AW: [ RadSafe ] I-131 Patients and Taxi Driver

[Franz Schönhofer]

Ken,

Have you really thought over, what you wrote? You compare negligible doses
from I-131 to a very limited area and a few people with the catastrophic
event of killing several up to dozens of persons? How do you expect the 200
mCi adminstered to a person to be spread evenly - what a disgusting thought!


Suicide bombings are a problem because of the deaths and the injuries they
cause, but not that maybe one among a million bus passengers might have a
body burden of I-131. I personally would prefer rather standing close to
such a person, than loosing a hand of a foot or my eyesight or be killed. 

This is out of any proportion regarding risk. 

Franz

Franz Schoenhofer, PhD
MinRat i.R.
Habicherg. 31/7
A-1160 Wien/Vienna
AUSTRIA


-----Ursprüngliche Nachricht-----
Von: radsafe-bounces at radlab.nl [mailto:radsafe-bounces at radlab.nl] Im Auftrag
von Peterson, Ken
Gesendet: Donnerstag, 14. Februar 2008 22:02
An: radsafe at radlab.nl
Betreff: [ RadSafe ] I-131 Patients and Taxi Driver


Are you sure that the prohibition on public transport exists not to
prevent a dose to fellow passengers, but to avoid the additional
complications should a suicide bomber blow up the bus or bus station and
the patient? Would 200mCi be significant in the grander scheme?  There
have been a few bus bombings recently in Tel Aviv, I believe....


Ken Peterson

___________________________________________________________________

Message: 2
Date: Thu, 14 Feb 2008 08:34:37 +0200
From: "Moshe Levita" <mlevita at tasmc.health.gov.il>
Subject: [ RadSafe ] I-131 Patients and Taxi driver
To: <radsafe at radlab.nl>
Message-ID: <006301c86ed3$aba57000$782e640a at tasmc.corp>
Content-Type: text/plain;	charset="windows-1255"

John,

Suppose the driver exposure will be 20 - 40 mr ( 100-200 mci patient ,
1hr at 1 meter). 
Do we have to inform him about his radioactive patient ?

Moshe Levita
Chief Physicist
Tel Aviv Medical Center

------------------------------------------------------------------------
---------------------

I would first ask what would be the taxi driver's exposure be?
Decisions should be based on exposures, not on whether or not the
patient is radioactive.

Sandy Perle <sandyfl at cox.net> wrote:  It would be ethical to notify
anyone of an impending exposure. The patient would more likely not
receive a ride home. This is another example for the need of public
education.


-- John
John Jacobus, MS
Certified Health Physicist
e-mail:  crispy_bird at yahoo.com

_______________________________________________
You are currently subscribed to the RadSafe mailing list

Before posting a message to RadSafe be sure to have read and understood the
RadSafe rules. These can be found at:
http://radlab.nl/radsafe/radsaferules.html

For information on how to subscribe or unsubscribe and other settings visit:
http://radlab.nl/radsafe/