"The protection of people from harmful effects of exposure to ionizing radiation, and the means for achieving this."
The steps taken to prevent exposure to radiation and minimize the health risks associated with radiation.
Properties of radiation: Fundamental information about the nature of radiation, its properties and characteristics, and how it interacts with matter.
Radiation sources: Types of radiation sources, including natural and man-made sources, their distribution, and the degree of exposure they pose.
Radiation units: Units used to measure radiation, including exposure, dose, dose equivalent, and other terms used in radiation protection.
Biological effects of radiation: How radiation interacts with living tissue, types of effects, and factors that affect the severity of the effect.
Radiation protection principles: Basic principles applied in the protection from exposure to radiation, including time, distance, and shielding.
Radiation detection: Types of radiation detectors used in radiation protection, their characteristics, and how they work.
External radiation protection: Techniques used to minimize or eliminate exposure to external sources of radiation, including radiation shielding and protective clothing.
Internal radiation protection: Techniques used to minimize or eliminate exposure to internal sources of radiation, including radiation monitoring and decontamination.
Radiation regulations: Laws, regulations, and standards set by government agencies and professional organizations, and their impact on radiation protection practices.
Environmental impact of radiation: How radiation affects the environment, including the impact on air, water, and soil quality.
Medical applications of radiation: Types of medical procedures that use radiation for diagnosis and treatment, including radiation oncology and nuclear medicine.
Nuclear power plant safety: Safety measures used at nuclear power plants to prevent accidents and mitigate the effects of radiation exposure in the case of an accident.
Nuclear waste management: Strategies for the management and disposal of radioactive waste, including storage, transportation, and the impact on the environment.
Emergency response to radiation incidents: Procedures used in responding to incidents involving radiation exposure, including risk assessment, evacuation, and decontamination.
Ethics in radiation protection: Issues and considerations related to ethics and professionalism in the field of radiation protection, including patient confidentiality, informed consent, and professional conduct.
Shielding: This is a passive method of radiation protection in which materials with high atomic numbers or densities are placed between the radiation source and the target to absorb the radiation.
Distance: This method involves keeping a safe distance from the radiation source. The intensity of the radiation decreases as the distance from the source increases.
Time: This method involves limiting the amount of time spent in the radiation zone. The longer the exposure time, the greater the risk of radiation damage.
Personal protective equipment (PPE): This includes lead aprons, gloves, and goggles, which are used mainly in medical settings to protect workers from scattered radiation.
Administrative controls: These include policies and procedures that are implemented to minimize radiation exposure. Examples include daily radiation checks, standard operating procedures for handling radioactive materials, and radiation safety training.
Waste management: This involves proper disposal of radioactive materials to prevent exposure to the environment and humans.
Containment: This is the physical enclosure of a radioactive source to prevent the escape of radiation.
Emergency response: This involves planning and training to respond quickly to radiation emergencies to minimize exposure to the public and workers.
"Exposure can be from a source of radiation external to the human body or due to internal irradiation caused by the ingestion of radioactive contamination."
"At high exposures, it can cause 'tissue' effects, also called 'deterministic' effects due to the certainty of them happening, conventionally indicated by the unit gray and resulting in acute radiation syndrome. For low-level exposures, there can be statistically elevated risks of radiation-induced cancer, called 'stochastic effects' due to the uncertainty of them happening, conventionally indicated by the unit sievert."
"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 maximized."
"The source or the target should be shielded wherever possible."
"For external radiation personal dosimeters are used."
"For internal dose to due to ingestion of radioactive contamination, bioassay techniques are applied."
"The International Commission on Radiation Protection (ICRP) and International Commission on Radiation Units and Measurements (ICRU) publish recommendations and data."
"The protection of people from harmful effects of exposure to ionizing radiation."
"Conventionally indicated by the unit gray."
"Tissue effects due to the certainty of them happening, resulting in acute radiation syndrome."
"Statistically elevated risks of radiation-induced cancer due to the uncertainty of them happening."
"The duration of exposure should be limited to that necessary."
"The distance from the source of radiation should be maximized."
"The source or the target should be shielded wherever possible."
"For external radiation personal dosimeters are used."
"Bioassay techniques are applied."
"Recommendations and data used to calculate the biological effects on the human body of certain levels of radiation and advise acceptable dose uptake limits."