMP2001 at Bangkok, Thailand and twenty fifth AOCMP2025 will be at Adelaide, Australia in conjunction with IUPESM2025. To encourage young early carrier medical physicists from AFOMP LMI countries to participate in AOCMP, AFOMP started travel grants and over the years many early carrier medical physicists are benefitted with the travel awards.
This remarkable twenty-five years of team work and cooperation has sown seeds of development, advancement and hard work, which are now giving sweet fruits in the form of professional recognition in region as a whole. Several dedicated medical physics professionals have worked quite hard to achieve what it is today. In twenty-five years, eight teams of AFOMP Executive committees, which include President, Vice President, Immediate Past President, Secretary General, Treasurer, and Committee Chairs have provided leadership, guidance and served for the betterment of organisation and profession. I am very fortunate to be associated with AFOMP very actively since 2006, first as Deputy Chair of ETC [2006-2012], Editor of AFOMP Newsletter [2013-2019]-where I restarted its biannual AFOMP newsletter from 2013 regularly and now renamed as AFOMP Pulse., Chair Science Committee[2013-2018], Vice President [2015-2018], President [ 2018-2022], Immediate past president [2022-2025] and in these 20 years I have not only seen the relevance and growth of AFOMP but was part of it with the contribution to best of my abilities. From vision to victory, through challenge and change, AFOMP have surpassed many milestones.
We have faced significant challenges – from lack of resources and training centers in some countries to the sudden disruptions of the COVID-19 pandemic. Yet, adversity also revealed our strength. AFOMP responded with agility: shifting to virtual platforms, launching online education, and creating stronger digital networks to ensure that learning and professional growth never stopped. Our resilience has become our identity. The pandemic accelerated the adoption of virtual training platforms and we started regular monthly webinars since June 2020 and AFOMP school from June 2021 which are continuing and many getting benefitted.
During 2018-22 AFOMP has started many awards and programmes, thanks to support from families, trusts, journals and NMO’s for supporting these initiatives. AFOMP is regularly awarding
- Prof Kiyonari Inamura AFOMP Oration Award
- Dr. Udipi Madhvanath Memorial AFOMP Best PhD award in Radiobiology
- P.N Krishnamoorthy Memorial AFOMP Young Achiever Award
- C.V Saraswathi-A. N Parameswaran AFOMP Best PhD Award
- AFOMP Journal Prize for the Best Paper
- AFOMP Lifetime Achievement award
- Prof. Sung Sil Chu AFOMP Best Student’s Publication Award
- Golam Abu Zakaria AFOMP Best Leadership Skills Award
Over the past 25 years, AFOMP has become synonymous with:
- Capacity Building: Through the establishment of AFOMP School, educational webinars, fellowships, and training workshops, we have helped bridge the gap in human resources in medical physics, particularly in developing countries.
- Professional Development: AFOMP guidelines, position statements, and competency frameworks have helped raise the bar in clinical practice and education. These initiatives reflect our ongoing commitment to safety, efficacy, and quality in patient care.
Together we stand, united and strong, for patient care and science, we have walked so long and completed an extraordinary 25-year journey, stands today as a beacon of regional collaboration, academic excellence, and professional leadership in the field of medical physics, the journey marked by challenges, achievements, and profound regional impact.
AFOMP has completed twenty-five years of purpose and pride, with Medical Physics as our noble guide. With every physicist’s heartfelt drive, AFOMP continues to thrive. Today, we don’t just mark the passage of time – we celebrate a quarter-century of dedicated service, scientific advancement, regional cooperation, and shared commitment to the noble cause of healthcare through medical physics.
As we celebrate this silver jubilee, with the objectives of empowering regions, crossing each border, with harmony, leadership, strength and order however let us remind ourselves that our work is not just about machines, mathematics, or measurements – it is about people, patients, and progress. It is about ensuring that every individual receives safe, effective, and compassionate care, supported by the invisible hands of medical physics. As we celebrate this 25-year milestone, we must also acknowledge the challenges that persist. There are member countries where medical physics is still not fully recognized as a profession. The availability of training programs and clinical infrastructure remains limited in several areas. Language barriers, lack of national regulatory frameworks, and unequal distribution of resources are additional hurdles. A Silver Jubilee, not just a date, it marks a journey truly great, as we look ahead to the future, let us set our sights on building a stronger, more inclusive, and future-ready AFOMP that not only addresses the needs of today but also anticipates the demands of tomorrow. Let us work together to take AFOMP to even greater heights in the years to come. AFOMP is not just an organization – it is a movement. A movement of knowledge, compassion, and service.
Once again ‘Wish you all a happy and proud 25th Anniversary of AFOMP’.