From Time-Based to Competency-Based: A Decade-Long Transformation of Medical Radiation Technologist Education in Taiwan and Its Implications for System-Level CBME Reform

Authors

• Yao-Ting Lu, Taiwan Association of Medical Radiation Technologists, Taipei, Taiwan AND Division of Radiation Oncology, Department of Oncology, National Taiwan University Hospital, Taipei, Taiwan
• Shu-Yu Wen, Taiwan Association of Medical Radiation Technologists, Taipei, Taiwan AND Division of Radiation Oncology, Department of Oncology, National Taiwan University Hospital, Taipei, Taiwan
• Chiao-Ling Tsai, Division of Radiation Oncology, Department of Oncology, National Taiwan University Hospital, Taipei, Taiwan AND Department and Graduate Institute of Medical Education and Bioethics, College of Medicine, National Taiwan University, Taipei, Taiwan
• Cheng-Heng Liu, Department of Medical Education, National Taiwan University Hospital, Taipei, Taiwan AND Department of Emergency Medicine, National Taiwan University Hospital, Taipei, Taiwan
• Wen-Tao Huang, Department of Medical Imaging and Radiological Technology, Yuanpei University of Medical Technology, Hsinchu, Taiwan
• Chia-Hung Chen, Taiwan Association of Medical Radiation Technologists, Taipei, Taiwan, Department of Medical Education, Ditmanson Medical Foundation Chia-Yi Christian Hospital, Chia-Yi, Taiwan; AND Department of Medical Imaging, Ditmanson Medical Foundation Chia-Yi Christian Hospital, Chia-Yi, Taiwan
• Chih-Wei Yang, Department and Graduate Institute of Medical Education and Bioethics, College of Medicine, National Taiwan University, Taipei, Taiwan, Department of Medical Education, National Taiwan University Hospital, Taipei, Taiwan; AND Department of Emergency Medicine, National Taiwan University Hospital, Taipei, TaiwanFollow

Author ORCID Identifier

Cheng-Heng Liu: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3927-5621

Abstract

Competency-based medical education (CBME) has reshaped physician training, yet system-level implementation in allied health professions is rarely described. In this Perspective, we examine Taiwan's decade-long national reform of medical radiation technologist (MRT) education led by the Taiwan Association of Medical Radiation Technologists (TAMRT) and distill lessons for system-level CBME. Beginning in 2012, TAMRT adapted the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education (ACGME) core competencies and introduced workplace-based assessments across diagnostic radiography, radiation therapy, and nuclear medicine. Early national accreditation cycles revealed persistent variability in assessment quality and highlighted the limitations of time-based advancement. TAMRT therefore shifted from adding isolated tools to building an integrated progression system. Using Van Melle's core components of CBME as a scaffold, TAMRT implemented a ``CBME trilogy'': (1) specialty milestones (107/115/125 across the three specialties) and 14 entrustable professional activities; (2) a structured national faculty development and certification program; and (3) a nationwide electronic platform supporting programmatic assessment and visualization of competency trajectories. In 2024, TAMRT launched a second-generation MRT Professional Advancement System aligned with a Dreyfus-informed, five-level framework. This case illustrates how coordinating competency frameworks, faculty capacity, and data infrastructure can enable system-level CBME in allied health professions and may provide actionable design levers for broader medical education reform.

First Page

45

Last Page

50

Recommended Citation

Lu, Yao-Ting; Wen, Shu-Yu; Tsai, Chiao-Ling; Liu, Cheng-Heng; Huang, Wen-Tao; Chen, Chia-Hung; and Yang, Chih-Wei (2026) "From Time-Based to Competency-Based: A Decade-Long Transformation of Medical Radiation Technologist Education in Taiwan and Its Implications for System-Level CBME Reform," Journal of Medical Education: Vol. 30: Iss. 1, Article 6.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.67010/1028-2424.2048
Available at: https://jme.researchcommons.org/journal/vol30/iss1/6