Deja Vu -- Health Physics Society => Radiation Safety Society

["Otto G. Raabe" <ograabe@ucdavis.edu>]

April 27, 2000
Davis, CA

Sorry, the "from" bug got me on my last attempt.

I wrote the following article in March 1998:

The President, March 1998 Health Physics Society NEWSLETTER

What's in a name? The appropriateness of the time-honored name of our
Society is periodically subjected to question for many reasons. Most
people outside of our Society do not know what the name means and it is
not self-explanatory. The juxtaposition of the words "health" and
"physics" may seem inappropriate. Should we be the "Radiation Safety
Society" and eliminate the confusion? I think not. Let me explain.

The Health Physics Society is not a trade organization but a national
professional organization of about 6,500 scientists, physicians,
educators, engineers and operational health physicists who are dedicated
to insuring radiation safety for workers and the public. That inherent
professionalism rather than tradism is implicitly suggested by our name.
For this reasons the juxtaposition of the words "health" and "physics"
are especially appropriate. 

The word "Health" sets the broad stage for our main professional
objective. When we lobby in Washington we like being identified with the
"health" lobby rather than the "nuclear" or "radiation" lobby. Our
principle mission as "specialists in radiation safety" relates to the
health of workers and the public. When Capitol Associates, our government
relations advisors, sent out their Christmas Greetings their bright red
card was a cut-out of the word "HEALTH". Health refers to the general
well-being of people whose safety we work to protect. When we identify
ourselves as the Health Physics Society, we want the immediate
implications to be health and safety, not nuclear advocacy. In writing
to the media, government agencies, and members of congress we are careful
not to cross the line between these two motives. It is not that we do not
openly support the many societal benefits of nuclear technology, but
rather that we do not want to confuse the public and governmental
representatives in a way that may tend to marr our credibility.

The word "Physics" refers to a major and rather prestigious branch of
science. Physics is the study of matter and energy! Isn't that
everything? Physics is a scholarly discipline. The scholarly and
scientific basis of our profession is represented by the word physics
even for those of us who do not identify our primary disciple as
"Physics." It is clear that the basis of health physics is science. And
the basic science describing the nature and behavior of radiation and
radioactive materials is physics. Even the study of the biological
behavior of radiation and radioactivity depends in large measure on
physics. My own doctoral degree is in the field of "Radiation
Biophysics."

The word "Society" suggests an elite organization. It describes an
association of persons from several disciplines joined together by common
purpose although many of our members may describe their primary
discipline as physicist, physician, chemist, mathematician, engineer,
biologist, or epidemiologist. Our common purpose is to safeguard human
health and the environment from dangerous exposures to ionizing
radiation. Society also evokes the vision of a privileged and fashionable
social group. We have pride in membership in a prestigious national
society that has high standards of membership and a code of professional
ethics. 

But what about the public. The challenge is to work to make the public,
the media, and the government aware of the fact that The Health Physics
Society is the premier radiation safety association in the United States.
To do this we need to use our Society's name in our writings and speeches,
and regularly add the words "specialists in radiation safety" after the
words "Health Physics Society." When you are asked what a health
physicist is, just say "a person who specializes in radiation safety."

This brings us to the mission and objectives of the health physics
profession and of our Society. According to our by-laws in Article II
(see page 7 of our Directory and Handbook): "The SOCIETY is a
professional organization dedicated to the development, dissemination,
and application of both the scientific knowledge of, and the practical
means for, radiation safety (formerly protection)." This seems to be a
statement of our mission. Then it says, "The objective of the SOCIETY is
the protection of people and the environment from unnecessary exposure
to radiation." Is this really the objective of health physics? Let us
know what you think.

Otto
	*****************************************************
	Prof. Otto G. Raabe, Ph.D., CHP
	Institute of Toxicology & Environmental Health (ITEH)
	(Street Address: Bldg. 3792, Old Davis Road)
	University of California, Davis, CA 95616
	E-Mail: ograabe@ucdavis.edu
	Phone:(530) 752-7754, FAX:(530) 758-6140
	*****************************************************
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