Just before the end of their school year, La Follette High School graciously hosted us to share an interactive introduction into medical physics during their morning physics classes. Partnering with physics teacher, Alex Roethler, and Health Science Pathways Learning Coordinator, Kris Howard, UW Medical Physics Outreach developed a two-hour program aimed at covering some of the major themes of medical physics. This included an introductory presentation followed by three interactive stations. These stations covered the topics of radiation therapy treatment planning, radiation detection and safety, and medical imaging. Jeff Radtke of the UW Calibration Lab brought the portable cloud chamber to discuss radiation basics. The medical imaging station included a hands-on ultrasound activity as well as a brand-new MRI simulation activity courtesy of Nicholas Summerfield and Lisette LeMerise. After the event, students reflected on their experiences and shared:
- “I thought the Geiger counter and cloud chamber were cool.”
- “Thank you so much for taking time out of your busy days to come teach us a little more about medical physics. It was actually more fun than I expected and I definitely learned a lot!”
- “I loved the thoughtfulness of them bringing in interactive displays – having a hands-on experience.”
With the success of this event, we look forward to continuing our partnership with La Follette! In addition to those already named above, we would like to thank Aeli Olson, Alex Christensen, Joe Whitehead, Laura Castaneda Martinez, Yadira Medina-Guevara, and Sydney Jupitz for their time and effort in helping with this event!