what is the best course of action to ensure safety when radioactive material is involved?

by Dr. Ahmed Schaden I 10 min read

How can we prevent radiation hazard?

Volatile Radioactivity: Work in a hood during procedures using volatile materials such as I-125 or S-35 methionine/cysteine. Waste: Cover radioactive waste cans at all times and store waste cans away from areas in which people spend substantial amounts of time. Provide shielding for waste cans with significant external radiation levels.

How to handle radioactive materials safely?

Sep 16, 2015 · Once laboratory staff become comfortable with radioactive material they might get complacent Guarding against the effects of radiation is not just about worker safety. Radiation safety procedures are mandated by the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, which requires a radiation safety officer and radiation safety committee, and most states have ...

What are the three principles of radiation safety?

Feb 25, 2021 · According to the CDC, radiation exposure risks can be lowered by following the three principles of radiation safety which is time, distance, and shielding. These are also known as the basic protective measures in radiation safety. Time This refers to the amount of time spent near the radioactive source.

What controls must be in place to maintain airborne radioactive material concentration?

Apr 14, 2021 · IAEA Safety Standards (SSG-11) Radiation Safety in Industrial Radiography provides guidance on how industrial radiography work should be carried out to ensure that the number of people exposed to radiation and their dose are kept as low as reasonably achievable, and helps to prevent incidents or to mitigate their consequences.

Which actions help to handle radioactive materials safely?

The following practices must be followed each and every time unsealed radioactive material is handled.1 Warnings Must Be Posted in Work and Storage Areas. ... 2 Cover Wounds. ... 3 Wear Disposable Gloves. ... 4 Wear Lab Coats and Safety Glasses. ... 5 Personal Monitoring. ... 6 Area Monitoring. ... 7 Time, Distance, Shielding. ... 8 Wear Dosimeter.More items...

How do you ensure radiation safety?

In general, alpha, beta, gamma and x-ray radiation can be stopped by:Keeping the time of exposure to a minimum,Maintaining distance from the source,When appropriate, placing a shield between yourself and the source, and.Protecting yourself against radioactive contamination by using proper protective clothing.

What safety precaution should scientists take when working with radioactive materials in a laboratory?

Wear personal protective equipment. The minimum requirements include a laboratory coat, gloves, safety glasses and close-toed shoes. Wear whole-body dosimeters (e.g. Luxel dosimeter) when handling radioactive material and extremity dosimeters (e.g. finger ring), if one is provided by the RPO.

What safety procedures are in place to protect workers from radiation?

Safety around radiation Effective safety training focuses on the three ways workers can limit their exposure to radiation: maintaining a safe distance, limiting the time around the source, and using shielding to limit the exposure.

What is the best protection from radiation?

The only factor that matters when it comes to x-ray shielding is density. This is why lead aprons and blankets are the most effective shielding material to fight off x-rays and gamma-ray. After all, lead has a very high number of protons in each atom (82 to be specific), which makes it a very dense metal shield.Apr 17, 2021

What is radiation protection and safety?

Radiation protection aims to reduce unnecessary radiation exposure with a goal to minimize the harmful effects of ionizing radiation. [2] In the medical field, ionizing radiation has become an inescapable tool used for the diagnosis and treatment of a variety of medical conditions.May 29, 2021

How do medical professionals ensure their safety while using the radioisotopes?

disposable gloves (latex or nitrile gloves are generally suitable) a full-length lab coat (worn closed with sleeves rolled down) close-toed shoes. Never wear sandals or other open-toed shoes while working with radioactivity.

Which of the following precautions are to be taken in handling and storage of radioactive materials?

When handling radioactive materials, always wear the relevant protective clothing: wear a lab coat. If there is a risk of serious infection, wear disposable clothing. Put your lab coat away from your regular clothes. always wear gloves when handling radioactive substances.

How can I protect from radiation GCSE?

avoid contact with bare skin and do not attempt to taste the sources. wear face masks to avoid breathing in materials. limit exposure time to radioactive materials. handle radioactive materials with tongs in order to keep a safer distance from sources.

