Sophia Taylor joined CAMP one year ago as a health physicist supporting hospitals across Colorado Springs and Pueblo. With a background in nuclear engineering and medical health physics, she stepped into a private sector role focused on radiation safety, regulatory compliance, and clinical support. In this interview, Sophia shares what it’s like to work in medical physics, the transition from academia to private practice, and what she’s learned in her first year on the job.
Q: What’s your role at CAMP and what does your day-to-day look like?
Sophia: I’m a health physicist based in Colorado Springs. My background is a mix of university and medical health physics, but now I focus fully on medical health physics. I handle regulatory compliance, audits, and amendment tasks for the hospitals we support here in the Springs and down in Pueblo. I also assist the health physicists in Denver with tasks like badge reviews and personnel dosimetry.
Q: How did you get into this field?
Sophia: My bachelor’s was in nuclear engineering, but I didn’t want anything to do with nuclear power. I did not like any of those classes! I was more interested in the medical and health physics side.
So I got my master’s in medical health physics at the University of Texas Health Science Center.. That gave me a perspective of both medical physics, as well as health physics. I’m really glad that I decided to go with health physics, because I think it gives me a little bit of a glance into diagnostic and therapeutic applications, as well as just health physics in general. I think it was just really interesting. Not many people know about this field and I think it’s really important to get radiation safety awareness out there.
Q: What brought you to CAMP?
Sophia: I wasn’t actively looking for a new job, but I’d been in my previous role at the university for two years, and it just wasn’t fulfilling to me. I wanted more exposure to the medical side, which I wasn’t getting there. I found the CAMP job listing while browsing and was immediately drawn to it. I honestly never thought I’d live in Colorado, but I love it here, and I’ve learned more about medical health physics in this one year than I did in my previous role.
Q: Has anything surprised you about the transition to this kind of role?
I like being able to work with so many different hospitals and different nuclear medicine techs. I get to share my experience with so many different people, and every hospital is different. Getting to see what procedures are like in different places and how techs do things, and then being able to incorporate and apply what I’ve learned in one hospital to another hospital is really beneficial.
Q: Any projects from your first year that you’re particularly proud of?
Sophia: I helped develop a new laser safety course for CAMP Academy. Lasers aren’t something most of us deal with regularly, since we usually focus on radioactive materials or X-rays, but I had some experience with lasers from my time at the university. I helped build out more in-depth training, and I think it adds a different perspective to health physics.
Q: What’s different about laser safety compared to radiation safety?
Sophia: Lasers are a different form of radiation which is hard energy. Laser radiation is wavelengths and light, so different aspects of safety go into it. Laser safety is more focused on the equipment, such as fire, water and electrical protection.
Q: What was the biggest learning curve moving from academia into this private sector environment?
Sophia: Managing multiple sites and keeping everything organized. In the private sector, you have a lot more clients to keep track of. Also, learning the Colorado regulations was a big adjustment since I came from Texas. They’re different enough that I really had to study them to make sure I didn’t miss anything.
Q: Has mentorship played a role in your first year?
Sophia: It’s been really great. Cheri Douglas in Denver was my main onboarding person and taught me so much, especially when it came to regulations and day-to-day tasks. I’ve also learned a lot from Brad Lofton and Renee Butler in the Springs. They’ve helped me understand the RSO responsibilities and diagnostic side of things. I even got a bit of exposure to therapy physics through OSLD work. It’s been great learning from all of them. They have a different perspective than the diagnostic and health physicists, so being able to learn from them has been fun as well.
Q: You mentioned eventually taking on more RSO duties. Can you explain what an RSO does?
Sophia: RSO stands for Radiation Safety Officer. They’re the point person for anyone working with radiation in a hospital. If there are exposure concerns or license changes, it all goes through the RSO to make sure everything is operating safely. I’ve recently become an associate RSO at several sites, so I help support Brad and Renee in those roles.
Q: Any fun or unexpected moments during your first year?
Sophia: Our first camping trip! In Texas we don’t get a lot of camping, so doing that with the team here was really fun. CAMP provided the campsite and everything, and it was just a good time!
Q: What are you looking forward to in your second year?
Sophia: Taking on more of the RSO responsibilities and supporting Brad and Renee however I can. I’m also starting the process of getting my CHP (Certified Health Physicist) certification. It’s a big undertaking, but it’ll be great to be certified down the road.
Q: How is the CHP different from your master’s?
Sophia: Your degree helps get you started, but the CHP is the next step up. It’s not required, but it shows you have deep experience. You need seven years in the field before you can take the final exam, and it covers all areas of health physics, not just medical. It’s a way to show you’re well-rounded and serious about the profession.
Q: What advice would you give to someone just starting at CAMP?
Sophia: Take any advice that you can get from your peers and colleagues, because everyone here is so smart and well-rounded! Everything I’ve learned from my colleagues has been beneficial. I’ve never been afraid to ask questions because I know I’ll get great answers, and no one has ever made me feel bad for not knowing something. Even though we’re spread out, people are really supportive.
Q: What’s been the most rewarding part of your job so far?
Sophia: I love telling people about radiation and sharing my knowledge about radiation. Especially when someone, like a pregnant X-ray tech, is worried about exposure, and I can reassure them based on real data. It’s great to be able to reduce that fear and share accurate information. Working with radiation is not as scary as it seems!
Q: If you had to describe your first year in one word, what would it be?
Sophia: Informative. I’ve learned so much more in this past year than ever before. Plus the information that I get from my colleagues is just so great. And everyone does a great job of making me feel welcome.
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