8/12/2011
Brief Bio (jobs, etc…)
Experiences
•
Medical Health Physicist (1989 – 1993)
University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA
•
Medical Health Physicist (1993 – 1997)
The Cleveland Clinic Foundation, Cleveland, OH
•
Radiation Safety Officer, Key Administrative Staff (1997 – 2003)
The Cleveland Clinic Foundation, Cleveland, OH
•
Director of Radiology Physics and Engineering (2003-present)
Department of Radiology, The Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, PA
2011 AAPM Women’s Professional Symposium
MAKE CAREER TRANSITION WORK
FOR YOU
Xiawei (Winnie) Zhu, MS, DABR, DABMP
The Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia
University of Pennsylvania
Brief Bio (current)
National Committees
• ACR Appropriateness Criteria Subcommittee and Relative Radiation Exposure
and Dose
•
AAPM TG131 - Medical Physics Training in Developing Countries in the Region
•
AAPM TG150 - Acceptance Testing and Quality Control of Digital
Radiographic Imaging Systems
•
AAPM TG153 - Digital Radiography Glossary
Professional Board Certifications and Education
•
American Board of Radiology, in Diagnostic Medical Physics (2005-)
•
American Board of Medical Physics, in Medical Health Physics (1996-)
The obstacles Obligations as
women professionals

Public views about working women and women
in science and engineering
(why not be a secretary, nurse, or accountant…?)
Institutional Committees
•
IRB, The Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia
•
Radiation Safety Committee, The Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia
Journal Review
•
Journal of Applied Clinical Medical Physics
•
Journal of Pediatric Radiology
Family
•

Obligations and responsibilities to family
(childcare, daily pick ups/drop offs, sick child, PTA? home
room mom?, attend a school event during the day?!)
…….
Married with 3 daughters (16y,13y, and 6y)
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8/12/2011
Define your own path

Based on your interests and needs
• academic vs. clinical interests,
• leadership, management vs. technical
• how much business travel …

Making career transitions
work for you

Based on obligations and responsibilities
• to your family

Based on the goal of having a balanced work-life
• how much work is too much?
• would longer working hours jeopardize your ability to
care for your family?
• you support system
• you self well-being?
Making career transitions
work for you

Be willing to take risks
• know the risk: time, financial loss
• be confident about yourself

Be willing to meet the needs and challenges
•
•
•
•
•
learn new concepts and skills
be flexible with work hours
be flexible in expanding your services
be flexible with titles and teams
make new friends and find supports
(clinical and administrative supports,
QA teams…)
Do your homework
• research job market (current and future)
• understand the need and length of training
• know the pay scales, room for negotiating pay and
benefit package, FMLA…
• evaluate feasibilities of relocation and its
timing (the kids have concerns too…)

Continue learning and exploring
• attend conferences and workshops
• keep current with journal publications
• interact with clinical staff (clinicians, techs, nurses)
Making career transitions
work for you(some difficult
experiences)
Deal with obstacles and unexpected events
Interact with those who is skeptical about your
ability
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8/12/2011
Make your job interesting,
value your experience
Make your job interesting,
value your experience

You are not only “the physicist”
• Instructor (to fellows, residents, technologists,
nurses, clinicians…)
• mentor (to medical students, research assistants…)
• equipment purchasing evaluation team…
• general consultant (PACS, math, physics,
applications…)
Make your job interesting,
value your experience

Be a resource to people from different levels and
clinical areas, leads to
• teaching moments
• better understanding of your job by others
• clinical and research collaborations, publications…

Keep connections with peers
• know people locally to nationally
• learn updates, new equipment purchases, projects…
• show interests in serving and participating in task
groups, committees

Know your possible collaborators,
equipment vendors
• know other clinical departments
(Pulmonary, Cardiology, Orthopedics,
Surgery, ED, OR…)
• meet possible collaborators
• know your venders and update your
knowledge
(learn and compare new products…)
Make your (parenting)job
interesting
Inform others that you are a working mom!
• be proud that you work (and are a physicist)!
• can't be home room mom? – offer help for take home
projects
• involve the children to do projects helps his/her school
• take opportunities, e.g. “career day” to explain to your
children’s peers what is a “medical physicist”
• work weekends and free up some workdays to participate
(school) daytime events (when they still want you to go)
• feel our children are less protected?
think again – they are more independent and responsible
3
8/12/2011
YOU WILL FIND YOUR PATH TO
MAKE CAREER TRANSITION WORK
FOR YOU!
2011 AAPM Women’s Professional Symposium
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