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The Ionising Radiation (Medical Exposure) Regulations 2000

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2.—(1) In these Regulations—

“adequate training” means training which satisfies the requirements of Schedule 2; and the expression “adequately trained” shall be similarly construed;

“appropriate authority” means the Secretary of State as regards England, the National Assembly for Wales as regards Wales, or the Scottish Ministers as regards Scotland;

“assessment” means prior determination of amount, parameter or method;

“child” means a person under the age of eighteen in England and Wales or a person under the age of sixteen in Scotland;

“clinical audit” means a systematic examination or review of medical radiological procedures which seeks to improve the quality and the outcome of patient care through structured review whereby radiological practices, procedures and results are examined against agreed standards for good medical radiological procedures, intended to lead to modification of practices where indicated and the application of new standards if necessary;

“diagnostic reference levels” means dose levels in medical radiodiagnostic practices or, in the case of radioactive medicinal products, levels of activity, for typical examinations for groups of standard-sized patients or standard phantoms for broadly defined types of equipment;

“dose constraint” means a restriction on the prospective doses to individuals which may result from a defined source;

“the Directive” means Council Directive 97/43/Euratom(1) laying down measures on health protection of individuals against the dangers of ionising radiation in relation to medical exposure;

“employer” means any natural or legal person who, in the course of a trade, business or other undertaking, carries out (other than as an employee), or engages others to carry out, medical exposures or practical aspects, at a given radiological installation;

“employer’s procedures” means the procedures established by an employer pursuant to regulation 4(1);

“equipment” means equipment which delivers ionising radiation to a person undergoing a medical exposure and equipment which directly controls or influences the extent of such exposure;

“evaluation” means interpretation of the outcome and implications of, and of the information resulting from, a medical exposure;

“health screening” means a procedure using ionising radiation for early diagnosis in population groups at risk;

“individual detriment” means clinically observable deleterious effects that are expressed in individuals or their descendants the appearance of which is either immediate or delayed and, in the latter case, implies a probability rather than a certainty of appearance;

“ionising radiation” means the transfer of energy in the form of particles or electromagnetic waves of a wavelength of 100 nanometres or less or a frequency of 3 × 1015 hertz or more capable of producing ions directly or indirectly;

“medical exposure” means any exposure to which regulation 3 applies and which involves an individual being exposed to ionising radiation;

“medical physics expert” means a person who holds a science degree or its equivalent and who is experienced in the application of physics to the diagnostic and therapeutic uses of ionising radiation;

“medico-legal procedure” means a procedure performed for insurance or legal purposes without a medical indication;

“occupational health surveillance” means medical surveillance for workers;

“operator” means any person who is entitled, in accordance with the employer’s procedures, to carry out practical aspects including those to whom practical aspects have been allocated pursuant to regulation 5(3), medical physics experts as referred to in regulation 9 and, except where they do so under the direct supervision of a person who is adequately trained, persons participating in practical aspects as part of practical training as referred to in regulation 11(3);

“patient dose” means the dose concerning patients or other individuals undergoing medical exposure;

“practical aspect” means the physical conduct of any of the exposures referred to in regulation 3 and any supporting aspects including handling and use of radiological equipment, and the assessment of technical and physical parameters including radiation doses, calibration and maintenance of equipment, preparation and administration of radioactive medicinal products and the development of films;

“practitioner” means a registered medical practitioner, dental practitioner or other health professional who is entitled in accordance with the employer’s procedures to take responsibility for an individual medical exposure;

“quality assurance” means any planned and systematic action necessary to provide adequate confidence that a structure, system, component or procedure will perform satisfactorily and safely complying with agreed standards and includes quality control;

“quality control” means the set of operations (programming, coordinating, implementing) intended to maintain or to improve quality and includes monitoring, evaluation and maintenance at required levels of performance;

“radiodiagnostic” means pertaining to in vivo diagnostic nuclear medicine, medical diagnostic radiology and dental radiology;

“radioactive medicinal product” has the meaning given in the Medicines (Administration of Radioactive Substances) Regulations 1978(2);

“radiological” means pertaining to radiodiagnostic and radiotherapeutic procedures and interventional radiology or other planning and guiding radiology;

“radiological installation” means a facility containing equipment;

“radiotherapeutic” means pertaining to radiotherapy including nuclear medicine for therapeutic purposes;

“referrer” means a registered medical practitioner, dental practitioner or other health professional who is entitled in accordance with the employer’s procedures to refer individuals for medical exposure to a practitioner.

(2) In these Regulations—

(a)any reference to a numbered regulation or schedule is a reference to a regulation of or Schedule to these Regulations;

(b)any reference in a regulation to a numbered paragraph is a reference to the paragaph so numbered in that regulation.

(1)

OJ No. L180, 9.7.97, p.22.

(2)

S.I. 1978/1006.

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