Are you looking for a Radiation Protection Expert, but you don’t know how and where to look for valid figures for your company? Have you already tried to publish an ad on Linkedin, Monster and Infojobs, but in addition to having spent time in screening CVs and not having found the person you were looking for, you have activated some external supplier without satisfactory results?

You are reading the right article… read how Ricercamy supports companies in the health and hospital, industrial and research sectors in the search and selection of specialized profiles.

The Radiation Protection Expert: who is he?

The Radiation Protection Expert is a person in possession of the professional qualification necessary to perform physical surveillance of all workers who are exposed to ionizing radiation. The following professional figure was regulated by the Presidential Decree n 185 of 1964 and more recently confirmed by the new Legislative Decree 101/2020, he plays the role of consultant to the employer, assessing the possible risks to personnel and preparing all measures to ensure adequate protection.

The recognition of “Radiation Protection Expert” is a qualification that is recognized at national level through enrollment in a special register, divided into grades and after passing the examination necessary for qualification. The degrees in which the qualification is divided are three, which define the areas of expertise of the expert, without going into too much technical detail, we can say that the degrees are up based on the maximum level of ionizing radiation that can be subjected to the worker calculated in kV (kilovolt). The last grade, i.e. the third, is the one that corresponds to nuclear plants, production of special fossil materials and nuclear fuels.

The training path requires the achievement of a degree suitable for this role, which may be a degree in Physics or Chemistry or Industrial Chemistry. Important is also the performance of a practical training of at least 120 days at a facility that uses ionizing sources, equal to those of the degree chosen by the expert.

Briefly, the duties of the ERP can be summarized as follows: classify the work environments in which there are radiation hazards (these must be properly reported and access regulated), perform environmental monitoring, divide workers into two categories those “exposed” and those “not exposed” to radiological risk and provide individual radiation doses, train on the risks and perform a periodic inspection of equipment and finally assist the employer in the drafting of all the procedures to be followed both during normal activity and in case of accident.

What does a Radiation Protection Expert do?

Perform the radiation protection assessment and provide guidance to the employer on what their duties are;

Carry out examination as well as verification of all equipment that emits ionizing radiation, check protective equipment and means of measurement;

Carry out environmental monitoring of places subject to radiation and where appropriate also in neighboring places, proceed to the determination of doses;

Verify the correct use of all appropriate protective equipment and measuring devices by personnel;

Ensure proper disposal of materials found to be in contact with radiation;

Assisting the employer, as appropriate, in, for example: individual surveillance programs, accident or incident prevention, emergency planning, worker training, etc.; and

Report in writing to the licensed physician, on a semi-annual basis, the dose assessments received or committed by Category A workers.

Principal Characteristics Required:

1. Holds a Bachelor’s degree in Physics, Chemistry, Industrial Chemistry, or Engineering; must have completed an internship of at least 120 working days for each rating in a facility using the radioactive sources corresponding to each rating under the guidance of a Radiation Protection Expert;
2. Has earned a Master’s Degree in Physical Agents and Radiation Protection, through which he/she has expanded his/her knowledge in the management of risk arising from the use, in the workplace, of ionizing and non-ionizing radiation;
3. Is able to prepare documentation related to physical surveillance and in particular the physical surveillance log and the personal dosimetry sheet (where necessary);
4. Knows the main instruments useful for assessing the individual dose received by each worker (dosimeter) and correctly informs personnel on their use;
5. Knows the biological effects of ionizing radiation;
6. Knows the protective devices (PPE) and in particular the protective devices of complex design able to safeguard the worker from serious risk or serious injury, also makes the periodic control;
7. Has a strong predisposition for teamwork as well as charisma and leadership skills;
8. Possesses an excellent aptitude for working towards goals;
9. Possesses excellent communication and organizational skills;
10. Is a strongly goal-oriented person.

The Radiation Protection Expert is an important professional figure for the protection of the health of workers who must work in the presence of radiation, both in industrial and medical fields. The expert measures, verifies and evaluates the physical, technical and radiotoxicological conditions, ensures that protective equipment is properly used, provides guidance on how to best ensure the physical supervision of worker protection. The work of the expert requires a high level of responsibility, it is in fact under his supervision that are installed high-hazardous equipment such as PET, MRI and nuclear accelerators. The professional knows the problems that workers may encounter and therefore keeps up to date on the latest operating techniques to contain the risk of exposure.

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