Radiation legal requirements
Meeting the legislative requirements (licensing, procedures, and compliance) for a radiation practice can be daunting, not to mention a frustrating process. Indeed, one can waste substantial time understanding these legal requirements, let alone applying them to practice. Of course, you still require plenty of time and energy to run your business/practice.
All practices with a radiation machine (intra oral, extra oral, CBCT, laser) must comply with the local radiation health regulatory requirements for radiation safety. The core purpose is to ensure the safety of everyone, not only for the people operating the radiation machine but also for people within proximity of the radiation machine/exposure. As you know, radiation energy is invisible yet can impact health and wellbeing if not used correctly.
Each state and territory of Australia has its radiation safety guidelines and requirements. They differ both in applications and implications. Below are the legislations and regulations governing the radiation requirements across Australia:
Queensland – Radiation Safety Act 1999 & Radiation Safety Regulation 2021
New South Wales – Radiation Control Act 1990 & Radiation Control Regulation 2013
Victoria – Radiation Act 2005 & Radiation Regulations 2007
Western Australia – Radiation Safety Act 1975 & Radiation Safety (General) Regulations 1983
South Australia – Radiation Protection and Control Act 1982 & Radiation Protection and Control (Ionising Radiation) Regulations 2015
Tasmania – Radiation Protection Act 2005 & Radiation Protection Regulations 2016
Australian Capital Territory – Radiation Protection Act 2006 & Radiation Protection Regulation 2007
Northern Territory – Radiation Protection Act 2004 & Radiation Protection Regulations 2007
It is beyond the scope of this article to go through the legislative requirements of each state/territory in detail. However, the above indicates the challenges of expanding your radiation practice into different states/territories. With every new branch you open, you must be familiar with the specific legislation and regulation for that state/territory. The radiation legislative and radiation compliance requirements are not uniform across Australia. As one can imagine and appreciate, this could get very confusing if you have multiple dental practices across Australia.
Understanding the legislation can be particularly challenging for a start-up dental practice, especially if you are unsure what steps to take to obtain the appropriate licence and compliance requirements. Some common issues include:
- Failure to apply for a radiation licence of the state/territory as required before the purchase and installation of the radiation machine
- No shielding report was prepared for the radiation room
- The radiation machines were not registered with the specific state/territory regulator
- No compliance testing was performed for the radiation machine and the radiation room.
Without obtaining reliable advice from a radiation consultant, making the above mistakes is highly possible. This could trigger an audit/inspection from the radiation health regulator, creating unwanted stress and anxiety – certainly not what you wish to encounter when starting a business! Not to mention, failure to adhere to the legislative requirements may attract significant penalties.
