RE: Documenting Surveys by Lab Personnel

[Herrold@uwyo.edu (Jim F. Herrold)]

Sue:

We require users to document, at least monthly, that they do surveys.  (We 
hope they are doing them more often than that, but they don't always have to 
write them down.) The reason is, from what I've heard, the NRC assumes that 
if you don't document something you didn't do it. When we go out and do 
inspections we check their survey log.

The frequency of surveys is based on recommendations for processing and 
manufacturing plants (NRC Reg Guide 8.21) and medical institutions (Reg. 
Guide 8.23). Of course, 10CFR20.2103 simply says, "Each licensee shall 
maintain records showing the results of surveys ... required by 20.1501."

For incoming packages, we receive all radioactives and perform and document 
the wipe tests ourselves before delivering them to the labs.

Hope this helps

Jim Herrold, RSO
University of Wyoming
herrold@uwyo.edu

 ----------
From: radsafe
To: Multiple recipients of list
Subject: Documenting Surveys by Lab Personnel
Date: Wednesday, April 17, 1996 9:55PM

Good Afternoon!  Our Radiation Safety Guide requires lab personnel to record
the results of contamination surveys in a survey log - this includes the 
sur-
vey they perform as they open radioisotope packages, as well as the work 
area
and personal surveys which they perform.  It was suggested to us during an
audit of our radiation safety program that we should consider eliminating 
the
need to document surveys done by lab personnel.  The surveys would continue 
to
be performed but no records of those surveys would exist.  Please note also
our Health Physics Section does perform routine contamination surveys which
are and would continue to be documented.......

 Please let me know how you have handled this question.
Thanks so much for your help!

Sue Dupre/Health Physicist/Princeton University
dupre@princeton.edu