Medical imaging technologies and techniques continue to evolve rapidly and while providing unprecedented visibility into the body, their use means exposure of patients to ionizing radiation. This is an area requiring attention in Canada.
To address the need for a national strategy and action plan relating to radiation safety for medical imaging care in Canada, a coalition of key stakeholders has been formed, called Canada Safe Imaging. Canada Safe Imaging represents a collaborative undertaking between professional associations, universities, colleges, national research institutions and hospitals. Within each sector, a multi-disciplinary approach has also been adopted, involving partners, researchers, technologists, medical and health physicists and other health care providers using or prescribing the use of radiation.
One impetus for this new Canadian initiative was to align with the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) and the World Health Organization (WHO) initiative, supported by 77 countries and 16 organizations, titled the “Bonn Call-for-Action,” which outlines 10 strategies for promoting radiation protection.
Canada Safety Imaging is part of a network of radiation safety campaigns worldwide under the auspices of the International Society of Radiology.
The Canadian Association of Radiologists is currently one of the founding organizations of Canada Safe Imaging, and is pleased to be engaged in this important initiative for patient safety as it gains momentum.
Look for more information on Canada Safe Imaging coming your way in the months ahead.