Safety measures among workers occupationally exposed to ionizing radiation in hospitals in AL-Muthanna Governorate, Iraq

Abstract

Background: Health professionals working in the radiological departments of Al-Muthnia Hospital are at high risk of radiation exposure due to a lack of personal protective equipment (PPE) such as thyroid shields, genital shields, and lead glass in all radiological departments, as well as a lack of staff awareness of the need to use these PPI.

A study of the extent of the use of personal protective equipment (PPE) for radiation workers in hospitals.

Method: To determine the scope of radiation workers' obligations in hospitals about wearing personal protective equipment, a cross-sectional investigation was carried out among participants in All Radiation Units in Hospitals in the AL-Muthana Governorate.  Results: This study involved 95 participants from radiological units 95 people responded overall. Their average age was 37 years, 70.5 percent of them were men, 33.0 percent of them worked as radiographers in x-ray units, the majority of them were married, and 41.1% had diplomas or other credentials. According to the study, only 45.4 percent of staff members wear PPE(lead coat) when dealing with radiation, while 50.9-92 percent of staff members report that additional PPI, including lead glasses, genital shield, and theroid shield, are unavailable. Occupational health and safety training is only provided to 63.2 percent of the staff. At a P value of 0.05, all questions are statistically significant.

Study objective: Identify the extent of the obligations of radiation workers in hospitals in terms of wearing personal protective equipment.