Staff Radiation Protection

From a radiation protection point of view, nuclear medicine is a complex medical specialty that includes both radionuclide and radiopharmaceutical production and patient diagnostics and therapy. The practical work with radiation sources includes a variety of procedures, activity levels, dose rates, and risks of contamination. The radiation dose to the worker is largely determined by the knowledge and awareness of health risks associated with working with unsealed sources. It is important to utilise time, distance, and radiation shielding to the extent possible to minimise the radiation dose to the staff. After injection of the radiopharmaceutical, the patient is the radiation source, and the staff have to keep this in mind while positioning the patient in the imaging system. In addition, there is also the handling of blood samples, urine samples, and radioactive waste. Handling open radiation sources involves the risk of contamination and possible accidental inhalation or oral intake of radiopharmaceuticals, which can lead to internal irradiation to the worker. In addition, contamination can give rise to misleading examination results if patients, measuring equipment, or premises become contaminated. Factors affecting the effective dose as well as the equivalent dose to hands and fingers, and to the lens of the eye, are described. This chapter also includes examples of work rules to minimize the staff radiation dose and the risk of external and internal contamination.