The Texas Department of State Health Services has delayed the implementation of the radiation safety awareness training rule indefinitely. This rule requires all physicians, other than radiologists and radiation oncologists, as well as individuals whom a physician has delegated to perform fluoroscopic procedures, to receive 8 hours of fluoroscopic training. 

Although fluoroscopy is an essential tool for diagnosing and treating disease, rare applications have resulted in effects such as skin burns and hair loss. Fluoroscopy also has the potential of increasing the risk for cancer in both patients and operators. Training of physicians and ancillary personnel who use fluoroscopic equipment is essential in preventing or minimizing both effects and risks of radiation. This is even more critical as practitioners whose medical education originally did not include formal training in fluoroscopy are using this modality more frequently.

The National Council on Radiation Protection and Measurement’s Report 168 provides specific recommendations for facilities that perform fluoroscopic procedures. They include:

• Assuring that all operators of the system are trained and that they understand the operation of the fluoroscopic system, including the implications for radiation exposure from each mode of operation.

• Assuring that physicians performing fluoroscopic procedures are appropriately trained and credentialed, so they can, on a case-by-case basis, assess risks and benefits for individual patients, considering variables such as age, pregnancy status, beam location and direction, tissues in the beam, and previous fluoroscopic procedures or radiation therapy.

Texas patients receiving radiation exposure (a known carcinogen) by fluoroscopy should have a educationally prepared professional that is properly trained in the use of the fluoroscopic equipment and also trained in measures to properly reduce the exposure.

By delaying the implementation of rule 25 Texas Administrative Code, Section 289.227(m)(9)(E), the Texas Department of State Health Services is not acting in the best interests of the public’s health and safety.

Please sign this petition to support the implementation of radiation safety awareness training for all operators of fluoroscopic equipment.