Ph: (954) 921-0330
With more than 8.5 million radiotherapy treatments being performed worldwide every single year, there is no denying that radiation therapists play a huge role in society.
At the same time, it’s also important to note that these medical professionals work under high-risk circumstances, so creating a safe environment is critical to protect them as well as their work.
The good news is that you can build an entire set of protocols with the sole purpose of protecting practitioners, patients, and any other individuals who are frequently exposed to radiation.
How to Protect Radiation Therapists in Your Facility
Do radiation therapists get cancer? Are radiation therapists exposed to radiation? The answers to these questions depend heavily on the circumstances. Generally speaking, radiation therapists should not be exposed to dangerous radiation levels.
As a facility manager, it’s your responsibility to ensure that there are safety protocols as well as additional accessories like radiation personal protective equipment (PPE) that fit properly. This will help ensure that your radiation therapists minimize exposure and prevent issues later on.
Let’s take a closer look at the different ways you should take care of your radiation therapists.
1. Facility Design and Layout
Radiotherapy facilities need to be designed with safety in mind, so it’s important to determine the location of the devices that emit significant amounts of radiation. These devices should be placed in rooms with additional shielding in the floors, walls, ceiling, and so on.
Here, it’s also important to make radiation shields and drapes available to your medical team. Depending on the type of treatment, radiation therapists may have to wear additional protection or shield treatment tables as well as other accessories in the treatment room.
2. Reviews by Radiation Safety Officer
Every facility should have a radiation safety officer or RSO that focuses on implementing and monitoring radiation safety best practices, meeting necessary standards, managing equipment, and monitoring staff exposure levels.
Your RSO should create the safety protocol, provide first-hand training, and help select the right types of PPE for your radiation therapists. In short, every decision and radiation-related piece of information should flow through your RSO in order to be vetted, approved, and implemented.
3. Monitoring Through Dosimeters
A dosimeter is a device designed to measure radiation exposure levels. Your therapists should all wear dosimeters when operating radiation-powered devices in order to track their exposure levels.
Dosimeters are ideal because they can warn your team of unusually high exposure levels or accumulation of radiation in the body. Not only this, but some dosimeters have real-time monitoring settings, which can alert your team if there are unusual spikes on the spot.
4. Training and Certification
Training and certification are both essential in all medical specialties, but they are particularly important in radiation therapy. The reason is that this type of treatment involves risks related to radiation exposure, which are unlike infections and any other type of pathology.
In addition to only hiring radiation therapists who have been licensed and trained, you should also provide regular training on safety procedures and equipment. This will ensure that your team is all on the same page and that your therapists know how to use all the PPE at their disposal.
5. Internal Protocols and Rules
You should create a set of basic rules and step-by-step instructions that help your team stay safe. Implementing known concepts like ALARA and adopting them as internal requirements can help minimize exposure and create a safer environment. Some of the guidelines you should include in your radiation protocol include:
- Equipment cleaning and handling
- Time limits for exposure
- Explanation of the physical barriers and other PPE
- Best practices like staying as far away from the source and so on
Likewise, this is a great opportunity to highlight how every radiation device requires the use of PPE like lead aprons, leaded eyewear, and protective gloves, among other accessories.
6. Equipment Acquisition and Maintenance
Your facility should stock PPE for both patients and practitioners. Since radiation therapists treat many patients consecutively, practitioners are constantly exposed to potentially damaging energy.
This means that they require specialized equipment that safeguards soft tissue as well as vital organs like the eyes and the digestive system.
- Protective Aprons: Designed to protect vital organs in the torso, neck, and groin area from radiation exposure.
- Radiation Gloves: Keeps hands and wrists safe from elevated exposure, especially if making contact with a contaminated surface.
- Leaded Eyewear: As mentioned above, these help protect the eyes, plus you can order them with prescription lenses to ensure maximum safety.
- Secure Pads and Blankets: Secure pads and blankets help keep your practitioners safe from scattered radiation while performing treatment.
- Mobile Barriers: Mobile barriers are extremely practical because they can be relocated within the treatment room and even used by multiple teams, but remember that you should follow a strict monitoring and decontamination protocol if this is the case.
- Treatment Room Accessories: Lastly, all treatment rooms require racks, wall mounts, shielding drapes, and radiation cleaning wipes, so it’s a good idea to stock up on these necessary accessories while getting your aprons delivered.
7. Incidence Response, Compliance Audits and Inspections
Last but certainly not least, your facility should have an incident response plan, plus your security team should conduct audits and inspections to ensure that your internal safety protocol is being followed.
In this step, your RSO needs to work closely with the managing team to ensure that your medical and support teams understand the radiation protocol. It’s also a good idea to make them aware of potential inspections and audits to ensure the protocols are being followed.
Creating a Safe Environment for Your Radiation Therapists
Radiation therapy has many applications in medicine, but it’s important to protect practitioners who specialize in this field. Creating and maintaining a safe environment for practitioners is the only way to safeguard their health, prevent long-term issues, and ensure that they feel safe while applying their expertise.
Acquiring, maintaining, and upgrading radiation personal protection equipment is also key to creating a safe environment for practitioners, technicians, and other professionals who are exposed to radiation.
At Barrier Technologies, we manufacture custom aprons, radiation shields, thyroid shields, and other types of radiation PPE for all types of medical facilities. Learn more by booking a consultation, our team will be glad to help.
