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Nevada Revised Statute (NRS) 459
designates the Nevada State Health Division as the state
radiation control agency. NRS 459 further mandates the
agency to develop programs to evaluate and respond to
hazards from sources of ionizing radiation. Examples of
these radiation sources include radioactive materials
and machine-made radiation such as X-ray and
accelerator-produced radiation used in medicine and
industry.
The Radiation Control Program in
the Bureau of Health Care Quality and Compliance is the
office through which the Division accomplishes this
statute mandate.
Medical uses of radiation sources
include: radiology and nuclear medicine services to
provide diagnostic information about the status of an
organ or body part, radiation sources used for cancer
therapy by implantation of radiation sources into the
body or by external radiation by sources shielded in
devices designed to control the high levels of radiation
necessary to kill cancer with minimal impact otherwise
to the patient.
Non-medical industrial uses of
radiation sources include the X-ray scanners that you
find at most airports in the United States, fluid/level
indicators installed in factories and other industrial
environments, engineering tools for road construction,
etc.
More than 5,000 X-ray machines and
accelerators are registered and inspected by Program
staff. Staff also provides licensing and enforcement
programs for approximately 270 users of radioactive
materials for domestic purposes.
The statute authority also
supports development of radiation programs such as
public information about health effects and hazards from
all sources of ionizing radiation sources such as radon,
an indoor pollutant that is considered to be a leading
cause of lung cancer. The Health Division also is the
primary state agency responsible to provide technical
expertise to assist state, county and local agencies to
respond to emergencies where radiation sources may cause
harm to the Nevada citizens and visitor populations.
NRS 457 also requires the Health
Division to develop a program for certification of all
mammography X-ray facilities and mammography X-ray
machine operators in the state of Nevada. |
