[07/11/2026]
On the occasion of the International Day of Medical Physics, celebrated annually on November 7 to commemorate the birth of Marie Curie, InPhyMa Training & Research, under the leadership of Dr. Jesús Dávila, organized a meeting in Caracas that brought together approximately 50 medical physicists, including young practicing professionals and academic researchers involved in establishing and developing formal education programs in this field in Venezuela.
Participants were seated at 18 tables, each named after a prominent physicist recognized for their contributions to radiation science and its applications. For example, Table No. 1 was named after Marie Curie, while Table No. 4 honored Wilhelm Röntgen. Among those seated at the Marie Curie table were Dr. Carlos Rojas, Venezuela's representative on the Directive Council of the Latin American Center for Physics (CLAF), and Dr. Lisseta D’Onofrio, whose pioneering efforts in promoting Medical Physics education during her tenure as Director of the School of Physics at the Faculty of Sciences of the Central University of Venezuela (UCV) were widely acknowledged during the event.
The Faculty of Sciences of UCV was represented by Dr. José Antonio López, Academic Coordinator, who conveyed greetings from the Dean, Dr. Ernesto Fuenmayor. The meeting also featured messages of congratulations and support from leaders of professional associations and federations in the field, including the American Association of Physicists in Medicine (AAPM), the Latin American Association of Medical Physics (ALFIM), and the International Organization for Medical Physics (IOMP).
In addition, Dr. Rafael Martín, a Venezuelan physicist, delivered a comprehensive lecture remotely from the United States on the origins and development of Medical Physics in Venezuela. His presentation traced the field's evolution from its early practitioners and the founders of formal academic programs to the current state of education and the number of professionals who have completed undergraduate and postgraduate training.
Regarding academic education, it was highlighted that undergraduate studies in Medical Physics are offered as a specialization within the Physics degree program at the Faculty of Sciences of UCV. Postgraduate education is provided through master's degree programs at UCV and the Venezuelan Institute for Scientific Research (IVIC). Several medical physicists have also completed doctoral training by conducting research and writing dissertations in Medical Physics within UCV's doctoral program in Physics.
Dr. Jesús Dávila presented InPhyMa's approach to training and research, particularly its Radiation Therapy Physics Residency Program, which received IOMP accreditation in 2024. Young medical physicists serving as trainers in this clinical residency program also shared their experiences.
During his address, Dr. Carlos Rojas conveyed CLAF's congratulations and recalled the videoconference on Medical Physics organized two years earlier at the institution's initiative. The event had addressed disparities in the development of the field among countries, opportunities for cooperation, the momentum generated by ALFIM, and CLAF's commitment to supporting Medical Physics throughout the region by highlighting to the governments of its Member States the importance of developing this specialty.
His presentation concluded with recent photographs of the laboratory where Pierre and Marie Curie conducted their fundamental research on radium between 1903 and 1914.
The meeting, which combined scientific, educational, and professional dimensions, provided an opportunity to review the current state of Medical Physics in Venezuela and reaffirm the importance of regional cooperation in education, research, and professional practice in this field.