ron thurlow newsletter - hps chapters · incidents that have an impact on a wide geographical area....

PresidentChris Martel306 Hayden RoweHopkinton, MA 01748617-638-7 419 (W)[email protected]

President-ElectRon Thurlow21 Myrtle AvenueNewburyport, MA 01950603-773-7 438 (W)[email protected]

Immediate Past PresidentMargaret McCarthy30 North Farms RoadHaydenville, MA 01039-9724413-755-4 624 (W)[email protected]

SecretaryJohn Sumares617-427-2 944 (W)[email protected]

TreasurerMichael Whalen617-427-2 944 (W)[email protected]

RETURN ADDRESS:

Publicity/Public RelationsDoug LaMayMIT (NW12-114)138 Albany StreetCambridge, MA [email protected]

Newsletter

NEW ENGLAND CHAPTEROF THE

HEALTH PHYSICS SOCIETY

Volume XXXXI No. 7June 2005

Visit our web site at www.nechps.org.

Program CommitteeRon Thurlow603-773-7 438 (W)

Admissions CommitteeTara Medich617-724-4 578 (W)

Affiliate Relations CommitteeJohn Anderson, Jr.781-828-9 118 (W)

Awards CommitteesMargaret McCarthy413-755-4 624 (W)

Cont Ed / Long Range PlanningVictor Evdokimoff978-456-8524 (H)

Finance CommitteeMichael Whalen617-427-2 944 (W)

History CommitteeAnthony Honnellio617-427-2 944 (W)

Student AffairsDavid Medich978-934-3 372 (W)

New England Chapter of the Health Physics Society Newsletter * Volume XXXXI No. 7 * June 2005

HPS Annual- Call for Volunteers

We're looking for volunteers for the LocalArrangements Committee. If you want to help planthe 2006 HPS Annual Meeting, please contact:

Ninni Jacob at [email protected] or (401)863-1738, OR

Bob Scott at [email protected] or (401) 322-0576.

Enhancing the State Response

System - Part I of II By Tom O’Connell

State Departments of Public Health play a new andenhanced role in the arena of preparedness forresponse to large-scale emergencies and to eventscaused by acts of terrorism. Emergency responseactivities once resided in the civil defense andrecently in the emergency management programswithin the fifty United States.

Now in the changing emergency response paradigm,planning and responding to emergencies, which havethe potential to impact the health care infrastructure,have sparked efforts and monies to be allocated toincreasing the capabilities of state health careresponse. These initiatives seek to provide trainingand health care infrastructure improvements to amuch wider population of personnel and facilitieswithin the health care industry.

These recent initiatives do not imply that thetraditional emergency preparedness and responseagencies have gone by the wayside. This focus onimproving the emergency planning and responsecapabilities of the health care infrastructure is asynergistic effort to build upon the existing responsesystem within a state. The improvements that aremade will improve the overall abilities of a state andthe nation to safely and effectively respond toincidents that have an impact on a wide geographicalarea.

These preparedness initiatives are currently fundedthrough the U.S. Department of Health and HumanServices through various state grant programs.

Preparing a response system to handle a critical and/ormass casualty incident requires the identification of thevulnerability of the system. It also requires thedevelopment of an infrastructure that reduces thevulnerability and enhances the system's capabilitiesduring times of crisis in addition to addressing theincidents that occur on a daily basis.

The intent of these preparedness initiatives is toimprove and enhance the state of readiness in a numberof the response infrastructure areas. These areasinclude the acute-care medical infrastructure and theother medical assets within a state, the ability tocommunicate and integrate within and across stateborders, and crosscutting initiatives with other stateagencies.

Preparedness Roots-Learning from the Past

In the new paradigm of preparedness we can reachback into the efforts that were conducted in the1940-1990s to polish and update them to reflect therealities of the new millennium. One only needs tolook back into the old Civil Defense Agency andDefense Civil Preparedness Agency to find a completecadre of documents discussing the planning and post-attack response operations for radiological defense.

The traditional role of the Civil Defense agency was toprepare a nation for the response to a large-scaleincident. That incident could have been man-madelike a nuclear weapon from a hostile enemy state or anatural disaster such as a hurricane or tornado.

The United States government paid for the productionof a variety of preparedness films starting in the 1940son emergency response activities covering topics likebiological warfare, chemical warfare and nuclearsurvival. If this is all sounds very familiar you areright. Take a look at the training material producedduring the last half of the twentieth century inpreparedness for the cold war and you will find strikingsimilarities to the preparedness documents beingproduced since the events of 2001 collectively woke anation to the realization that terrorism can take placeon any piece of land on the earth.

