Radiation safety in radiology: How to protect patients and healthcare providers?

Radiation safety is an integral component of the working infrastructure of any radiology department. Dr PK Dash Sharma, Scientific Officer, AERB, in his talk, spoke on the essentials of radiation safety in radiology. While highlighting the need for radiologist and healthcare organisations to follow the AERB norms on radiation safety, Dr Dash Sharma said, “In radiology, the most at risk area of the human body is the eye. It imports the risk of cancer.”

He also highlighted the need to protect radiologists and healthcare providers from radiation. He opined that apart from patients, radiologists also need to be safe while they provide diagnostic imaging services. “By reducing radiation dose you can also reduce risk for healthcare providers,” he maintained.

During his presentation, Dr Dash Sharma, spoke on various technologies that give out higher radiation.

Speaking on the hazards of high-end imaging technologies and techniques, he then pointed out that higher image quality can lead to higher radiation. Radiologists need to choose their imaging equipment very wisely. Further on, Dr Dash Sharma gave an update on the latest AERB norms for radiation safety to be maintained within radiology departments. He said that it is mandatory to obtain licence from AERB for every radiology department. Also, there are  two parts of safety mechanisms that needs to be strictly followed as per AERB norms. Explaining the nuances of both the aspects, Dr Dash Sharma informed the audience that built-in safety combined with operational safety ensures total radiation safety for both patients and radiologists.

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