The International Day of Medical Physics we celebrate on November 7th turned into a key event for our profession. It is a day to celebrate our achievements, share experience and socialize. For a 9th year in a row Marie Curie’s birthday gathered medical physicists from all over the world under the IDMP 2021 theme “Communicating the Role of Medical Physicists to the Public” [1].

 

How often do people ask you what is your profession? Do people know medical physicists’ role in the diagnosis and treatment? Do people really realize the responsibilities of medical physicists to protect people from the harmful use of radiation? These and many other questions were on focus when celebrating IDMP 2021. We managed to answer many of them while at the same time realizing there are further areas where medical physicists play an important role with high contribution to healthcare and the society – academics, research, new technologies.

 

Despite the restrictions of the global pandemic number of successful events were organized at national and regional level worldwide with the leading initiative set by the IOMP. It all started with video messages from IOMP governance, partners, regional and national leaders all focused on the recognition and the valuable contribution of our profession [1]. The central event organized by IOMP gathered the expertise of medical physicists, scientific journalists, and writers [2]. The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) joined the global celebrations reinforcing the concept of recognition this year through a new e-flyer [3]. A global coverage was achieved thanks to the active involvement of our regional organizations – AFOMP, ALFIM, EFOMP, FAMPO, MEFOMP, SEAFOMP. Argentina, Bangladesh, Belgium, Bulgaria, China, Croatia, Egypt, France, Germany, Ghana, Greece, Hong Kong, Iraq, India, Indonesia, Italy, Lithuania, Malaysia, Mexico, Nepal, Romania, South Africa, Spain, Taiwan, USA are among the countries actively celebrating IDMP 2021 [4].

 

A global professional community with key contribution to healthcare and society thinking of medical physics not only a career to work in a hospital or to teach at a university, but is a way of seeing and experiencing life [5]. This is what medical physicists are and the society should be aware of our role.