Assessment of radiation exposure in a nuclear medicine department of an oncology hospital

Background: Medical personnel in nuclear medicine departments are exposed to ionizing radiation which is associated with cancer induction and mortality risks. Examples of such personnel are those working in the hot areas where radioisotopes for nuclear medicine examinations are prepared. This work aims to estimate the occupational radiation exposure for workers at the Nuclear Medicine department in Da Nang Oncology Hospital, Vietnam. Materials and methods: The study was conducted from 2020 to 2021. The personal dose equivalents (Hp) were quantified for soft tissues for deep dose (Hp(10)), eye lens dose (Hp(3)), skin dose (and Hp(0.07)) were quantified utilizing optically stimulated luminescence dosimeters (OSLD) crystals. In this study, the dose equivalent at the hot area is measured by 9 OSLD, while that for staff was measured using 16 OSLD. Results: In 2020, the annual average Hp(10) was (0.38 mSv ± 1.39); in 2021 Hp(10) was (0.25 mSv ±1.27). The average Hp(10) was well below the annual occupational dose limits (20 mSv.year^-1). Regarding the annual dose, all recorded values were quite low compared to the annual radiation dose limits for radiation staff (20 mSv annual ∼1.67 mSv.month^-1). Nevertheless, some points of measurement revealed a high-value dose of 5.69 mSv ± 2.83. This suggests that rigorous evaluation of the workplace is essential to ensuring workers exposure is kept within safe levels. Conclusions: It is concluded that the Hp(10) and Hp(0.07) for the working environment and radiation workers were below the dose limits from ICRP. In addition, it is recommended that continuous monitoring of the occupational dose in nuclear medicine department is essential to reduce the dosimetric hazards of personnel working in the department