Time Period in Which Radiation Workers Completed the 20 mSv Annual Limit

Background: Nuclear Institute of Medicine and Radiotherapy Jamshoro, an institute of Pakistan Atomic Energy Commission provides the facilities of diagnosis and treatment to cancer patients of encasement areas of Jamshoro/Hyderabad through its dedicated radiation workers wearing film badges as the personal monitoring devices to monitor their occupational doses. The main rationale of the current study was to analyze the occupational doses received by the radiation workers and to explore the achievement of annual limit as recommended by regularity bodies.

Materials and Methods: For the measurement of workers’ personal occupational radiation doses, each worker handling radioactive sources has been issued with a film badge with unique number provided by Pakistan Institute of Nuclear Science and Technology Islamabad. The readings of developed films were kept as radiation workers’ occupational dose history. Total 30 radiation workers, 8 (27%) of nuclear medicine section, 4 (13%) of Radiology, 3 (10%) each of Radio-Immune-Assay & Repair Maintenance sections respectively and 12 (40%) of Radiotherapy section were included in this study.

Results: Almost half of the workers received 10% of 20 mSv limit. The average occupational radiation doses for workers ranged from 1.11 mSv to 3.42 mSv. The time period in which radiation workers attained the 20 mSv limit ranged from 6 to 18 years.

Discussion: More than 50% of workers received the dose less than 2 mSv, 10% of the limit. The highest of radiation dose for worker of nuclear medicine section received 4.82 mSv (24% of limit). The workers deputed in hot lab of nuclear medicine section completed the limit in the shortest time period of 6 to 7 years whereas radiology section’s workers achieved the limit in 9 to 10 years. The one of radiotherapy workers have achieved the same limit of 20 mSv in 12 years due to source stuck handling whereas most of the workers attained the limit in more than 15 years.

Conclusion: Our data is not comparable with any of the studies already completed on film badge dosimetry as the gathered data is exceptional in nature, so more studies must be conducted on subject topic for comparison.