Re: Re[2]: ALARA at hospital

[Chris Davey <cdavey@med.phys.ualberta.ca>]

On Thu, 11 Dec 1997 tdc@ehssun.lbl.gov wrote:
> I don't understand - WHY must the Iodine patient room be released to
> general use?  With the 5 or so patients per week you cite - why not just
> use it for the next Iodine patient?  I wouldn't think that "general use"??

Sorry if I was unclear.  The max. is about 5 a week; the range is anywhere
from 1 upwards.  We have just got permission from the AECB to use the room
again with fixed contamination above the limit specified (50 microR/hr at
0.5 metres) when it was used first for I-131, and the next occupant is
also getting I-131 therapy.  However, we also use Indium-111, and have not
(yet) been given permission to reuse when this isotope is used.  I have
also requested permission to use the room for those linear accelerator
patients who stay in the hospital, as the dose from the linac is many
orders of magnitude greater than the potential dose from any residual
contamination.  My request also included patients who have had Nuclear
Medicine procedures (mainly Tc-99m) and those who have had CT scans, for
the same reason.

What are the rules for these circumstances elsewhere (outside Canada)?
 
> When I used to work in a hospital there was a wing reserved for
> radiotherapy and rooms for Iodine patients.

I wish!  With cutbacks, we rarely have any empty rooms (other than the
entire floor above our current "Station 30", which is not funded!), so no
rooms are reserved for just one category of patient.

> Ted de Castro
> tdc@ehssun.lbl.gov
> University of California Lawrence Berkeley Laboratory
> Bldg 90 Rm 0026B
> Berkeley, CA 94720
> (510) 486-5256
> (510) 486-6939 - FAX

Regards,

Chris Davey

        RSO  Cross Cancer Institute  11560 University Avenue
        Edmonton   Alberta   Canada  T6G 1Z2
        (403)432-8616   fax 432-8615    email cdavey@med.phys.ualberta.ca
        pager number 005, just call (403) 432-8771 and ask for that pager