Radioprotection 2024 , 59 ( 3 ), 184 – 188 © SFRP , 2024 https :// doi . org / 10.1051 / radiopro / 2024002 Available online at : www . radioprotection . org
ARTICLE
Assessment of radiation knowledge and awareness among radiology staff in tertiary hospitals : a study in Wuxi , China
J . Yuan 1 , D . Liu a , 1 and J . Ni 1 , 2 ,*
1 Department of Radiology , The Affiliated Wuxi No . 2 People ’ s Hospital of Nanjing Medical University , Wuxi , Jiangsu Province , 214002 , China . 2 Brain institute , School of Medicine , Jiangnan University , Wuxi , Jiangsu Province , 214122 , P . R . China .
Received : 17 July 2023 / Accepted : 21 January 2024
Abstract – A number of previous studies have shown that the knowledge of radiation dose and its associated carcinogenic risk among radiology staff is inadequate . Underestimation of radiation dose and cancer risk in diagnostic procedures is prevalent , which may lead to suboptimal scanning parameters and potential overuse of radiation in daily practice . This study aimed to evaluate the knowledge of radiation dose and associated risks in common diagnostic radiological examinations among radiology staff in comprehensive tertiary hospitals in Wuxi , China . An online questionnaire survey was conducted among radiology staff from seven general tertiary hospitals .
Keywords : Radiation dose / radiation risk / diagnostic radiological examinations / radiology staff
Advancements in diagnostic radiology , including technologies like multi-slice spiral CT , have transformed the field in recent decades . These advancements have resulted in faster scanning speeds and higher resolution , making radiological examinations increasingly relied upon by clinicians ( Sun et al ., 2016 ; Cool et al ., 2019 ). Previous studies have primarily focused on techniques for reducing radiation dose and have often overlooked the awareness of radiation dose and associated risks among radiology staff ( Mossman et al ., 1982 ; Bochicchio et al ., 2001 ; Amis et al ., 2016 ; Furmaniak et al ., 2016 ; Faggioni et al ., 2017 ; Hong et al ., 2018 ). There have been few recent studies attempting to raise awareness of the potential risks and knowledge gaps regarding radiation dose during medical imaging examinations . Some reports have indicated a knowledge deficit among radiology staff concerning radiation dose and associated risks from common imaging tests ( Faggioni et al ., 2017 ). While these studies were mainly conducted in Western developed countries , as well as in South Africa and Asia-Pacific countries such as Morocco , Iran , India , Palestine , Korea , and Hong Kong , no such studies have been conducted in mainland China ( Azmoonfaret al ., 2016 ; Moifo et al ., 2017 ; Dauda et al ., 2019 ; Tahiri et al ., 2022 ; Bayatiani et al ., 2023 ; Mohebbi et al ., 2023 ). Therefore , we undertook this study to investigate the knowledge of radiation dose and related cancer risk associated with common radiological examinations among radiology staff in tertiary hospitals in
* e-mail : jianming _ ni @ 163 . com a Joint first authors , the authors contributed equally to this paper .
China . In our study , we have chosen Wuxi where situated in eastern China and is known for its relatively developed economy as our research location .
An online survey questionnaire was conducted to investigate the knowledge and awareness of radiation dose levels and associated risks among radiology staff , including radiologists , radiologic technologists , and nurses , from seven tertiary comprehensive hospitals in the study area . The design of the questionnaire and the answer options were adapted from several previously published studies ( Mossman et al ., 1982 ; Bochicchio et al ., 2001 ; Amis et al ., 2016 ; Furmaniak et al ., 2016 ; Faggioni et al ., 2017 ; Hong et al ., 2018 ). The questionnaire consisted of 17 questions ( all details are given in Appendix ).
A total of 216 questionnaires were collected , including 110 doctors ( 50.9 %), 88 technicians ( 40.7 %), and 18 nurses ( 8.3 %) ( Tab . 1 ). There was no statistically significant difference in the number of correct answers among the radiologists group , technicians , and nursing group .
The underestimation of CT ionizing radiation doses and their potential carcinogenic risks by radiology staff suggests a possible tendency for radiation overuse , such as extensive and excessive scanning ( preferring larger scan ranges ), failure to adopt low-dose scanning protocols ( excessive pursuit of image quality while neglecting the minimum requirements for diagnosis ), and neglecting reasonable shielding protection for non-scanned areas ( Fig . 1 ). The data from this study showed that 74 % of respondents overestimated the dose of CXR . In contrast to the general underestimation of CT and