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Re: Teaching the Doc's
At 02:36 PM 7/22/00 -0500, you wrote:
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> Regarding suggestions that the health physics community play a role =
>in educating physicians on radiation effects, I wonder just what we =
>should teach them? It is my personal opinion, for example, that the =
>consequences of a few diagnostic x-rays, or any other radiation exposure =
> within the range of variation of natural background (<100 mrem/yr) =
>should be considered trivial and never be the reason to justify =
>termination of pregnancy. I think the widespread practice of abortions =
>in Europe following Chernobyl was an abomination
> Yet, how can I tell people that this is the case, when official =
>agencies of the U.S. government have established rules (i.e. 15 =
>mrem/yr cleanup levels, 4 mrem/yr drinking water standards, ALARA, etc. =
>) requiring the expenditure of vast sums of money to avoid similar =
>low-level exposures. If such low exposure levels were trivial, why would =
>such restrictions be required?
>
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><DIV><FONT color=3D#000000> Regarding suggestions that =
>the=20
>health physics community play a role in educating physicians on =
>radiation=20
>effects, I wonder just what we should teach them? It is my personal =
>opinion, for=20
>example, that the consequences of a few diagnostic x-rays, or any other=20
>radiation exposure within the range of variation of natural =
>background=20
>(<100 mrem/yr) should be considered trivial and never be the =
>reason to=20
>justify termination of pregnancy. I think the widespread practice of =
>abortions=20
>in Europe following Chernobyl was an abomination</FONT></DIV>
><DIV><FONT color=3D#000000> Yet, how can I tell people =
>that this=20
>is the case, when official agencies of the U.S. government =
>have=20
>established rules (i.e. 15 mrem/yr cleanup levels, 4 mrem/yr =
>drinking=20
>water standards, ALARA, etc. ) requiring the expenditure of vast sums of =
>money=20
>to avoid similar low-level exposures. If such low exposure levels were =
>trivial,=20
>why would such restrictions be required?</FONT></DIV></BODY></HTML>
>
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Dear Jerry:
Go ahead and tell them anyway. When I teach doc and techs about NRC and EPA
requirements, I teach them how to analyze how scientifically worthless and
self-serving they are. Most docs assume that there is some scientific basis
for these requirements. When I explain that there aren't any (and for the
"medical" program this is certainly true), that's a few more educated
sceptics added to the army.
Ciao, Carol
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