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Back to Basics: Radiation Safety
Author(s) -
Spruce Lisa
Publication year - 2017
Publication title -
aorn journal
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.222
H-Index - 43
eISSN - 1878-0369
pISSN - 0001-2092
DOI - 10.1016/j.aorn.2017.05.001
Subject(s) - perioperative , radiation exposure , medicine , harm , patient safety , fluoroscopy , surgical team , perioperative nursing , radiation therapist , medical physics , medical emergency , intensive care medicine , surgery , psychology , radiation therapy , health care , nuclear medicine , social psychology , economic growth , economics
Perioperative team members and patients are frequently exposed to radiation during operative and other invasive procedures. The use of equipment that emits radiation (eg, a fluoroscopy unit) is beneficial for diagnosing and treating patients but carries the risk of harm if team members do not follow radiation safety guidelines. Perioperative team members should implement safety precautions for themselves and their patients when radiation is used. This Back to Basics article addresses the basics of radiation safety and the precautions that perioperative team members should implement in the perioperative setting.