Attitude of medical radiation professionals towards radiation protection principles and practices and strategies for improvement: A scoping review

Introduction/Background: Medical radiation exposure has both benefits and risks. Whilst judicious use of this essential tool in medicine enhances patient care and management, medical radiation professionals (MRPs) need to be aware of how to safely and effectively use it to avoid potential risks such as stochastic health effects. These can be achieved by adhering to various radiation protection and safety principles such as justification, optimisation, and dose limitation. However, the level of awareness and adherence to these principles by MRPs is unclear. As a result, we reviewed the current state of radiation awareness and adherence among MRPs and provided strategies to overcome the challenges associated with the low level of awareness and compliance. Methods: Arksey and O'Malley's scoping review approach was adopted. Literature was retrieved from PubMed, Scopus, and Web of Science. Content analysis was performed on the included studies to identify common trends in the literature using NVivoTM14 program. Results: The initial search produced 1,867 outcome, 13 of which were included for meeting the selection criteria. The level of MRPs' awareness and knowledge of radiation protection was unclear, and were heavily influenced by education level and clinical work experience. Strategies to address issues of non-awareness include education & training and research & innovation while radiation safety culture was identified as the strategy to enhance compliance. Conclusion: This review identified inconsistent awareness levels about radiation protection, which could hinder MRPs' level of adherence to radiation protection principles and practices, with experienced professionals often showing reduced compliance. This may result in detrimental effects to patients and reduction in the quality of their experience. There is the need for establishment of effective policies to enhance radiation safety culture among MRPs.