The dilemma of being a pregnant working nuclear medicine technologist

Objectives In the 2006 salary survey conducted by the NMTCB of certified nuclear medicine technologists CNMT; 58% of those who responded were female. The average age of all respondents was 42 years. Therefore the majority of workers in the profession could have faced or will face this dilemma. The purpose of this research was to discover the latest research on the affects of occupational exposure to the pregnant NMT and what types of accommodations are being recommended.

Methods The author used various databases to research the topic. Journals articles were reviewed along with online institutional resources such as radiation safety manuals and student handbooks. The Nuclear Regulatory Commission NRC web site was also evaluated. Radiation Safety officers in the local area were surveyed as well as a number of supervisors and NMTs who have had experience in this area.

Results From journal articles and NRC reports there has never been a report of any deterministic affects on a fetus from pregnant technologist. There have been a few articles however published outside the field; in nursing, cardiology and anesthesiology journals for example that do warn of the risks of a miscarriage or deterministic damage to a fetus if the pregnant worker is exposed to radiation on the job. Anecdotal evidence shows that the accommodations recommended for the declared pregnant technologist range from none to suspension of all hot lab duties.

Conclusions The NRC in CFR 10:20.1208 paragraph (a) states that once the pregnant technologist has voluntarily declared the pregnancy the "licensee shall ensure that the dose equivalent to the embryo/fetus during the entire pregnancy, due to the occupational exposure … does not exceed 0.5 rem”. To satisfy this in paragraph b. they further state "The licensee shall make efforts to avoid substantial variation above a uniform monthly exposure rate to a declared pregnant woman so as to satisfy the limit in paragraph (a) ". For the pregnant technologist these "efforts" vary and there is currently a lack of research into the subject to ensure some consistency and uniformity in the accommodations.