Missing TLD safety badges expose Sion staff to radiation

Believe it or not, but students and 34 staff members from the BMC-run Sion Hospital’s cardiology department are exposed to radiation as there are no thermoluminescent dosimeter (TLD) badges there.

It is mandatory for all the cardiology departments in private, civic and state-run hospitals to have TLD badges, which are sanctioned by the Atomic Energy Regulatory Board (AERB), but Sion Hospital is functioning without TLD badges for the past three months.

“The students and technicians in this medical college-cum-hospital have been conducting CT scans, X rays and sonographies in the absence of these TLD badges for the past three months,” read the AERB response to an RTI query submitted by an applicant who wants to stay anonymous.

A TLD measures radiation exposure.

The TLD is an essential measure for the protection of medical staff working with radiation equipment in any hospital. The shocking revelation came through an RTI query.

When contacted, BMC’s director of major civic hospitals Dr Avinash Supe said, “This is necessary according to the guidelines set by AERB. They should have badges. It is incorrect if they are functioning without badges. I will probe the matter and get them badges.”

AERB has also issued a letter to the hospital seeking an explanation. The purpose of the TLD badges is to measure high radiation exposure, which can be the cause of cancer in those exposed. According to Indian Radiological and Imaging Association secretary Dr Jignesh Thakkar, “AERB has set this up as mandatory. I don’t know why it is not being followed at Sion Hospital.”

He added that BMC-run hospitals have too much of a workload. “If the badge reports high radiation, the person exposed to it is sent on leave for two-three days. Regular exposure to such rays can cause cancer and blindness, and even affect fertility,” he explained.

Needless to say, students and technicians at Sion Hospital seem to be living in constant fear. The head of AERB’s Radiological Safety Division said that they conduct regular inspections to ensure hospitals give TLD badges to all students and employees, since a failure to do so is a punishable offence.