TOPIC 5: Set up a Personnel Monitoring Program

Let’s review a Personnel Monitoring Program.

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Personnel monitoring is required for Radiation Workers if they are expected to receive up to 10% of the annual allowable dose.  The annual allowable dose is 5,000 mrem, so personnel monitoring is needed if doses are expected to exceed 500 mrem in a year.

Personnel monitoring is also required for pregnant females once they “declare” their pregnancy.  A pregnancy is “declared” by informing the RSO.

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Individual monitoring would require individual monitoring devices, such as OSLD (optically stimulated luminescent dosimeters) or TLD (thermo luminescence dosimeters)

Individuals will store their “badges” in a centralized location when not being used.

The badges will need to be replaced when lost or damaged.

An independent company will analyze the dosimeters and provide printouts of doses to individuals.  This can be at any interval, but typically it is done quarterly.

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Badges are changed out periodically.  When badges are received from the third party provider, the old badges can be shipped off for analysis.  A “control” badge is always shipped with the badges and always stored with the badges.  This provides the background dose which is subtracted from the workers badge results.  The difference is the amount of dose the individual received while working.

Another alternative to calculate dose is to measure the exposure rate, the time in the field, and then estimate the dose.  This was covered in the section on Radiation Work Permits.