WHO AND RATIONAL REDUCTION OF PATIENT DOSE

WHO activities aimed at reducing patient dose, while maintaining satis factory image quality, include rational use of diagnostic imaging, eff ective choices for examinations, equipment design and specification, q uality assurance, and guidance for regulatory authorities and radiolog ical personnel. To assist its Member States in developing a rational p olicy concerning imaging services WHO provides guidance through public ations, its network of Collaborating Centres, and its expert advisers. Because approximately 2/3 of the world's population lacked diagnostic imaging services, early in the 1960s WHO became concerned with basic radiology. After several unsuccessful approaches WHO concentrated on d evelopment of the Basic Radiological System (WHO-BRS). Following a wor kshop held in Neuherberg, Germany, a guide for Quality Assurance in Di agnostic Radiology was published by WHO in 1982. A similar guide for Q uality Assurance in Nuclear Medicine was also published in 1982. In co llaboration with other international organisations WHO is preparing re vised editions of both the Basic Safety Standards for Radiation Protec tion, and the five-volume Manual on Radiation Protection in Hospitals and General Practice. Regarding future needs, within any health care s ystem these is a spectrum of imaging requirements ranging from the mos t essential to the most complex. Issues to be resolved involve the cli nical decision-making process through which diagnostic imaging examina tions are produced and the optimum mixture of imaging modalities.