Unfors RaySafe will educate interventional radiologists about measuring and reducing their own radiation dose at the 30th annual Cardiovascular and Interventional Radiological Society of Europe (CIRSE) (26–30 September, Libson, Portugal).
Excess radiation has been connected with the development of harmful medical conditions such as cataracts and brain tumours. The RaySafe i2 active dosimetry system gives real-time insight about personal radiation exposure, allowing medical staff to alter their practices in order to minimise exposure.
“Based on my own experiences in working with ionising radiation throughout my career, I feel that it is critical that physicians, nurses but also hospital administrators understand the serious health consequences that can and do result from long-term exposure to radiation,” said professor Dittmar Böckler, Department of Vascular and Endovascular Surgery, University Hospital Heidelberg, Germany. “European healthcare facilities are pioneers for protection against the troubling health consequences that come with excessive radiation exposure and have looked for ways that can guard against this type of exposure and heighten awareness through advanced technologies such as the RaySafe i2.”
CIRSE attendees will have the opportunity to try out RaySafe’s “Dose Hero”—an interactive game controlled by Xbox-Kinect to test the ability of delegates to virtually help a surgeon while avoiding exposure to excessive radiation. In the first round, the player will have to collect tools and hand them to the surgeon during a procedure, moving around the room and encountering radiation at various points. During the second round, the player receives his/her real-time dose feedback from the RaySafe i2, educating them on how much exposure he/she received during the single procedure.
“There is lack of awareness about unnecessary radiation exposure for medical staff in hospitals and clinics. We have implemented the RaySafe Dose Hero so attendees can see their own results of real-time dose feedback from the RaySafe i2,” stated Bart LeClou, director Business Area Personal Dosimetry at Unfors RaySafe. “The i2 system gives immediate feedback so corrective action can be taken to help protect every individual in the operating room. Physicians and their clinical teams need advocates to help make cath labs safe in the hospitals and across the world, and we are here to support them.”