Response Roles Today

Emergency management agencies are still the


underlying cornerstone of preparedness and planningfor emergencies, public safety agencies (firedepartment, law enforcement and emergency medicalservices) and public health now play roles that havenot been thought traditionally to lie in the world ofemergency response and preparedness.

Everyday emergencies at a local level, not drilled orexercised, but that happen everyday in yourcommunity are handled by fire departments, lawenforcement, emergency medical services and thehealth care infrastructure. These agencies are thenew face of emergency response and will be the firstto the scene. These groups have always been a greatnational response asset. Here is a ready pool ofprofessionals that understands and acts to respond toeveryday incidents.

These everyday incidents require fast size-up, lifesafety decisions, and timely actions taken to mitigatethe incident.

Coupled with these responders is an asset that everyone of us has used to tend to a sore throat, brokenbone or urgency care situation. It is the health careinfrastructure.

In most run-of-the-mill incidents, such as a car crash,heart attack, or fall on a playground, the health careinfrastructure ends up serving an important role to theresponse agencies that resolve and mitigate theincident. Health care and first responders work handin hand every day. [Part II of this piece will appearin the next Newsletter]

IAEA to Help Curb Illegal ArtTrafficking

IAEA Staff Report- Better known for its work toprevent nuclear smuggling, the IAEA is now helpingcountries to crack down on the illegal trade incounterfeit art. Art fraud and the black-market tradein cultural objects is a major source of internationalcrime, according to the US Federal Bureau ofInvestigation (FBI). In a bid to reduce it, the Agencyhas teamed up with experts from France's famousLouvre museum and fourteen other countries acrossEurope, South America, Africa and Asia to usenuclear science to identify authentic artworks fromphoneys.

The IAEA project brings museum conservators,analytical researchers and law enforcement officerstogether to apply nuclear analytical applications todetect bogus or fake works of art. Some of thetechniques include neutron activation analysis and ionbeam analysis. They involve shooting a beam ofneutrons or protons at a sample area of the artwork.The reaction reveals a wealth of information, includingthe trace elements present, which help scientists toidentify the object's origin and age without causingany damage. Even the most minute analyticalquantities can be traced safely and accurately.

For example, a portrait of Renaissance French potterBernard Palissy was revealed as a fake, after nuclearanalysis performed at the Louvre exposed that the paintfrom the artist's signature was scribed two centuriesafter Palissy's death.

The sensitive analysis also sheds light on the lives ofancient cultures. Analysis of a statue of an Ishtargoddess discovered near Babylon, for example, showedthat the figurine's eyes and navel were fashioned withthe most ancient rubies found in the Middle East(rather than red glass or garnets as previously thought).The analysis provided evidence of a previouslyunknown gem trade route between South-East Asia andMesopotamia during the 1st century BC.

According to Interpol the illicit trade in art and culturalobjects is sustained by the demand from the art market,the opening of borders, improvements in transportsystems and the political instability of certaincountries.

The IAEA project begins this year to extend the use ofnuclear analysis to Brazil, Mexico, Peru, Cuba, China,Malaysia, Syria, Ghana, Kazakhstan, Croatia andHungary, with technical assistance from France,Germany, Greeceand Poland. IAEA chemist, Mr.Matthias Rossbach, said the project would boost thesecountries abilities to detect illegal export of objectsprotected by international laws and pillaged fromarchaeological sites. He said law enforcementpersonnel, for example, could use portable elementalanalysers at borders to help combat art trafficking.

It is expected that extending this technology todeveloping countries will also help in the safe-keeping,conservation and restoration of the nations’ heritage.


DOT T RAINING A S UCCES SMargare t Mccarthy

Margaret E McCarthy, Ph.D. (Immediate PastPresident of the NECHPS) with John Sowa, Ph.D.from the NENYCHPS (as the speaker contact person)brought together HPS members from the states ofMaine, Massachusetts, Connecticut, New Hampshire,and New York. These two chapters sponsored an all-day Transportation of Radioactive Materials (USDOT 49 CFR) training program. The course wastaught on the lovely Massachusetts Arbor Day, Friday29 April 2005, on the historical grounds ofSpringfield Technical Community College,overlooking the Armory Museum in Springfield, MA.The historic brick buildings and the best example ofbrick historic horse stables on 10 acres aresurrounded by a fence cast from the cannons of theWar of 1812.

