A research team at the Western College of Veterinary Medicine (WCVM) has created a seven-minute video on radiation safety in small animal veterinary clinics — a project that's available online in four languages.
Dr. Fernando Freitas, a former graduate student and clinical intern in the WCVM's Department of Small Animal Clinical Sciences, developed the instructional videos as part of his Master of Science (MSc) degree program under the supervision of Dr. Monique Mayer, a professor and specialist in radiation oncology at the WCVM.
The free video is an training tool for veterinary workers who must take diagnostic radiographs of small animals, says Mayer.
She emphasizes that it’s important for people working with any form of ionizing radiation to be aware of the risk and to understand how to keep their dose as low as reasonably achievable.
“The whole approach to minimize risk is something called ALARA, or ‘as low as reasonably achievable,’” says Mayer, whose research team recently published a paper on radiation safety in the Canadian Veterinary Journal.
The paper highlights the importance of regularly reviewing radiation safety practices for the use of portable X-ray machines in equine practice.
Click here to view the above video in French, Spanish or Portuguese.