THE ROLE OF THE SSDL NETWORK IN DISSEMINATION OF THE PROPER MEASURING QUANTITIES

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• Abstract:

  Most of the material developed in this chapter was extracted from publications of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA). The IAEA/WHO SSDL Network, referred in this chapter as the SSDL Network, was setup in 1976 by both the IAEA and the WHO. The author of this chapter has been the SSDL Officer at the IAEA, in charge of the operational aspects of the Network for more than 10 years and then, co- scientific secretary of the Network for another 10 years. During these 20 years’ work at the IAEA, the author of this chapter has been both an active actor and also a witness of the developments of the SSDL Network. This account of developments, achievements, challenges and perspectives of the SSDL Network naturally reflects these evolutions as seen by the author.

  The reasons of the establishment of the SSDL Network are explained in the historical context of the development of external beam radiotherapy and its expansion to low- and middle-income (LMI) countries. The SSDL Network was established with a strong link to the international measurement system and has kept this link throughout these years. It can be stated, without any doubt, that the quality of radiation dosimetry performed by SSDL Network members has been greatly strengthened in the 1990s, thanks to the introduction of the ISO/IEC guide 25 (1990) and to the signing of the International Committee for Weights and Measures - Mutual Recognition Arrangement (CIPM MRA, 1999).

  The number of SSDL Network members continues to increase, growing from about 10 laboratories in 1976 to almost 90 at the end of 2021, mainly due to IAEA support and the introduction of a more stringent radiation protection regulations in an increasing number of countries that require traceability of radiation measurements in individual and area monitoring. The reasons for this expansion will be reviewed. Finally, a brief perspective of the future of the SSDL Network as well as concluding remarks will be given at the end of this chapter.

• Número de páginas: 20