Dr. Hertel and his committee will produce a report that will generally form the basis for how things are done by radiation professionals, particularly in radiation protection of individuals.  During the next three years, the committee will review the current operational quantities, their use, and relationship to recent changes in production quantities.  The end result will be a new ICRU report that addresses needed changes in operational quantity concepts and definition.

The committee will look at the two types of quantities specifically defined for use in radiological protection: protection quantities and operational quantities. Protection quantities, which are defined by the International Commission on Radiological Protection, also referred to as primary limiting quantities, are quantities that relate the “risk” of exposure to ionizing radiation taking into account humans as receptors, the different radiation sensitivities of various organs and tissues, and the differences in radiation qualities.

Operational quantities, which are defined by the UCRU, are dose quantities defined for use in radiation protection measurements for external exposure. These quantities provide an upper limit for protection quantities and are often used in place of protection quantities in practical applications and for regulatory purposes.  Operational quantities are needed for monitoring external exposure because protection quantities generally are not measurement. 

The mission of the ICRU is to “develop and promulgate internally accepted recommendations on radiation related quantities and units, terminology, measurement procedures, and reference data for the safe and efficient application of ionizing radiation to medical diagnosis and therapy, radiation science and technology, and radiation protection of individuals and populations.”

Dr. Hertel is also a member of the International Commission on Radiological Protection’s (ICRP) Task Group on Dose Calculations, where he is helps produce publications recommending various dose computations.