Competences for medical applications of nuclear science

Following on the dynamic built by the initiative on medical applications of nuclear science launched by former Commissioner Mariya Gabriel at the beginning of 2023, the Joint Research Centre (JRC) gathered relevant stakeholders for a workshop on 24th This followed the first workshop, organised on 27 April 2023 at JRC Ispra on the translation of radiotheranostics cancer research into clinical practice in Europe. The objective of this second workshop was to address the nuclear competences and skills required to sustain medical applications of nuclear science throughout their life cycle. The promotion of dialogue and collaboration among stakeholders, as well as synergies between initiatives at EU level and across Member States were discussed. The need to perform National nuclear workforce assessment for human resources supply and to promote interdisciplinary education & training schemes building skills in the nuclear medical area have been identified. With a participation of around 80 stakeholders from the academia, the industry, researchers, health professionals with different expertise in clinical practice, as well as EU Member States representatives, this workshop discussed the current challenges impacting the availability of appropriate competences to enable the medical applications of nuclear science. It aimed to identify the gaps in the demand and offer of skilled workforce and to define critical areas where action is needed. Some of the key takeaways were the risk of losing competences and expertise with an impact for accessibility of treatments to European patients; a clear demand for well trained, qualified workforce to handle nuclear medical applications with the advent of new radionuclides and treatments; a requirement for multidisciplinary skills; a big disparity in training initiatives amongst EU Member States and the challenge to attract and retain young talents in this field. The main recommendations made by the stakeholders were the following: 1. The need for coordination at European level for information related to nuclear education and training for health professionals. 2. The European Commission can host discussions for a community of training institutions to discuss and exchange on training audiences, gaps and needs, interoperability and accreditation. 3. Possible creation of an EU network of training institutions across EU Member States. 4. Education providers and existing education platforms need to join forces and collaborate to expand their learning content to cover the needs. 5. Regulators of pharmaceutical and nuclear fields should be encouraged to meet and discuss the interface between their mandates 6. Endorsement of European-level accreditation or a recommended, gold standard model of education and training in radiation protection by the professional societies EANM, EFOMP, EFRS, ESR, ESTRO.