What are radiation protection measures?

Fundamental to radiation protection is the avoidance or reduction of dose using the simple protective measures of time, distance and shielding. The duration of exposure should be limited to that necessary, the distance from the source of radiation should be maximised, and the source shielded wherever possible.

Personal Protective Clothing

1. Required PPE: For any work with an open radioactive source, wear: 1. disposable gloves (latex or nitrile gloves are generally suitable) 2. a ful...

Setting Up A Radioactive Materials Work Area

Absorbent Paper: Cover the work surface with protective and absorbent bench paper to trap droplets of contamination. It's especially convenient to...

Good Laboratory Practices

1. Familiarity with Radioisotope Properties: Be familiar with the properties of the radioisotope you plan to use and with any precautions and conce...

Fume Hoods and Biosafety Cabinets

Work with certain radioactive materials, such as volatile I-125 or millicurie amounts of S-35 methionine/cysteine, must be performed in a designate...

Why is walling off work spaces important?

Walling off working spaces may not fit the general ethos they are trying to create, but it can play an important role in laboratory safety. Working with radioactive materials often requires a specific setup that may include specialty ventilation equipment, spill trays and absorbent materials and dedicated test tubes.

Is radiation safety important in labs?

Radiation safety may not always be the top concern of lab workers, but it is a crucial step in working with radioactive materials, and lab managers who overlook it could be jeopardizing the long-term health of their workers. “It’s not that people don’t want to follow [safety procedures].

Is radiation safe in labs?

Radiation Safety in Laboratory Settings. The radioactive materials most commonly used in labs generally do not present huge risks on their own. But when safety procedures are ignored the risks increase. Radiation safety may not always be the top concern of lab workers, but it is a crucial step in working with radioactive materials, ...

Is radioactive material dangerous?

She said the radioactive materials most commonly used in laboratory settings generally do not present huge risks on their own.

Who mandates radiation safety?

Radiation safety procedures are mandated by the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, which requires a radiation safety officer and radiation safety committee, and most states have their own laws. It’s up to lab managers to ensure they are in compliance with all regulations and to ensure the safety of their workers.

What is radiation safety?

Also called radioactive safety, radiation safety is a combination of safe practices and precautionary measures put in place to promote safety when working with or near radiation. It follows the guiding principle ALARA or “as low as reasonably achievable.”. The Center of Disease Control’s definition of ALARA basically means to avoid it ...

What are the safety measures required for radiation?

Radiation safety measures such as conducting safety inspections help ensure that critical radiation safety precautions are in place to reduce the risk of overexposure. There should be visible warning signs, contamination surveys conducted, and device tests for all radiation-producing equipment. All workers must be trained to limit time of exposure, use radiation shields, and increase the distance of contact with radioactive devices and materials.

How does radiation work?

Radiation is utilized in a lot of medical treatments and equipment. Radiation therapy or radiotherapy is a cancer treatment that kills cancer cells and reduces tumors. Normal cells can heal and repair themselves while cancer cells can’t. Prior to this treatment, a patient will be requested to take a CT scan to locate the area of the cells that needs to be removed. The 2 types of radiation therapy is external beam and internal. The machine that administers external beams radiotherapy is called a medical linear accelerator. There are many external radiation therapy a patient can choose from such as three-dimensional conformal radiation therapy, intensity modulated radiation therapy, and proton beam therapy. Brachytherapy, an internal radiation treatment, is administered by directly placing radioactive sources on the target area inside the body. This cancer treatment doesn’t immediately eliminate the cancerous cells, it happens gradually and differs per person. The National Cancer Institute says that radiation therapy is quick and painless. A risk for this treatment is that cancer patients and survivors may have a shorter lifespan due to repeated and intensive radiation treatment and as well as chemotherapy. Another effect is it weakens the immune system which can leave the patients vulnerable to other diseases. People who undergo radiotherapy should expect extreme fatigue and hair loss. Patients can also experience skin changes, skin irritation, mouth soreness. These effects will vary depending on the patient’s ailment. These are manageable and can be treated. What’s important is to remove cancer cells and be cured of the illness.

