ESTRO 2021 Abstract Book

S456

ESTRO 2021

Fig 2: Concept image of the next generation prototype MR-integrated Proton Therapy system under construction at the OncoRay facility in Dresden, Germany (Image courtesy by MagnetTx Oncology Solutions) References

[1] Mutic and Dempsey. Seminars in Radiation Oncology, 24(3):196 – 199, 2014. [2] Lagendijk et al. Seminars in Radiation Oncology, 24(3):207 – 209, 2014. [3] Fallone. Seminars in Radiation Oncology, 24(3):200 – 202, 2014. [4] Keall et al. Seminars in Radiation Oncology, 24(3):203 – 206, 2014.

[5] Hoffmann et al, 2020, Radiation Oncology, 15:129 [6] Oborn et al., 2017, Med. Phys. 44(8), e77-e90.

Debate: This house believes that in the next 5 years the current RTT education curriculum will be obsolete

SP-0585 For the motion M. Kearney 1 1 Trinity College Dublin, Discipline of Radiation Therapy, Dublin, Ireland

Abstract Text For the motion – Maeve Kearney (IE)

RT has evolved and can no longer be regarded as ‘x-rays-but a higher energy x-ray’. An academically rigorous programme is essential to plan and deliver complex RT treatments. Bachelor in Science (BSc) programmes in RT are not standard academic qualifications required for RTTs globally; in some countries RTTs are trained through shorter and more accelerated programmes as technical rather than clinical experts. Within these accelerated programmes, something in the education curriculum has to give to shorten the time required for completing the programmes. RT treatment planning and patient care are frequently considered as optional extras. Variations in RT planning education has been reflected in the varying level of autonomy offered to some RTTs in IGRT practices while patient care is frequently delegated to nursing staff. The introduction of Record and Verify systems undoubtedly made treatments safer for patients but has created an air of complacency. Some of these accelerated educational programmes even suggest that there may be no risk of anything going wrong during the RT delivery process as long as the RT plans are optimised correctly prior to the start of RT. Emerging advances in RT imply that RTT education programmes that focus on technical training rather than clinical education are no longer fit for purpose. With adaptive RT, RTTs will be the staff group at the forefront who have to verify and assess if plan adaptation is required. While we are still unclear how AI will be introduced into RT practice it is premature to suggest that the AI will replace the role of RTTs in decision making during the RT delivery. Education programmes that produce technicians will not be equipped to meet the demands for high level clinical decision making which will be a key requirement for RTTs of the future. Therefore, I believe that in the next 5 years the current RTT education curriculum will be obsolete. SP-0586 Against the motion H. Nisbet 1 1 Health Education England, Faculty of Advancing Practice, South East Region, United Kingdom Abstract Text RT practice is over 100 years old and the skills and knowledge needed to function as an RTT have changed considerably in this time. RT techniques have evolved from basic, fixed FSD techniques on cobalt and orthovoltage units to the sophistication of surface-guided RT, adaptive RT and MRI Linacs today. Early RTTs required an encyclopaedic knowledge of surface anatomy and an ability to interpret fuzzy, poor quality portal images but RT practice now requires in-depth image interpretation and understanding of advanced techniques. In response to this changing practice landscape, RTT education has changed dramatically. Training before the introduction of the undergraduate degree in the UK in the early nineties was a pre-technocratic model of professional education that involved a higher proportion of time spent in the workplace; this was very skills based and produced RTTs who, although technically proficient, lacked the necessary skills to interpret and apply their knowledge base to their practice. The BSc programme sought to address this as a technocratic