Radiation Safety
UTHSC possesses one of only four Broad Scope radioactive material licenses in the state; the advantage of a broad scope license is that it enables greater flexibility in the use and management of radioactive materials. The Radiation Safety Committee has an interdisciplinary membership, and this committee fulfills the requirements specified in the UTHSC Broad Scope license. The charge of RSC is as follows:
As required by the Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation, Division of Radiologic Health, and the Federal Nuclear Regulatory Commission), an institutional radiation safety committee (RSC) has been established by the administration of UTHSC. This committee has the general responsibility to ensure compliance with the proper and safe use of all sources of ionizing radiation and non-ionizing radiation known to present a potential hazard to human health (including lasers). The RSC also recommends procedures to the university for the procurement, and safe and legal use of radioactive materials, or other forms of ionizing radiation and non-ionizing radiation in the areas of research, teaching, and other university work. On behalf of the university, the RSC meets to review reports on the receipt and disposal of radioactive materials/radiation-producing devices, and to act on applications and amendments for authorization to use these sources. The RSC, along with the Radiation Safety Officer, serves as a resource to faculty, investigators, technicians, students, staff, and administrators, and is engaged in providing assistance with radiation safety.
Examples of the sources that fall under the purview of the RSC are as follows:
- Sealed sources of radioactive material
- Unsealed sources of radioactive material
- X-ray machines
- Lasers
- UV radiation sources
Operations and technical support are provided by the Radiation Safety Officer (Jabari Robinson) who directs the routine safety and compliance monitoring programs for radiation safety.
Individuals who plan to use radioactive materials or radiation-producing equipment (e.g. x-ray, NMR, lasers, fluoroscopy, etc.) in research, development, teaching, or demonstration projects must obtain prior approval from the campus Radiation Safety Committee. Requests must be submitted in the form of a iMEDris application.
Access iMEDris through the link provided here. This is the same application system used to submit IACUC, IBC and IRB protocols. Instructions to get started with a radiation protocol application are provided here with additional training information provided within the system.
- Investigators – New Radiation Protocol Guide
- RSC Member – iMedRIS Protocol Review Guide