What is ALARA radiation?

The Center of Disease Control’s definition of ALARA basically means to avoid it if you don’t need it even in small doses, this is made specifically for radiation. The ALARA radiation safety principle is to minimize radiation dosage and control the amount of radioactive materials in the environment. There are numerous organizations ...

What is the IAEA's advice on radiation safety?

The IAEA used the International Commission on Radiological Protection (ICRP)’s advice regarding radiation safety and related medical applications.

What is the most common form of radiation?

The most common form of radiating energy is electromagnetic radiation . This classification includes radio waves, light, sound, and x-rays. Natural radiation can also occur in the environment, even the earth is a source of terrestrial radiation. In people’s perception, radiation, especially nuclear radiation, is harmful.

What are the three principles of radiation safety?

According to the CDC, radiation exposure risks can be lowered by following the three principles of radiation safety which is time, distance, and shielding . These are also known as the basic protective measures in radiation safety.

About the Webinar

This webinar is a joint webinar organized by IAEA and African Alara Network (AFAN).

About the presenter

After studying Applied Physics at Delft University of Technology, in the Netherlands, and doing research on the use of liquid xenon as detection medium for gamma rays, Mr van Sonsbeekworked for 20 years at Applus RTD, which is one of the major NDT-companies in the World.

What is the purpose of radiation monitoring?

The intent of the personnel radiation monitoring and protection program is to assure that sufficient precautions are taken to protect all individuals from unreasonable radiation exposure. Limiting the amount of time, increasing the distance between an individual and the radiation source and employing shielding are all recommended ...

How sensitive are TLDs to radiation?

TLDs are also sensitive to penetrating radiation. The detectable energy range of the film badges and TLDs currently used at the University is approximately 15 KeV to 3 MeV for x-rays and gamma rays and 250 KeV to 1.5 Mev for beta particles.

What is occupational radiation?

An occupational dose of ionizing radiation is a dose received by an individual in the course of employment in which the individual’s assigned duties involve exposure to sources of radiation. Individuals who receive or have the potential to receive an occupational dose are considered occupationally exposed and are subject to the occupational dose limits prescribed in 10 NYCRR Part 16.6 (Section 5.5 of this Handbook). Doses received from background radiation, medical examinations and practices, voluntary participation in medical research programs, or as member of the public are not considered occupational doses.

How long does it take for a tritium bioassay to be performed?

A Tritium bioassay generally consists of a urinalysis. This procedure involves the collection of a urine samples between 4 to 72 hours of exposure and every 24 hours following, until contamination is cleared from the body (H 3 has a biological halflife of approximately 10 days).

How does radiation affect the body?

Internal radiation exposure results from the ingestion, absorbtion, inhalation or injection of radioactive materials into the body. Small quantities of radioactive materials which present an insignificant external hazard can result in an appreciable exposure when taken into the body. Once inside the body, the radioactive material continues to irradiate the body until it has either decayed or been excreted. The rate of decay of the radioactive material varies with the isotope’s physical halflife and can be anywhere from a few seconds to several thousand years. Physical halflife is different from biological halflife which is rate of elimination from the body. The elimination rate of the material depends on a number of different factors (i.e. chemical constituents) and can occur over a period of a few days or up to many years.

What is the assessment of internal exposure?

The type of assessment used is dependent on the radiological, chemical and biological characteristics of the material to which an individual was exposed.

Does NYSDOH have limits on radiation exposure?

Pregnant workers are encouraged to inform the RSO as soon as possible of their pregnancy to ensure that steps are taken to monitor and minimize radiation exposure as necessary. NYSDOH has established limits for radiation exposure to the embryo/fetus due to the occupational exposure of a declared pregnant woman.