The presenter was Roy A. Parker, Ph.D. Roy flew infrom Baton Rouge, LA specifically for this course.Roy has been the Radiation Physics Consultant tomajor clients in transportation, medicine, industry,and academia and, in particular, Federal Express formore than 27 years. He is a Charter Member of theHealth Physics Society.

The course was well received in content andpresentation. The lectures were followed by detailedexercises on marking, labelling, and packaging.There were discussions for specific cases forcompliance.

The attendees represented a broad professionalspectrum. Many were RSOs from the medical arena;Baystate Medical Center is the second largest in NewEngland and sent a large contingent from MedicalPhysics. University RSOs, members of researchacademia and military personnel were present as well.The Connecticut Chapter of the HPS sent its officers.

I did tout the HPS society as number-one by colorcoordinating the desert Jello™ in magenta and yellow(raspberry & lemon!).

[If you’d like to contribute a piece, or even an ideafor an article, contact the editor at [email protected] (617) 253-4203.]

NECHPS NOMINATIONS

In accordance with Article VI, Section 2 of the ChapterBylaws, the following candidates are submitted forChapter Offices during the 2004-2005 Chapter Year(election to be held 6/8/04).

President-Elect: Mike WhalenTreasurer: Anthony Honnellio

Directors: Art GreenSeb CanataBob Thomson

New Members

If you know anyone who wants to join NECHPS, tellhim/her to visit the website (www.nechps.org) orcontact Tara Medich at 617-724-4578. Studentmembers are always welcome, and remember, studentmembership is free!

Membership Dues

Members are reminded that you should pay your duesas soon as possible to ensure that your membershipstatus remains in good standing. Dues are $10.00 peryear, however, a payment of $40.00 will earn you 5years of Chapter membership.

New Address??

To change your address or contact information, visitthe NECHPS website at www.nechps.org. Up-to-dateinformation will ensure accurate entries for everyonein the NECHPS Membership Directory.

Upcoming Meetings

Visit the NECHPS website at www.nechps.org forinformation about other local professional societymeetings that are scheduled for the coming months.


NECHPS ANNUAL MEETING

Date: June 7th, 2005

Location: Westford Regency, Westford, MA

Program: 7:30 Registration8:30 Opening Remarks8:45 Presentations10:00 Break / Vendor Exhibits10:45 Presentations11:30 Buffet Lunch12:45 NECHPS Business Meeting1:15 Presentations1:45 Break2:45 Update on the 2006 National Meeting in Providence / Final Presentation and Theme for

NECHPS in the 2005-2006 Chapter Year4:00 Adjournment

Cost: $60.00 Members, $70.00 Guests, and $10.00 Students Presentation topics include: details on the new and controversial proposed clearance rule, decommissioningof a thorium facility in New England, environmental monitoring for an operating nuclear power station, radiationsafety precautions in veterinary medicine, update on the 2006 National HPS Meeting in Providence, RhodeIsland, and more.

The registration deadline is June 3rd, 2005!

Please note, you can make payment after 6/3, up to and including the day of the event (pay “at the door”);however, no matter when you make payment, you must register by June 3rd.

If you register then decide to cancel, you must do so before June 3rd, or you are responsible for payment.

To Register:

call : (603) 773-7438 or e-mail: [email protected]

Directions:

Traveling North

On Interstate 495, take Exit 32 and turn right at the end of exit ramp. Proceed to the first intersection and turnright on Route 110 west. The Westford Regency is 1/4 mile on your right.

Traveling South

On Interstate 495, take Exit 32 and turn left at the end of the exit ramp. Proceed to the first intersection andturn right on Route 110 west. The Westford Regency is 1/4 mile on your right.

For additional information please call: (978) 692-8200 or go to: http://www.westfordregency.com.


DIRECTIONS TO THE WESTFORD REGENCY219 Littleton Road, Westford, MA 01886

Directions

Traveling North:

On Interstate 495, take Exit 32 and turn right at the end of exit ramp. Proceed to the first intersectionand turn right on Route 110 west. The Westford Regency is 1/4 mile on your right.

Traveling South:

On Interstate 495, take Exit 32 and turn left at the end of the exit ramp. Proceed to the firstintersection and turn right on Route 110 west. The Westford Regency is 1/4 mile on your right.

For additional information please call: (978) 692-8200 or visit:

http://www.westfordregency.com.

ron thurlow newsletter - hps chapters · incidents that have an impact on a wide geographical area....

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