Occupational ionizing radiation exposure monitoring in several medical departments

Abstract

Occupational ionizing radiation doses for medical radiation workers (MRWs) from different medical departments in a major specialized hospital in Saudi Arabia were measured and analyzed to establish a baseline for the annual mean effective dose (AMED) for MRWs. A statistical analysis of dose records was conducted on effective doses for 355 MRWs in the following medical departments. The overall AMED for all MRWs reported in this study was 1.60 mSv. The AMEDs in each medical department were 1.17 mSv in diagnostic radiology, 1.61 mSv in interventional radiology, 2.72 mSv in nuclear medicine, 1.59 mSv in radiation therapy, 1.32 mSv in operation room, 1.06 mSv in dentistry, and 1.54 mSv in others. A one-way ANOVA test indicated statistically significant differences between the departments’ workers (P = 0.001). The study reveals that the workers in the nuclear medicine department received the highest AMED among the other workers. The results reveal that no single occupational dose has exceeded the annual dose limit of 20 mSv. However, to avoid unwanted radiation exposures, it is still required to control the workplace and manage MRWs, particularly for workers in NM, who were found to get more dose than MRWs in other medical departments.