Occupational Intakes of Radionuclides Part 1 - ICRP

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DRAFT REPORT FOR CONSULTATION
5 MONITORING PROGRAMMES
5.1 Introduction
(268) The design and management of monitoring programmes is considered in this
chapter. It is recommended that the emphasis in any particular monitoring programme
should be on the formal assessment of doses to those workers who are considered
likely to receive routinely a significant fraction of the relevant dose limit, or who
work in areas where exposures could be significant in the event of an accident.
(269) In general, the assignment of an internal exposure monitoring programme to
an individual should be based on the likelihood that the individual could receive an
intake of radioactive material exceeding a predetermined level, as a result of normal
operations or in the event of an accident. The use of individual monitoring for
workers whose effective doses from annual intakes could exceed 1 mSv is common
practice in many organisations, although it may not be required by legislation.
(270) It is important to consider both the monitoring programme design and the dose
assessment process as integral parts of the overall radiation protection programme. An
appropriately designed monitoring programme should provide the data necessary to
enable a dose assessment to meet the specified need; even the most sophisticated dose
assessment calculations cannot compensate for inadequate monitoring data.
(271) Where assessed doses could be significant, there is much to be gained from
using a combination of different monitoring methods (e.g. lung, urine, faecal
monitoring and exposure monitoring in the workplace), since they provide
complementary information. For instance, direct bioassay measurements provide
information on deposition and retention in organs, urine measurements can provide a
measure of systemic uptake, while workplace monitoring can provide information on
airborne activity, particle size and chemical form.
(272) The assessment of intakes and/or doses using those measured activities
(bioassay monitoring results and measurements of the workplace) may be complex
and often needs professional judgment, on a case by case analysis. Responsibilities for
dose assessment should only be assigned to professionals with adequate expertise and
skill, acquired through appropriate education, training and practical experience.
5.2 General Principles for the Design of Individual Monitoring Programmes
(273) A specification for an individual monitoring programme includes the
monitoring method (or methods) to be employed (e.g. measurement of activity in the
body, in excreta samples, and exposure monitoring in the workplace), the
measurement technique used (e.g. photon spectrometry, alpha spectrometry, mass
spectrometry), monitoring intervals for routine monitoring, and measurement or
sample collection times for special monitoring.
(274) Many factors need to be taken into consideration when designing an
individual monitoring programme. These include the purpose of the monitoring (e.g.
whether it is carried out to demonstrate compliance with regulatory requirements, or
simply to confirm that doses are very low), local factors such as the number of
workers to be monitored and the availability of particular measurement methods, and
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