The European ALARA Network

The European ALARA Network (EAN) promotes the optimisation of radiation protection (keeping exposures As Low As Reasonably Achievable – ALARA) across Europe. It brings together professionals, regulators, and stakeholders to share experience, develop guidance, and support the practical implementation of ALARA principles in various sectors, including industry, medicine, research, and the environment.

Issue 22 – February 2008

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The two first articles of this 22nd issue of the European ALARA Newsletter respectively present the recommendations of the 3rd RECAN Workshop and the summary of the 1st Workshop of the European ALARA Network for NORM. Then, the setting-up of the new Asia Region ALARA Network, ARAN, is evoked. The last article describes and analyses an incident in the medical sector. Following the retirement of the EAN Chairman, C. Lefaure, a new team now manages EAN: the CVs of the members of this team are included in this issue.

Finally, the final programme and the last announcement of the 11th EAN Workshop on "ALARA in Radioactive Waste Management" (Athens, Greece, 9-11 April 2008) is included.

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Presentations

Download the meeting’s presentations June 6th, 2019 ERPAN Meeting Agenda Survey on Radio-Oncologist Classification in External Radiotherapy, A. Pérez Mulas, CSN, Spain Code of Practices for the Application of IRR for Dentistry in Ireland , H. Synnott, EPA, Ireland Theft of Mo/TC Generator, N. Stritt, FOPH, Switzerland The Role of Inspection Programmes for NDT Gamma Radiography Exposure Systems […]

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Issue 21 – October 2007

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In the first article of this 21st issue, L.E.Holm, chairman of ICRP, describes the ICRP’s 2007 recommendations on radiological protection. Then, the conclusions and recommendations of the first EUTERP Workshop on "Minimal qualifications and requirement for recognition of Radiation Protection Experts and Officers" are presented. The third and fourth articles analyse two radiological incidents: the first one deals with the retrieval of a fire damaged gauge containing a radioactive source; the second one deals with an incident during treatment of a breast cancer.

Finally, the first announcement of the 11th EAN Workshop on "ALARA in Radioactive Waste Management" (Athens, Greece, 9-11 April 2008) is included.

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New ICRP’s Recommendations

At its meeting in Essen (Germany), 19-21 March 2007, the ICRP approved a new set of Recommendations on the protection of man and the environment against ionising radiation. These Recommendations will replace the Commission’s previous Recommendations from 1990 and will be soon published in the Commission’s, the Annals of the ICRP.

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The Diagnostic Reference Levels (DRLs) in Europe

The concept of the Diagnostic Reference Level (DRL), as an investigation tool to identify situations where patient doses are unusually high and in most urgent need of reduction, was adopted by the International Commission on Radiological Protection in ICRP Publications 60 and 73 and by the European Directive 97/43/Euratom.

Diagnostic Reference Levels are values which are usually easy to measure and have a direct link with patient doses. They are therefore established to aid efficient dose management and to optimize patient doses. If such doses are found to exceed the corresponding reference dose, possible causes should be investigated and corrective action taken accordingly, unless the unusually high doses could be clinically justified.

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Issue 20 – February 2007

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The 20th issue of the Newsletter presents the conclusions and recommendations of the 10th EAN Workshop on "Experience and new Developments in Implementing ALARA in Occupational, Public and Patient Exposures" (Prague, Czech Republic, September 2006) and those of the 2nd RECAN Workshop on "Implementation of ALARA in Medicine" (Cavtat, Croatia, October 2006). The third article deals with the status of the different concepts of Diagnostic Reference Levels in some European countries. The fourth article describes the statement of the French Nuclear Safety Authorities following several radiotherapy incidents and accidents. Finally, the revised Germand guideline for incorporation monitoring and the implementation of the HASS-directive in Sweden are described.

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EAN from the beginning

Since 1980 the ALARA principle has been part of the European Basic Safety Standards and has been progressively introduced into national regulations. In the Euratom Directive 96-29 ALARA was re-emphasised as the cornerstone of the radiological protection system. Throughout the 1980s and early 1990s ALARA was integrated into many organisations radiation protection programmes, particularly in […]

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