EURADOS Report on New Operational Dose Quantities - Impact Evaluation & Recommendations for Implementation

In 2020, ICRU published, in conjunction with ICRP, recommendations for new operational quantities. In radiation protection, instruments and dosemeters are designed to measure the operational quantities, which are suitable approximations to the protection quantities effective dose and organ equivalent dose. The new operational quantities are conceptually simpler, and their definitions bring them closer to those of the protection quantities. They are also defined for wider ranges of radiation types and energies. The ICRU report (report 95) underwent wide-ranging consultation during its development, and the final version reflects this.

During the later stages, EURADOS were invited to comment on the implementation of the new quantities, and accordingly set up a task group that drew on expertise from a number of the existing EURADOS working groups. The result was EURADOS Report 2022-02, published on the website in July 2022. The report examines the major differences between the old and new operational quantities before going on to examine the effects on: instrument and dosemeter design; calibration and testing practice, and standards; radiation protection practice; and regulation.

Amongst our conclusions, we agree with ICRU that a suitably long period be allowed for any transition to the new quantities. We also note that an extensive programme of education and training will be needed. In dosimetry, it seems clear that the secondary “kerma-approximation” set of conversion coefficients for photons will be most widely used. Over the energy ranges covered by the existing operational quantities, this will reduce the practical difficulties of re-designing instruments and dosemeters, which otherwise would be significant.

Our webinar discusses some of the above findings, and highlights areas where work is still needed in order to fully understand the implications of the new quantities. We go on to report on an evaluation of the responses of some real dosemeters in terms of the old and new operational quantities, before looking at the likely effects on radiation protection in medical interventional procedures.