RE: The Health Physics Profession -Reply

[Vincent.King@DOEGJPO.COM (Vincent King)]

     O.K, so we all know that there are plenty of good technicians and 
     health physicists without degrees and certifications.  Not everyone 
     has to go the certification route to be qualified (and professional) 
     at what they do...
     
     ...BUT...
     
     ...on the flip side, I see more examples of HPs and technicians with 
     limited, narrow experience and knowledge, who do NOT have an adequate 
     understanding of basic health physics theory and principles, but who 
     will assure you that they are every bit as qualified as any "ivory 
     tower" degreed HP or CHP out there.  Giving credence to such 
     unsubstantiated claims of expertise can be costly and even dangerous.
     
     I have run into far too many individuals willing to exaggerate, 
     inflate, and even invent their qualifications in order to advance 
     their monetary status.  Certification, if it is truly an evaluation of 
     skill level (which I feel it is now, and I hope it remains that way), 
     at least forces this type individual to put their money where their 
     mouth is and PROVE that they are as qualified as they say.  (It also 
     helps - at least a little - to prevent your local environmental 
     extremist from claiming to be a "radiation expert".) 
     
     What the certification process does NOT do is make any statement about 
     the qualfications of those who have not attempted or achieved it. 
     Non-certified HPs should not consider themselves insulted or 
     second-class.
     
     Certification is a useful indicator, however, of the experience level 
     and the comprehensive knowledge of those who HAVE achieved it.  The 
     chances of someone with defective knowledge, no applicable experience, 
     or skills that are mainly imaginary have virtually no chance of 
     bluffing their way through the test.  Thus (and I think others have 
     said this better than I have) certification doesn't define the 
     profession: it only recognizes a particular skill level reached by 
     some in the profession.
     
     This aspect of certification makes it an additional (but not the only) 
     tool which can be used to evaluate qualifications.  If I need help on 
     a health physics problem and I don't know a qualified buddy out there 
     to bring in (or the procurement department require me to select from 
     all qualified applicants instead of based on favoritism), I will 
     always base my evaluation of the expertise available on experience, 
     degree(s), and certification.  Yes, I have occasionally run across the 
     CHP "bad apple", and yes, I'm sure I've thrown away resumes for a few 
     qualified people, but you sure improve your chances and waste less 
     time by approaching it this way.  Sorry, folks, that's the way the 
     real world works.  (Anyone who does it differently is invited to go 
     Las Vegas with me any time! Your treat...)
     
     By the way, I don't profess to know exactly when the decision was made 
     to require a prerequisite degree for taking part II of the 
     certification exam.  But I know that it came, as did the prerequisite 
     experience requirement, from individuals with a lot of knowledge (both 
     practical and academic) about what makes a good health physicist. 
     
     In listening to the clamoring to remove the degree requirement, it 
     occurs to me that we can set the bar as high or low as we want.  We 
     can set the prerequisites to recognize whatever competence level we 
     want.  If this is up to the majority, I expect we will soon reach the 
     point where the majority can pass the standard.  Of course at that 
     point, certification becomes meaningless since it represents skills at 
     a minimum, rather than the highest, level.
     
     Not to offend, but it smacks a little of the last place team insisting 
     that they also get to play in the Super Bowl.
     
     When I was in the first grade or thereabouts, I was proud of how well 
     I could add, but I really couldn't understand any practical use behind 
     subtraction, and of course, multiplication and division were 
     completely useless complications (probably invented by elitist 
     show-offs) with no practical use in the real world.  After broadening 
     my experience, my perceptions have changed.
     
     There's always a bit of a blind spot when you're knocking something 
     you haven't experienced yourself.  Both practical hands-on experience 
     and academic knowledge offer perspectives that are unavailable to you 
     until you begin to pursue them.
     
     Vincent King, CHP (4 years), Non-CHP (15 years)
     vincent.king@doegjpo.com