An overview of occupational internal dosimetry in the United States is given in this lecture, with the roles of stakeholders like regulators, management, and workers identified. The unique challenges facing the internal dosimetrist are reviewed along with the qualifications of an internal dosimetrist at various types of facilities. The lecture concludes with an overview of the course.

The fundamental dosimetric quantities and units used in internal dosimetry are reviewed in this lecture. In addition, the primary and secondary dose limits of ICRP 26, ICRP 60, and ICRP 103 are discussed in preparation for the following lectures.

ICRP 2 was the basis of secondary radiation protection standards in the United States for over 30 years. Although no longer in widespread use, a brief review of the ICRP 2 models and schema is useful from a historical perspective and as an introduction to the newer models and schema that have taken its place.

Internal dosimetry calculations are viewed by many as requiring a high degree of mathematical prowess, but modern computational software enables even the mathematically timid to perform sophisticated calculations as long as the conceptual basis of the calculation is adequately understood. In this session important topics like compartmental analysis, solving systems of differential equations, and probability distributions will be covered in an applied and practical manner.

Software packages such as DCAL, IMBA, Excel, R, and Mathcad that are used during the course will be reviewed in this lecture.

Course software will be provided to students two weeks before the start of the course and students are encouraged to install the software before coming to the course while they have access to their IT support staff. Students who have not installed the software can receive help doing so in this optional session and receive basic instructions on how to use the software.

The ICRP 30 DAC and ALI for a number of radionuclides are derived in great detail in this lecture. The techniques presented are valuable for not only illustrating how to calculate dose from intakes but also as an introduction to adapting the models and methods for calculating intakes from bioassay data.

Intake retention fractions (IRF) are used to estimate intakes from bioassay data. In this lecture the derivation and use of ICRP 30 IRFs will be covered.

This lecture will follow the same format as the previous one on ICRP 30, except the newer ICRP 66, 67, and 68 models and methods will be covered.

This lecture builds on the ICRP 30 IRF lecture, using the newer ICRP 66, 67, and 68 models and methods.

This is an optional hands-on lecture where students will use the software code DCAL or tables to calculate dose conversion factors and intake retention fractions and load them into spreadsheets and other software. These skills are a prerequisite for evaluating bioassay data by hand, i.e., not using a dedicated code like IMBA or AIDE.

The ICRP 100 GI tract model is the first major revision to the biokinetics and dosimetry of the GI tract since the mid-1960s. The use and implications of this new model are reviewed in this session.

The long-awaited NCRP wound model was published in 2007. The model and methods for using it to evaluate bioassay data will be covered in this lecture.

The federal regulations 10CFR20 and 10CFR835 provide instructions on who should be monitored for intakes of radioactive material and how they should be monitored. In this lecture these requirements and their impact on the design and execution of routine bioassay are reviewed.

This lecture focuses on air monitoring from the perspective of the internal dosimetrist; using air monitoring data to compliment and even replace bioassay data in the calculation of intakes.

This four-part lecture focuses on radiobioassay from the perspective of the internal dosimetrist. After a review of available analytical methods, the discussion will shift to the uncertainty of these measurements and the related concepts of detection levels. Finally, the topic of quality control in the bioassay lab will be covered, again from the perspective of the internal dosimetrist.

Now that we know the regulatory requirements for bioassay and the analytical methods that are available, we are in a position to design the routine and special monitoring programs that will meet our needs in an effective and cost-efficient manner.

In this session we will discuss the philosophy of monitoring for intakes of radioactive materials and what to do when a potential positive intake is detected.

This lecture will present in great detail the various approaches to the sometimes thorny task of modeling bioassay data from an accidental occupational exposure and assigning an internal dose to a person.

The class will work through case studies using various software packages in order to illustrate and reinforce all of the techniques discussed thus far in the class. Students are encouraged to bring relevant (properly sanitized) cases with them for the class to evaluate.

This will be a continuation of work from the previous session with an emphasis on students working through cases.

This lecture, which is presented by a physician/health physicist with expertise in treating patients who have assimilated radioactive materials, will focus on:

• Methods for reducing dose following the assimilation of radioactive materials.
• Surgical options for wound cases.
• The respective roles of the physician and internal dosimetrist following incidents.
• Homeland security issues involving exposure of the public to radioactive materials.

Emphasis will be given to NCRP Report 65 and the new NCRP Report 161, both of which deal with the management of persons accidentally contaminated with radioactive material.

There are two major compensation programs in the United States at this time that are of interest to the internal dosimetrist: one for veterans of the military exposed to radiation and radioactive materials from nuclear weapons and one for workers involved with the production of nuclear weapons. The internal dosimetry objectives of and methods used in these programs can be very different than those in occupational programs. The objective of this lecture is to present a brief overview of the internal dosimetry of the compensation programs.

Continuation of work from Thursday afternoon along with discussions of specialized topics (e.g. radon dosimetry, chelation therapy, etc.) brought up by students during the week.