No. 3 - June 24, 1996

1. Changes to be Aware of in Returning Film Badges

The Radiation Safety Committee has recently approved two minor changes in our procedures for handling personnel dosimeters (film badges and ring TLDs). These changes will become effective August 1, 1996.

* The first change advances the date when badges are to be returned to the Department of Radiological Health at 100 OSH. Starting in August 1996, all dosimeters will be due in our office by the 5th working day following the end of the monitoring period, rather than the 9th day. For example, the July 1996 dosimeters will be due August 7, 1996.

* The second change increases the fee for returning dosimeters after the due date from $5.00 to $10.00, and the fee for losing a dosimeter from $10.00 to $15.00. These increases will help defray our costs for handling and shipping late badges, and for replacing lost badges and investigating and preparing the documentation needed to estimate a dose of record for a missing dosimeter.

2. Revisiting Last Year's NIH Incident

* Many of you are aware of the incident that occurred at the NIH last year where a pregnant researcher was contaminated internally with P-32. The circumstances of the incident strongly indicate that the contamination was deliberate. As a result of that incident the NRC proposed a new rule, published in the January 31, 1996 Federal Register, which would impose very strict reporting requirements on all licensees whenever radioactive material of any quantity was misplaced or contamination of unknown origin occurred and where deliberate misconduct could not be ruled out. Since that time, the NRC received many comments from licensees and others which were opposed to the rule. As a result, the NRC is presently reconsidering the rule. We should hear more later.

* The researcher who was contaminated at the NIH and her husband filed a 40-page petition with the NRC in October 1995 to have the NIH radioactive materials license revoked. The petition provides a lot of detailed information about the incident from the researcher's perspective. It makes very interesting reading. If you would like to read this petition just call my office and request a copy.

* The NIH incident got national notoriety by being aired on CBS's "60 Minutes," in December 1995. I have several copies of that program on VHS video. If you would like to borrow a copy for your personal use, or to share with your department or research group, just call my office.

(over)

3. A Gentle Reminder Concerning Food and Beverages in the Labs

There are rumors that some labs are lax about having food and beverages in the laboratories. I don't like to hear such rumors, since eating, drinking or storing food or beverages in labs is universally recognized as an unsafe practice. Such practices increase the possibility of ingestion of radioactive or toxic materials with the potential for an adverse health consequence, which nobody wants to see happen. It also makes a lab look bad to visitors and encourages regulators to reach for their citation book. In light of the two P-32 ingestion incidents at NIH and MIT, we are now acutely aware of the regulatory and public relations consequences of a radioactive material ingestion incident, whether it happens accidentally or intentionally. Let's make sure that an ingestion incident doesn't occur here at the University of Utah. So please, RU's, if eating and drinking has crept into your lab, let's bring it to a halt quickly.

4. Replacing Broken Pancake GM Tubes Will Now be Faster and Cheaper

The Radiological Health Department is procuring pancake GM tubes from a supplier under a special purchase agreement and is maintaining a supply of these tubes in our main office. These tubes are available to any RU for our cost, which is now $45.00 each. If your lab survey instrument (TBM-3 or equivalent) suffers a broken pancake tube simply notify your Radiation Analyst or drop the instrument by the office at 100 OSH. We will replace the tube, recalibrate the instrument, and return it to your lab, assuming the instrument has no other serious problems. We'll even try to give 24-hour turnaround. Reimbursement for the tube may be made to Radiological Health by campus order. Our account number is 2-15785-1430. If you'd rather have the electronics shop repair your instrument we'll give them the tube for the same low price.

5. Smoother Sailing for Radioactive Material Purchases

Here are a few hints to make purchasing radioactive material go more smoothly:

* Only RU's that have been authorized in writing by the Radiation Safety Committee to purchase radionuclides may purchase or procure them. If you're not sure of your authorization, check first. Call purchasing at 1-6859, or my office at 1-6141. The authorization list is updated every month.

* If you want next-day delivery you must get your purchase requisition into the purchasing office by noon.

* Small Quantity Purchase Orders, or "501s," may not be used for ordering radionuclides.

J. J. Thompson

6/24/96