Tracking occupational doses of transient workers.

A number of radioactive material licensees in the United States are unaware that they are required to track the occupational doses their radiation workers receive outside thieir facilities. As a result, these licensees may be cited for not tracking offsite occupational doses and quite possible for allowing some individuals to exceed the annual limits established by regulatory agencies. The accounting of occupational doses to "transient" workers is a difficult task. Unfortunately, written guidance to assist licensees on how to properly address this issue is not available. This paper was developed to raise awareness among radiation safety professionals of the need to establish effective measures to properly track transient worker exposures and maintain compliance with regulatory limits.

Assessing consumer health information needs in a community hospital.

A study was conducted by the Oakwood Hospital Library in Dearborn, Michigan, to document health information needs and opinions among staff physicians and area health consumers. The study sought to discover which community sources, besides the hospital library, consumers were consulting for health information and how helpful these sources were; what types of health information physicians were providing to patients in their offices; and whether and how physicians and health consumers might differ in their perceptions of health information. Study results, along with suggested opportunities for additional investigation, are presented.