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What condition are your radiation protection arrangements in?

BDJ In Practice volume 34, pages 36–37 (2021)Cite this article

Dental practices undertaking dental radiography must comply with United Kingdom and Northern Ireland radiation protection legislation, which covers occupational exposure to ionising radiation (e.g. x-rays)1,2 together with providing protection to the patient from ionising radiation.3,4 The 'Guidance Notes for Dental Practitioners on the Safe Use of X-ray Equipment, 2nd Edition' (DGN),5 which were issued in October 2020, has a number of changes within it and the main topics of interest are detailed below so you can easily review what condition the radiation protection arrangements at your dental practice are in and where there may be omissions that need to be addressed. So, what are the key points?

If you are an employer and have an existing practice or practices, the requirement to register work with ionising radiation with HSE or HSNI should not be new to you. If, however, you are unsure about the registration requirement, or are new to being an employer, you must 'register' the work with radiation generators (i.e. dental x-ray equipment), even if you have previously 'notified' of your work under the previous regulations. There is a fee of £25 per registration per employer payable to HSE in England, Scotland and Wales; in Northern Ireland however, registration with HSENI is free (correct at the time of publishing). It is a one-off registration (i.e. no requirement to periodically renew your registration) but you will be required to register again if any of the details included in your registration change, e.g. if you relocate your practice, or the practice name or ownership changes, or if the number of practices you own changes from the amount stated in the registration. (If the measured radon gas concentration level exceeds a certain threshold, notification to HSE or HSENI will also be necessary).

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References

  1. Ionising Radiations Regulations 2017 [IRR17]) in England, Scotland and Wales

  2. Ionising Radiations Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2017 [IRR(NI)17] in Northern Ireland.

  3. Ionising Radiation (Medical Exposure) Regulations 2017 [IR(ME)R17] in England, Scotland and Wales

  4. Ionising Radiation (Medical Exposure) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2018 [IR(ME)R(NI)18] in Northern Ireland.

  5. FGDP(UK). Guidance Notes for Dental Practitioners on the Safe Use of X-ray Equipment. Available online at: www.fgdp.org.uk/publication/guidance-notes-dental-practitioners-safe-use-x-ray-equipment (Accessed June 2021).

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  1. DD Group, Witham, UK

    Neil Pick

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  1. Neil Pick
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Correspondence to Neil Pick.

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Pick, N. What condition are your radiation protection arrangements in? . BDJ In Pract 34, 36–37 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41404-021-0807-3

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