Course Title: Advanced Medical Imaging

Part A: Course Overview

Course Title: Advanced Medical Imaging

Credit Points: 12.00

Terms

Course Code

Campus

Career

School

Learning Mode

Teaching Period(s)

PHYS2134

City Campus

Postgraduate

135H Applied Sciences

Face-to-Face

 Sem 1 2015,
Sem 1 2016

PHYS2134

City Campus

Postgraduate

171H School of Science

Face-to-Face

 Sem 1 2017,
Sem 1 2018,
Sem 1 2019,
Sem 2 2020,
Sem 1 2022,
Sem 1 2024

Course Coordinator: Prof Rick Franich

Course Coordinator Phone: +61 3 9925 3390

Course Coordinator Email: rick.franich@rmit.edu.au

Course Coordinator Location: 14.06.03

Course Coordinator Availability: By Appointment


Pre-requisite Courses and Assumed Knowledge and Capabilities

 

Assumed Knowledge

This course assumes a basic understanding of the various medical imaging modalities such as X-ray radiography, X-ray CT, MRI and Nuclear Medicine imaging such as PET.


Course Description

This course forms a core component of the MC215 Master of Medical Physics program. It builds upon the fundamental concepts of the main imaging modalities studied in PHYS2135 - radiological, MR, ultrasound, and Nuclear Medicine imaging. The PHYS-2134 course is a face-to-face course with substantial practical components and students are expected to attend the classes. The course covers topics on medical image processing, image analysis, and image synthesis (e.g. 3D visualization, and rendering). Contemporary advancements in medical imaging technology have brought with them an increasing level of complexity from implementation through to applications and the need for quality assurance. Physicists working in the field require a comprehensive understanding of these advanced imaging technologies in order to appreciate capabilities and limitations, evaluate equipment performance and assess risk. This course provides candidates for the Master of Medical Physics with an understanding of advanced imaging systems and their integration across the fields of diagnostic radiology, nuclear medicine and radiotherapy. This will include study of time-resolved ("4-dimensional") imaging, image-guided radiotherapy, and hybrid-modality imaging (e.g. PET/CT) together with topics such as image registration and its integration into treatment facilities and protocols. Emerging medical imaging modalities such as Phase Contrast Imaging are also explored during the course. Students will use freely available software packages such as ImageJ/Fiji during practical classes. Where possible, we will make site visits to clinics/hospitals and other facilities to see advanced medical imaging modalities in daily use and to observe the role of the medical physicist and see how these advances improve patient healthcare. There will also be specialist lectures by external, imaging experts during the course.

 


Objectives/Learning Outcomes/Capability Development

 

This course will contribute to the following program capabilities (refer Master of Medical Physics program guide):

  • PLO1 - Advanced and integrated understanding of the applications of physical processes to the diagnosis and treatment of disease, including an understanding of contemporary developments in professional practice.
  • PLO2 - Advanced understanding of the origins of radiation and its interactions with matter pertaining to the production and use of ionising radiation, with particular regard to the protection of people and environments.
  • PLO4 - Skills to investigate, analyse and interrogate scientific data to ensure quality control of complex technological systems and to diagnose causes of discrepancies.
  • PLO7 - Technical and research skills to design, implement and evaluate developments in diagnostic and therapeutic technology that influence professional practice and scholarship.
  • PLO8 - Demonstrate the application of knowledge and skills with creativity and initiative to new situations in professional practice in fields related to Medical and Health Physics.
  • PLO9 - Demonstrate the application of knowledge and skills with a high level of personal autonomy and accountability.


On successful completion of this course, you should be able to:

  1. Demonstrate a comprehensive knowledge of range of advanced medical imaging systems and their relative merits and advantages;
  2. Interpret the physical and quantitative information that may be extracted from different imaging modalities and to critically evaluate the limitations of these instruments as measurement systems;
  3. Apply image processing techniques and understand the applied mathematics which underlies medical imaging and medical image processing;
  4. Critically examine  the merits of advanced imaging relative to patient benefit considering such factors as patient comfort, diagnosis and treatment time, workload, radiation exposure, risks ;
  5. Present worked solutions to problems and write reports in a concise, clear, systematic and professional manner;
  6. Apply the concepts, terminology, conventions and calculations important in diagnostic medical imaging and be able to demonstrate these when answering tutorial and assignment questions and solving problems.

 


Overview of Learning Activities

The learning activities included in this course are:

  • attendance at in classes  where syllabus material will be presented and explained, and the subject illustrated with demonstrations and examples;
  • Active participation in practical classes where you will build familiarity with image manipulation tools and apply your knowledge to solve problems. Communication and collaboration with your peers is encouraged as a problem solving strategy and an enhancement to learning.
  • completion of tutorial questions, quizzes and tests designed to give further practice in the application of theory, and to give feedback on your progress and understanding;
  • private study, working through the course as presented in classes and learning materials, and gaining practice at solving conceptual and numerical problems;
  • written assignments requiring an integrated understanding of the subject matter and review of contemporary research literature.


Overview of Learning Resources

RMIT will provide you with resources and tools for learning in this course through myRMIT Studies Course. 

There are services available to support your learning through the University Library. The Library provides guides on academic referencing and subject specialist help as well as a range of study support services. For further information, please visit the Library page on the RMIT University website and the myRMIT student portal.


Overview of Assessment

Assessment Tasks

Assessment Task 1: Assignments
Weighting 50%
This assessment task supports CLOs 2, 3, 5, 6, 7, 8

Assessment Task 2: Online Quizzes
Weighting 10%
This assessment task supports CLOs 1-4, 7, 8

Assessment Task 3: End of Semester Skills and Capabilities Assessment
Weighting 40%
This assessment task supports CLOs 1-5, 7, 8