Radiation Therapist Workforce
Baseline workforce supply – business as usual
Starting from a base supply of 1364.4 FTE professionals in 2011, the Radiation Therapist baseline model projects a supply of 1726 FTE professionals in 2017 and 1947 in 2022.
Target utilisation for radiation oncology- closing the gap in patient access
In 2017, with an utilisation rate of 45.2%, 2047 FTEs would be required, resulting in a shortfall of 228 FTEs. If the target utilisation rate of 52.3% is to be achieved by 2022, the model projects that 2673 FTEs would be required in 2022, resulting in a workforce shortfall of 538 FTEs (see Figure).
Radiation therapist workforce in 2022 target utilisation scenario
Source: The Allen Consulting Group, 20127
What needs to be done
In order for supply to meet target utilisation in 2022, the intake of trainees over the years 2012 to 2021 needs to increase, on average, by around 7% each year (resulting in an inflow of 292 FTE trainees into the occupation in 2022, assuming the dropout rate from the clinical trainee program remains at 1%).