Africa-Press – Mauritius. A ‘Regional Training Course to Train the Trainers in Radiation Safety Culture’, organised by the Ministry of Health and Wellness, in collaboration with the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), kicked off, today, at Casuarina Resort and Spa in Trou aux Biches. Some 24 delegates from 18 African IAEA Member Countries, including Mauritius, are taking part in the five-day training.
The initiative falls under the framework of the African Regional Cooperative Agreement for Research, Development and Training related to Nuclear Science and Technology (AFRA) regional project RAF9064, ‘Improving the Capabilities of States in Radiation Protection of Patients’.
The objective is to assist IAEA Member States in creating a pool of trainers with the technical competence, practical experience and teaching skills needed to establish a sustainable national training programme for radiation protection officers.
The Minister of Health and Wellness, Dr Kailesh Kumar Singh Jagutpal, opened the training, this morning, in the presence of the IAEA Radiation Protection Specialist, Ms Debbie Gilley, and other IAEA Experts and Technological Officers.
In his address, Dr Jagutpal recalled the crucial importance of radiation in medicine, used both in diagnostics and therapeutics in departments ranging from Radiology, Radiotherapy to Nuclear Medicine which, he underlined, relied on the safe and optimal use of ionising radiation.
However, stressed the Minister, unintended exposure to ionising radiation could be detrimental to patients as well as staff. He cited the use of radiation therapy which, though was an effective treatment for cancer, could cause some severe side effects.
The Minister thus highlighted the necessity for all radiation workers in different units, whether medical or non-medical, to be inculcated with the concept and principles of radiation protection and safety culture.
According to Dr Jagutpal, education and sensitisation were two powerful tools to ensure that staff working with ionising radiation were fully aware of the dangers associated with their job and the adverse consequences on the patients.
Moreover, the Health Minister expressed his thanks to the IAEA for holding the training course in Radiation Safety Culture in Mauritius, especially in light of the setting up of a New Cancer Centre comprising high-end, state-of-the-art medical technologies such as Nuclear Medicine.
Dr Jagutpal also spoke of Government’s commitment to ensure that these technologies were safe to be used effectively for patients as well as for the personnel.
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