RE: A Question for Power Reactor Types and others with portal monitors.

[John Jacobus <crispy_bird@YAHOO.COM>]

Besides patients, you will also have the problem of

radionuclide delivers to hospitals.  This happened a

few years ago in New York City when police using

hand-held detectors were "cruising" around the city

looking for bombs.



--- Peter.Vernig@MED.VA.GOV wrote:

> Linda,

> 

> Thanks for the information.  But I have to say two

> things about issuing

> "passes".  First that is the reason for the question

> to put a duration in

> for security personnel.  Second, it will not be a

> pass.  Security personnel

> are unlikely to just accept a letter or information

> sheet at face value and

> let the person go without any checking.  Personally,

> though I don't put much

> stock in the dirty bomb scenario, I don't think they

> should.  Hopefully,

> personnel will be well trained and have access to

> appropriate survey

> equipment.  A recent response I got indicates that

> border guards seem to

> handle the situation fairly well, asking persons in

> a bus if anybody has had

> a nuclear medicine procedure, have any identified

> person go through the

> portal separately, then the other passengers, then

> the bus or other vehicle.

> 

> But I don't think it is a big stretch of imagination

> to say we are probably

> going to be seeing more radiation survey equipment

> installed in various

> places, say federal court houses, airline passenger

> terminals, you can guess

> as good as I can.  

> 

> Which brings up a point, seems to me I read an

> article either attached or

> with a link attached about a lady reporter in

> Washington D.C. who was

> stopped by a Metro [subway] police officer after

> having had a Nuclear

> Medicine diagnostic procedure.  Can anyone tell me

> where I might of read

> that, a reference with date and publication would be

> WONDERFUL!  I should

> have printed it out when I read it.

> 

> Anyway I don't think the security people are just

> going to accept a letter

> or information sheet at face value, without some

> checking.  Anything we can

> do to provide a letter or information sheet can

> easily be duplicated by

> someone else, including a call back number.  The

> answer IMO is good training

> for the security personnel and so far, it seems like

> they have it.

> 

> Any opinions expressed in this message are mine

> alone and do not necessarily

> represent those of the Eastern Colorado VA Health

> Care System, The

> Department of Veterans Affairs, or the United States

> Government.

> 

> Peter G. Vernig

> Radiation Safety Officer, VA Eastern Colorado Health

> Care System, 1055

> Clermont St. Denver, CO 80220, ATTN:  RSO MS 115;

> peter.vernig@med.va.gov;

> personal peter_vernig@hotmail.com; 303.399.8020 ext.

> 2447, FAX: 303.393-5026

> Alternate fax 303-377-5686

> "...whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is

> right, whatever is

> pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable, if

> anything is found to be

> excellent or praiseworthy, let your mind dwell on

> these things."

> Paul of Tarsus

> 

> 

> -----Original Message-----

> From: Sewell, Linda [mailto:LMS1@pge.com]

> Sent: Thursday, April 08, 2004 10:32 AM

> To: Peter.Vernig@MED.VA.GOV;

> Radsafe@list.Vanderbilt.Edu

> Subject: RE: A Question for Power Reactor Types and

> others with portal

> monitors.

> 

> 

> Greetings All,

> 

> Nuclear Medicine patients have been an issue at

> power plants for years since

> most of us have portal monitors at the exit to our

> protected area, not just

> the radiologically controlled areas.  We've had 16

> folks in our "portal

> pass" program in the past year and we employee

> approximately 1100 people. 

> 

> We have found that Tc-99 alarms our portals for 1-3

> weeks.  I think it

> really depends on how much Mo-99 there is as a

> contaminant.  

> 

> Tl-201 is typically less than a week but is

> dependent on what it's being

> used for.  

> 

> I-123 used for thyroid scans is gone pretty quickly,

> within a few days.  

> 

> I-131 for partial or complete thyroid ablation is a

> problem for 1 - 3 MONTHS

> and a dose rate issue for closely located co-workers

> for a few days.

> 

> We are starting to see F-18 and Ga-67 a bit now, but

> don't really have any

> good data yet.  

> 

> Another one that is generally only an issue if your

> lower energy thresholds

> are set below 80 KeV or so are the prostate cancer

> seeds.  The I-125 seeds

> are fairly straightforward but the Pd-103 seeds have

> a significant Zn-65

> contaminant which can cause problems.  If the

> monitors "see" that low, the

> seeds are an issue for 1-3 years. 

> 

> Several of our workers have indicated that they were

> setting off the

> incoming gate alarms at our local landfill.

> 

> A common thread throughout which confuses the matter

> is that the folks doing

> the tests routinely tell the people that we'll never

> see it or that it will

> be gone in just a day or two.  The bottom line is,

> as well all know, if you

> start off with a BUNCH of activity (millicuries) you

> still have a BUNCH of

> activity (from a portal or gate monitor standpoint) 

> even after 7-10

> half-lives.

> 

> Regarding Peter's issue on homeland security, it's a

> very valid point.  As I

> recall, I think the current plan is to start having

> nuc med groups issue the

> equivalent of our "portal pass" that indicates that

> the person has had a

> nuclear medicine treatment.  Also, if homeland

> security sticks with the FEMA

> alarm setpoints of 1 uCi that will reduce the

> impacts.  Most power plants

> set their portals to alarm at somewhere around 100

> nCi.

> 

> Hope this provided some useful information.

> 

> Linda

> 

> Linda Sewell, CHP

> Dosimetry Supervisor

> Diablo Canyon Power Plant

> MS 119/1/122

> PO Box 56

> Avila Beach, CA 93424

> 805.545.4315 (voice)

> 805.545.2618 (fax)

> mailto:lms1@pge.com

> 

> 

> -----Original Message-----

> From: owner-radsafe@list.Vanderbilt.Edu

> [mailto:owner-radsafe@list.Vanderbilt.Edu]On Behalf

> Of

> Peter.Vernig@MED.VA.GOV

> Sent: Tuesday, April 06, 2004 12:26 PM

> To: Radsafe@list.Vanderbilt.Edu

> Subject: A Question for Power Reactor Types and

> others with portal

> monitors.

> 

> 

> Group,

> 

> I have been pondering the issue of Nuclear Medicine

> patients setting off

> Homeland Security radiation detectors.

> 

> There apparently have been scattered incidents so

> far but NRC published an

> information notice on it suggesting a verbal

> explanation and a business card

> be given to patients that could set off such alarms.

> 

> I did an impromptu, very quick and VERY dirty test

> using 

=== message truncated ===





=====

+++++++++++++++++++

"Those who have not known the joy of standing up for a great cause of justice have not known what makes living worthwhile."

Paul Painleve, regarding the Dreyfus Affair, 1895



-- John

John Jacobus, MS

Certified Health Physicist

e-mail:  crispy_bird@yahoo.com



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