Australiasian College of Physical Scientists and Engineers in Medicine

“The ACPSEM Medical Research Foundation has the purpose of fostering and financially supporting medical physics and biomedical engineering research. Contributions to the Foundation are tax-deductible and the Foundation is eligible to receive grants from private and corporate trusts. The advantage (or disadvantage depending on where you sit) of a Foundation is that any funds that go in there cannot be used to fill budget holes. The funds have to be spent on the purpose for which they have been donated.

Personally, I see this as an opportunity to fund awards for deserving individuals and support projects such as the recently approved minor ACPSEM project that aims to provide research and teaching materials to colleagues in Indonesia. In this project, college branches will be funded to send donated textbooks and research literature overseas.

In the future we hope tha t the foundation will also be able to support (small) research projects of our members. In the grand scheme of things, the Foundation is only one aspect of our professional organization. However, it is a new one and hopefully one to succeed in increasing our options to help foster medical physics and biomedical engineering in New Zealand and Australia.”

Thomas Kron, The ACPSEM President’s Address 2008, Australasian Physical & Engineering Sciences in Medicine Volume 31 Number 1, 2008