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hp "human capital crisis," continued
I think that the attached, NRC press release release shows the reason
why high ability - highly motivated students are reluctant to go into
hp. Note that:
(1) The licensee uses licensed materials at 2 locations - Allentown, PA
and Lakewood, NJ.
(2) The RSO, based in Allentown, is required to visit the Lakewood
facility at least monthly.
(3) The RSO failed to perform the monthly visits for more than 1-1/2
years (March 2000 - December 2001).
(4) The RSO falsified records to show that he had made those visits.
(5) The licensee operated without a RSO/Authorized User for almost 2
months (January 14 - March 4, 2002).
Sounds like multiple, serious willful violations to me. The NRC
response: a $3000 fine. (Oh, that hurts; can I put it on my
MasterCard?) It's probably less than the visits would have cost - time
and mileage.
The RSO involved obviously did not meet regulatory requirements. The
licensee did not seem to see the need to even have a RSO. The NRC does
not seem to think this is important.
The opinions expressed are strictly mine.
It's not about dose, it's about trust.
Curies forever; becquerels NEVER.
Bill Lipton
liptonw@dteenergy.com
Office of Public
Affairs, Region I
475 Allendale Road, King of
Prussia, Pa. 19406
www.nrc.gov
No. I-03-006
February 12, 2003
CONTACT:
Diane Screnci (610) 337-5330
Neil A. Sheehan (610) 337-5331
E-mail: opa1@nrc.gov
NRC PROPOSES $3,000 FINE FOR PA.-BASED NUCLEAR MEDICINE
COMPANY
The Nuclear Regulatory Commission staff has proposed a $3,000 fine
against an Allentown, Pa., company that provides
nuclear medicine services. The civil penalty stems from three violations
of NRC requirements identified during NRC
inspections and an investigation conducted last year by the agency’s
Office of Investigations.
Medical Providers Capital Network has an NRC license that allows it to
use certain nuclear materials to perform
diagnostic tests, such as heart and organ imaging. It operates
facilities in Allentown and in Lakewood, N.J. As is the
case with other firms licensed by the NRC to use nuclear medicine
materials, Medical Providers is required to have a
Radiation Safety Officer to ensure that safety procedures regarding the
use of such materials are in place and followed.
It is also required to designate an Authorized User or Users to
supervise use of the materials.
Based on its reviews, the NRC staff identified the following violations
by Medical Providers: a failure of its Radiation
Safety Officer/Authorized User to perform monthly visits to the Lakewood
facility to review the use of radioactive
materials between March 2000 and December 2001, even though it was known
this was required; the creation of false
records indicating that the Radiation Safety Officer had visited the
Lakewood facility on a monthly basis during that
period when that had not, in fact, occurred; and the receipt, possession
and use of radioactive material without the
supervision of a Radiation Safety Officer/Authorized User between
January 14 and March 4, 2002.
The findings are described in a Notice of Violation accompanying the
civil penalty. Medical Providers has 30 days from
receipt of the Notice to either pay the fine or protest its imposition.
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