Health physics is a field of science concerned with radiation physics and radiation biology with the goal of informing the safe use of ionizing radiation. [1] Health physicists principally work at facilities where radionuclides or ionizing radiation are used or produced such as medical institutions, government laboratories, nuclear power plants, regulatory agencies and manufacturers. A radionuclide is an Atom with an unstable nucleus, which is a nucleus characterized by excess energy which is available to be imparted either to a newly-created Image talkNew_radiation_symbol_ISO_21482svg for details --> Ionizing radiation There are many sub-specialites in the field of health physics[2], including
- Nuclear instrumentation and measurements
- Internal and external dosimetry
- Radioactive waste management
- Radioactive contamination
- Radiological engineering (shielding, holdup, etc)
- Environmental assessment
- Operational radiation protection
- Particle accelerator physics
- Radiological emergency response - (e. Radiation dosimetry is the calculation of the Absorbed dose in matter and tissue resulting from the exposure to Ionizing radiation. Radioactive wastes are Waste types containing radioactive Chemical elements that do not have a practical purpose Radioactive contamination is the uncontrolled distribution of radioactive material in a given environment Engineering is the Discipline and Profession of applying technical and scientific Knowledge and Radiation protection, sometimes known as radiological protection, is the science of protecting people and the environment from the harmful effects of Ionizing radiation g. , Nuclear Emergency Support Team)
The field of medical physics is similar to that of health physics since practitioners rely on the same fundamental science (i. The Nuclear Emergency Support Team (NEST (formerly known as the Nuclear Emergency Search Team is a team of scientists technicians and engineers operating under the United States Medical physics is the application of Physics to Medicine. It generally concerns physics as applied to Medical imaging and Radiotherapy, although e. , radiation physics, biology, etc). Health physicists, however, focus on the evaluation and protection of human health from radiation, whereas medical physicists use radiation and other physics-based technologies for the diagnosis and treatment of disease. [3]
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History of the term "Health Physics"
According to Paul Frame [4]:
"The term Health Physics is believed to have originated in the Metallurgical Laboratory at the University of Chicago in 1942, but the exact origin is unknown. The term was possibly coined by Robert Stone or Arthur Compton, since Stone was the head of the Health Division and Arthur Compton was the head of the Metallurgical Laboratory. Arthur Holly Compton (September 10 1892 &ndash March 15 1962 was an American physicist and Nobel laureate in physics for his discovery of the Compton effect The first task of the Health Physics Section was to design shielding for reactor CP-1 that Enrico Fermi was constructing, so the original HPs were mostly physicists trying to solve health-related problems. The explanation given by Robert Stone was that '. . . the term Health Physics has been used on the Plutonium Project to define that field in which physical methods are used to determine the existence of hazards to the health of personnel. '
A variation was given by Raymond Finkle, a Health Division employee during this time frame. 'The coinage at first merely denoted the physics section of the Health Division. . . the name also served security: 'radiation protection' might arouse unwelcome interest; 'health physics' conveyed nothing. '"
References
- ^ Mission Statement
- ^ Careers in Health Physics
- ^ AAPM - The Medical Physicist
- ^ Origin of "health physics"
Professional Societies
The Health Physics Society is a scientific and professional organization whose members specialize in occupational and environmental radiation safety.
See also
Certified Health Physicist is An official title granted by the American Board of Health Physics the certification board for health physicists in the United StatesDapyx Software network: MP3 Explorer | Ebook Manager | Zenithic