Please note that this course is for private cohorts. The classroom portion allows for a maximum capacity of 8 learners, but there is no capacity limit for the stand-alone e-learning course. Please contact us for more information and delivery dates.

This e-learning course is primarily aimed at new/junior science and technical personnel involved in the process of blood and blood component irradiations. It is also useful for more experienced personnel who wish to refresh their dosimetry knowledge.

The course has been designed to support the understanding of the ISO Standard Practice for Blood Irradiators Dosimetry. It teaches theoretical knowledge in the area of dosimetry. It can be taken:

1. As a stand-alone course, or
2. As a pre-requisite for the practical component as part of a blended course (the recommended option). The practical component is delivered face-to-face at NPL’s Teddington site and teaches practical skills in the area of dosimetry

This e-learning component consists of 4 modules, covering:

• Quantities, units and radiation fundamentals
• An overview of dosimetry
• Maintenance and general care of instruments
• The evaluation of measurement uncertainty

The face-to-face practical component covers:

• Reference dosimetry in beams with energy close to that of isotope-based blood irradiators
• Traceability to UK primary standards
• Irradiation of alanine and films in bespoke phantoms
• Fundamentals of film dosimetry: film calibration, film irradiation, scanning, analysis of dose distributions (dose mapping)
• Overview of ISO Standard Practice for Blood Irradiation Dosimetry 1ISO/ASTM 51939:2017(E)
• Uncertainty budget examples:
  • for absorbed dose determination with alanine at the reference position of the irradiation canister
  • for dose mapping with radiochromic films