Radiation protection training
The safe use of radiation requires that the persons who use radiation as well as the other persons who otherwise participate in the operations have the appropriate training and expertise for their duties. If necessary, the responsible party will arrange in-service training and position-specific guidance.
The qualification and training requirements for a radiation safety officer and other persons in the radiation user’s organization are verified in Guide ST 1.8.
The qualification and training requirements for a physician issuing referrals for medical examinations and procedures involving exposure to radiation, a physician responsible for the procedure and the person performing the procedure are issued in the Decree of the Ministry of Social Affairs and Health on the medical use of radiation and Guide ST 1.7 issued pursuant to the Decree.
Basic and further health care training
Universities, polytechnics and other schools and training organizations arrange radiation protection training in connection with vocational basic and further training. Furthermore, they arrange qualifying training for radiation safety officers, physicians responsible for medical surveillance, qualified experts and medical physics experts.
Training obligations and qualification requirements
Radiation safety officer
The radiation safety officer must have sufficient training and qualifications in accordance with the field of activity requirements. The scope and requirements of qualification for radiation safety officers are presented in Guide ST 1.8. Training is arranged by training organizations approved by the Radiation and Nuclear Safety Authority.
Workers who use radiation
When starting the work, the responsible party shall ensure that the qualifications of the worker meet the applicable requirements. The requirements for training are presented in Guide ST 1.8. The specific requirements for the radiation protection training of health care personnel are presented in Guide ST 1.7.
Furthermore, the responsible party shall ensure periodic supplementary radiation protection training. Supplementary training is necessary for everyone in the radiation user’s organization. The content and extent of supplementary training depends on each person’s duties.
Supplementary training can be arranged as instructed teaching (group work, demonstrations, guided practical exercises) or training events.
Supplementary radiation protection training is arranged by responsible parties, professional associations and organizations and training organizations. Often, the basic and further vocational training courses can be used in the supplementary training of workers.
The Radiation and Nuclear Safety Authority supervises the provision of supplementary training.
Experts
Demanding radiation practices may require that the responsible party appoint a qualified expert. In such cases, STUK defines the qualification requirements for the qualified expert on a case-specific basis.
As a rule, the medical physics expert for the use of radiation in health care must have the hospital physicist specialization, which includes the qualification to serve as radiation safety officer in the area of general use of radiation in the medical sector. Furthermore, the medical physics expert must be familiarized with the expert duties in the appointed area of qualification. The areas of qualification are specified in Guide ST 1.8.
Physician responsible for the medical surveillance of workers
According to Section 13 of the Radiation Decree, the physician responsible for the medical surveillance of workers shall be conversant with occupational health care and with the health effects of radiation. The physician’s qualification to serve as a physician responsible for the medical surveillance of category A workers is verified by STUK. The qualification requirements are presented in Guide ST 7.5.
For the verification of competence, the physician must submit to the Radiation and Nuclear Safety Authority an application and enclose the documents necessary for verifying the competence. A list of names and offices of the responsible physicians can be requested from the Radiation and Nuclear Safety Authority, department of Radiation Practices Regulation.
Referring physicians and physicians responsible for the procedure in health care
The justifications for a procedure involving exposure to radiation are primarily determined by the referring physician. Therefore, the referring physician must have the basic knowledge of the health effects of ionizing radiation and the patient’s radiation exposure in different procedures. The physician responsible for the procedure verifies the justifications for the procedure involving exposure to radiation, ultimately decides on the performance of the procedure and is responsible for optimizing the patient’s radiation exposure.