ABMP Medical Health Physics study guide
ABMP Medical Health Physics · Work through your exam, one topic at a time.
The ABMP Medical Health Physics certification is a professional credential for health physicists who work in medical settings, where the practice of radiation protection is shaped by imaging, nuclear medicine, and therapy rather than by reactors or accelerators alone. Candidates are typically medical physicists, radiation safety officers, and health physicists employed by hospitals, cancer centers, and imaging networks, or regulators and consultants who audit such facilities. The ABMP Medical Health Physics study guide has 10 sections and about 2,207 words.
01Fundamentals of Radiation Physics and Radioactivity
Candidates must be fluent in atomic structure, the distinction between ionizing and non-ionizing radiation, and the modes of radioactive decay. Know alpha, beta-minus, beta-plus, electron capture, and isomeric transition (gamma emission), and how each changes Z and A.
241 words, about 1 min02Radiation Detection, Instrumentation, and Measurement
Know gas-filled detectors (ionization chambers, proportional counters, Geiger-Müller), scintillation detectors (NaI(Tl), plastic), and solid-state detectors (semiconductor, TLD, OSL). Understand the gas amplification regions and which region each detector operates in.
243 words, about 1 min03Radiation Dosimetry and Dose Quantities
Master the dosimetric chain: exposure (C/kg) → absorbed dose (Gy = J/kg) → equivalent dose (Sv = Gy × wR) → effective dose (Sv = Σ wT·HT). Know ICRP/ICRU tissue weighting factors and radiation weighting factors (photons/electrons = 1, alpha = 20, neutrons energy-dependent).
253 words, about 1 min04Biological Effects of Radiation and Radiation Biology
Understand deterministic (tissue reaction) vs stochastic effects. Deterministic effects have thresholds (e.g., erythema ~2 Gy, cataract ~0.5 Gy) and increase in severity with dose; stochastic effects (cancer, heritable) are probabilistic with no established threshold.
214 words, about 1 min05Radiation Protection Standards, Regulations, and Licensing
Know the regulatory framework: NRC (10 CFR), Agreement States, and ICRP/NCRP recommendations. Understand occupational dose limits (50 mSv/y total effective dose; 150 mSv lens; 500 mSv extremities/skin), public limits (1 mSv/y), and the ALARA principle.
232 words, about 1 min06Diagnostic Radiology Physics and Protection
Understand X-ray production (bremsstrahlung, characteristic), tube voltage/current, filtration, collimation, and the inverse-square law. Know how kVp, mAs, and filtration affect dose and image quality.
203 words, about 1 min07Nuclear Medicine Physics and Protection
Know radiopharmaceuticals (Tc-99m, F-18 FDG, I-131, Ga-68), their half-lives and emissions, and how they localize. Understand gamma camera physics (collimator, scintillator, photomultiplier), PET/CT principles (annihilation, coincidence detection), and the difference between diagnostic and therapeutic nuclear medicine.
199 words, under 1 min08Radiation Therapy Physics and Protection
Understand external beam therapy (linacs, photon/electron beams), brachytherapy (HDR/LDR, sources such as Ir-192, I-125), and the concepts of absorbed dose prescription, fractionation, and treatment planning. Know the difference between teletherapy and brachytherapy, and the role of the medical physicist in commissioning, QA, and shielding.
220 words, about 1 min09Medical Shielding Design and Facility Radiation Safety
Understand shielding design methods: primary vs secondary barriers, workload (W), use factor (U), occupancy factor (T), and the transmission factor B. Know the NCRP approach and the concept of controlled vs uncontrolled areas (dose limits 5 mSv/y controlled, 1 mSv/y uncontrolled).
205 words, about 1 min10Occupational and Public Dose Control, ALARA, and Monitoring
Understand personnel monitoring (TLD, OSL, film badges), dosimeter placement (whole-body, extremity, collar), and the meaning of minimum detectable dose. Know the ALARA process: management commitment, dose constraints, investigation levels, and dose-reduction techniques (time, distance, shielding).
197 words, under 1 min