Re: ? RCM or RSO Pre-requisites

["PAUL E RUHTER" <RUH@inel.gov>]

Supervisor, Radiation Dosimetry & Records
User ID-RUH; Mail Stop-4147;  Ext. 6-1973
I agree whole-heartedly with both points that Wes Dunn made. 1. The more
complex the program is, the more extensive the training and experience
must be. Health Physics is unique among scientific/engineering
disciplines in that none encompass as broad a scope of the sciences as
health physics. Also the more complex the program is, the more extensive
must be the training and experience in the soft sciences involving
language, interpersonal, and managerial skills. To be a good
HP/RSO/RadCon type, you must have the interest to know a bit about
everything in contrast to the desire to know a lot about a narrow field.
(Think about this from your own perpective to verify its applications.)
The Meyers-Briggs Type Indicator Folks (Ray Johnson, among others) have
told us for years that we HP's as a group are different from the rest of
the population, which has its difficulties, particularly in the
inter-relational/communication side of our business.

2. (In case you had lost track of the train, here) The Internet, with
this BBS as a premium example, is starting to demonstrate its tremendous
value. It's like participating in all the hallway conversations and the
technical presentations at the annual HPS meeting, but you can here and
see everything!!!

*** Reply to note of 04/23/96 07:41

From: Mike McNaughton
To: RADSAFE --INELMAIL RADSAFE

Subject: Re: ? RCM or RSO Pre-requisites
>In this new found age where Web "facts" replace formalized
>education and training, I have a serious question.
>
>What level of Health Physics experience or education is
>considered reasonable of an RSO (Rad Safety Officer)
>or RCM (Rad Con Manager)?

To me, the key aspect of this question is "experience" vs "education".  I
think we agree that both are important at some level, but what level?.
While I don't want to blur the issue, the related issue that concerns me is
the increased emphasis in the DOE world requiring higher levels of basic
education among technicians, e.g. RCTs, but also others.  I find that using
deductive skills to bridge the large chasm between basic knowledge
(fundamental physics) and application is difficult for some, and therefore
we may not be doing everyone a service by forcing more basic education on
them. What do others think?

Stay safe, mike (mcnaught@LANL.GOV)