Excelsior Accreditation aims to make life easier for practices by helping you understand the requirements for Radiation Safety Plans. The central issue is that every Australian State and Territory uses a different approach to this, with some jurisdictions not requiring Radiation Safety Plans at all. Certainly a “head-scratcher”! Here’s what you need to know.
Full preparation of your practice’s Radiation Safety Plan represents the newest service available from the team at Excelsior Accreditation.
What is a Radiation Safety Plan?
This is an operational policy that contains all the details of how your practice fulfils the radiation safety requirements as specified by your state or territory regulator. It can either be a standalone document or part of your workplace safety policy. The aim of these plans is twofold – to protect staff, patients and guests from the health risks associated with radiation exposure, and to protect the environment surrounding your practice or facility.
Generally, practices engaging in the following services or activities are required to have a Radiation Safety Plan include:
- Dentistry
- Research (using ionising radiation)
- Radiotherapy
- Nuclear medicine
- Diagnostic imaging
- Interventional radiotherapy
What is Included in a Radiation Safety Plan?
- 1. Identifying radiation hazards – Radiation practice type, radiation sources, and hazards specific to your practice and radiation sources.
- 2. Management of radiation hazards – Access control to radiation sources and equipment, compliance testing and maintenance, PPE, radiation safety devices, specific requirements for individual radiation sources, and staff safety training.
- 3. Incidence response – Action plans for incidents such as equipment error, improper use, deficient administration controls, lack of safety equipment, workplace error, or emergency situations.
- 4. Maintenance of radiation safety measures – Appointing a Radiation Safety Officer, maintaining records on managing radiation equipment and sources, records of radiation incidents, and continuing training for new and existing staff.
Check Your State or Territory Regulator
As a rule, if you are not sure whether you are required to have a radiation safety plan for your practice, you should check with your State or Territory regulator. They will be able to give you the information that you need, making them the best place to start. It’s also a good idea to check the conditions of your management/possession license which may state that you are required to have a radiation safety/management plan.
Radiation Safety Plans are also known as:
- Radiation Management Plan
- Radiation Safety and Protection Plan
To make this as easy as possible, we have provided the key contacts for each State and Territory below.
Victoria
NSW
Queensland
South Australia
https://www.epa.sa.gov.au/environmental_info/radiation/radiation-management-plan
Tasmania
https://www.dhhs.tas.gov.au/publichealth/radiation
Western Australia
http://www.radiologicalcouncil.wa.gov.au
ACT
https://health.act.gov.au/businesses/radiation-safety
Northern Territory
https://nt.gov.au/industry/licences/radiation-licence-forms
In addition to DIAS certification services, we offer full services for practices required to have a Radiation Safety Plan. If you require any further information on this service, please contact our team today.
