Approved Dosimetry Services
Where an employer provides personal dose monitoring to non-classified workers, this does not have to be carried out by an approved dosimetry service (ADS). However, any employer who makes alternative arrangements for assessing doses to non-classified workers should be able to demonstrate that measurements and assessments have been made to a satisfactory standard.
Ionising Radiation Regulations 2017 (IRR17) came into force on 1 January 2018, replacing Regulations IRR99. The documents below have been updated to reflect the new legislation.
- Requirements for the approval of dosimetry services under IRR17 part 1 - external radiations
- Requirements for the approval of dosimetry services under IRR17 part 2 - internal radiations
- Requirements for the approval of dosimetry services under IRR17 part 3 - co-ordination and record keeping
- Requirements for the approval of dosimetry services under the IRR17 - Supplement on approval for emergency exposures during intervention - the Radiation (Emergency Preparedness and Public Information) Regulations 2019
- HSE statement on the approval of dosimetry services
You must send your ADS accurate information about your employees and tell them when a classified person ceases to be classified or leaves your employment. The ADS will send a termination record for the employee leaving.
Make sure your employees know their dose information is being kept by your ADS and that summaries are held in HSE's Central Index of Dose Information (CIDI). Employees are entitled to request from the ADS copies of their own dose records and termination reports including a complete dose history.
Regulation 22 of IRR17 sets out the requirements – see the Approved Code of Practice and guidance on the Regulations.
What you should do with worker dose summaries
Your ADS will provide you with dose summaries for all your classified workers. These provide you with valuable information to identify (and if necessary investigate) where:
- particular individuals are receiving higher doses than the norm
- doses are tending to increase in time
- doses are approaching a formal investigation level
These may point to a need for further training, a review of working conditions or even an investigation of a previously unidentified accident.
Regulation 22 of IRR17 sets out the requirements – see the Approved Code of Practice and guidance on the Regulations.