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RE: Alarms at Borders



We (Nevada Test Site) see quite a few every quarter, some identified by the

worker coming to us ahead of the procedure, and the rest by TLD readings or

gate alarms.  We have gotten fairly adept at identifying various medical

procedures from the signature response patterns they cause on the dosimeter.



A surprising percentage of those identified by dosimetry were never told by

the medical system that radioactivity was involved.  The problem that causes

is our problem - not the patient's.  As far as I can see, it really makes no

difference to the patient.  But that's changing.



People set off alarms at various locations here following these procedures

(mostly stress tests, bone scans are a distant second).  So patients who

work here experience a result that others don't.  With the advent of more

and more detectors around the country, the patient will be impacted more and

more.  Being held at a border station so as to harm someone's travel plans

is not what the medical community should be doing to its patients.  So the

harmless practice of not informing the patient is beginning to have a

somewhat harmful effect.  Eventually, public pressure will solve this

problem.



Bob Flood

Nevada Test Site



-----Original Message-----

From: Sewell, Linda [mailto:LMS1@PGE.COM] 

Sent: Thursday, January 13, 2005 9:50 AM

To: John Jacobus; Mccormick, Luke I; radsafe@list.vanderbilt.edu

Subject: RE: Alarms at Borders



Hi All,



I have been following this thread with interest.  We also have experienced a

number of issues with our own workforce.  Being a small area, I was able to

contact those 3 facilities that administered nuclear medicine treatment and

talk to the nuclear medicine technologists.  Now we don't have too many

surprises.



It seems to me that this is an area where HPS and AAPM can help.  I have

initiated a discussion with the HPS about trying to "solve" at least this

little piece of the problem.  We ought to be able to use our two

organizations to come up with some type of informational form that nuclear

medicine providers could use that can be adopted for use in the US at least.

Some type of authentication method would probably have to be developed, but

at least it would be a start.



Happy Thursday All,



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 John Jacobus

Sent: Wednesday, January 12, 2005 2:24 PM

To: Mccormick, Luke I; radsafe@list.vanderbilt.edu

Subject: Re: Alarms at Borders





Has anyone determined how much this is costing?



--- "Mccormick, Luke I" <luke.mccormick@dhs.gov>

wrote:



> 

> 

> 

> 

> Please spread the word. Our Operating Directive

> states that each radiation

> detection at a border will be investigated and

> resolved. Most all Customs

> Officers wear pagers and we use a huge number of

> passive radiation

> detectors in the form of portal monitors, cargo

> scanning devices, etc.

> Everyone who sets off an alarm crossing the border

> is sent to secondary

> until the Officers have determined if they are

> ligitimate.

> Many, but not all nuclear medicine departments are

> providing patients with

> letters explaining that the patients have received a

> radiopharmaceutical

> and if we have questions to call the

> doctor/clinic/hospital.For those

> carrying the documents we simpy verify that the

> office is ligitimate and

> call to verify that the person was a patient there.

> We can identify many of

> the radiopharmaceuticals by thier spectrum on site.

> These people pass

> through pretty quickly. The people who don't have

> the documentation are

> asked for the doctor/clinic name and we do the same

> thing but  most do not

> know the phone number of the clinic so they may be

> detained for quite a

> while until we get everything straightened out. If

> you are a patient or

> work at a nuc. med. facility, please make sure that

> the paperwork is given

> to the patients and travel restrictions may cause

> them some delays.

> Luke McCormick

> 

> ____________________Reply

> Separator____________________

> Subject:    RE: question concerning stress tests

> Author:     owner-radsafe@list.vanderbilt.edu

> Date:       1/12/2005 12:28 PM

> 

> 

> 

> 

> 

>        Hal  & Phil,

> 

>        Patients ARE setting off alarms NOW.  Happens

> a lot at the

>        NY/Canadian border, day trippers coming back.

>  I heard one

>        instance on the  Mexican California border

> near San Diego.  So

>        far it seems the detectors  are set up at

> borders and customs

>        stations in airports.

> 

> 

>        Any opinions in this e-mail are solely those

> of the author, and

>        are not represented as those of the VA

> Eastern Colorado HCS,

>        the Dept. of  Veterans Affairs, or the US

> Government.

> 

>        Peter G. Vernig, Radiation Safety  Officer,

> MS-115, VA Eastern

>        Colorado Health Care System, 1055 Clermont

> St.  Denver, CO

>        80220, peter.vernig@med.va.gov, Phone=

> 303.399.8020 x2447; Fax

>        =  303.393.5026, alternate fax, 303.393.5248

> 

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

> 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:  owner-radsafe@list.vanderbilt.edu

>        [mailto:owner-radsafe@list.vanderbilt.edu]On

> Behalf Of Careway,

>        Harold  A. (GE Energy)

>        Sent: Wednesday, January 12, 2005 9:30  AM

>        To: Radsafe (E-mail)

>        Subject: FW: question concerning  stress

> tests

> 

> 

>        Phil sent:

> 

>        Exposures from nuclear stress tests can be 

> considerable, at

>        least to those of us who have to explain and

> justify every

>        last millirem to regulators and activists.

> 

>        Several years ago I had a stress  test and

> made some post

>        treatment measurements with a Bicron MicroR 

> meter.

> 

>        Injections of 30 mCi of Tc-99m and  4 mCi of

> Tl-201 result in a

>        cumulative dose of ~600 mrem.  Seven (7) 

> hours after

>        treatment, the exposure rate was 17 mR/hr in

> contact with the

>        stomach and 20 microR/hr (twice background)

> at 30 feet.

>        Exposure rate  at stomach level after 2 days

> was ~2 mR/hr, and

>        after 7 days was ~0.5  mR/hr.   After 3

> weeks, exposure rates

>        were indistinquishable from  background.

> 

>        Yes, at those levels, a lot of  patients are

> going to be

>        setting of the increasing number of post 9/11

>  radiation

>        monitors in airports, borders, etc.

> 

>        See

> http://www.philrutherford.com/Stress_Test_2003.pdf

> for

>        charts of exposure vs. distance and time.

> 

>        Interestingly enough, when I asked the

> nuclear  technician who

>        administered the radiopharmaceuticals, how

> much exposure I

>        would receive, he said "Oh, about the same as

> a chest X-ray

>        (~10 mrem)."   I do not know whether that was

> simple ignorance

>        or deliberate  misinformation.

> 

>        Phil

> 

>       

>

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

>        ------------------

> 

>        I  had the same experience when I went for my

> Cardolite test -

>        the technician was  able to tell me the

> activity dose I was

>        receiving (30 mCi of Tc-99m) but not  my

> whole body or

>        effective dose in mR or mSv.  It was like he

> never heard  of

>        such a thing and really made me angry.  

> Latter I estimated

>        that  between the two doses I received (1PM

> in the afternoon

>        and a second dose at  8AM the next morning) I

> picked up

>        somewhere between 1600-1800 mR  integrated.

> 

>        I  continued to register above background on

> my Xetex 308A

>        until three days after  the procedure and the

> first day I could

>        set the detector off from 15 feet  outside my

> office, what fun.

> 

> 

>        Hal  Careway

> 

> 

> 

> .

> 

> 

>

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> 





=====

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

"It doesn't matter whether you're riding an elephant or a donkey if you're

going in the wrong direction."

Jesse Jackson





-- John

John Jacobus, MS

Certified Health Physicist

e-mail:  crispy_bird@yahoo.com



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