Training requirements for chemists in radiotracer development for nuclear medicine

This panel was organized to address the current and anticipated future shortage of chemists with advanced training to fill positions in the nuclear medicine field. Although hard data and statistics are difficult to acquire, we will attempt to highlight the impact of chemistry on nuclear medicine and to describe the growth of the field which has led to an increasing need for chemists resulting in the current manpower shortage. We also will make recommendations for attracting Ph.D. chemists to careers in nuclear medicine research and possible mechanisms for postgraduate training. Solving this problem and establishing a long term committment and mechanism for advanced training is critically important to meet the current needs of the profession and to assure future growth and innovation. 3 tabs.