Medical management of radiation safety and radiological protection of patients in Armenia

The events of the last 10 years, Spitak earthquake (1988) and collapse of the Former Soviet Union, brought forth the changes of the political situation in Armenia and significant disorder in economy, industry, relations, environmental and public health, including the radiation safety (RS) and control of patients in general diagnostic radiology. In Armenia there are about 750 X-ray rooms, 10 radionuclide diagnostic laboratories, 20 gamma and X-ray units. 95 enterprises in industry, science and technology use the Ionizing Radiation Sources (IRSs) with different purposes; there are 5 electron particle accelerators of different power capacity. About 6,000 individuals have constant contact to IRS: the roentgenologists, radiologists, the staff of Armenian Nuclear Power Plant and that of the accelerators, etc. Besides, more than 3,000 liquidators of the Chernobyl NPP disaster live in Armenia. Nowadays, the precise infrastructure of RS is established in Armenia. The regulating body is the 'State Atom Authority', performing the control, coordination and licensing of both enterprises and specialists. Ministry of Health, Ministry of Internal Affairs, and Ministry of Ecology perform the control of IRSs' delivery into the Republic of Armenia and then their proper use and waste disposal in Armenia. (author)