• rekabis@programming.dev
        link
        fedilink
        arrow-up
        5
        ·
        1 month ago

        Dosimeters are there to warn about a short-term cumulative dose, such as a malfunction of the system that releases an unusual amount of radiation in just a few minutes. They don’t report cumulative exposure over multiple weeks, months, or years.

        • Zorcron@lemmy.zip
          link
          fedilink
          English
          arrow-up
          2
          ·
          1 month ago

          Sure they can. Regular hospitals may not use them, but nuclear pharmacies implement, among other measurements, thermoluminescent dosimeter rings and badges that are sent in to be measured monthly or quarterly to provide a cumulative radiation exposure estimate. And if your measurements pass a certain threshold, you’re not allowed to work until enough time has passed that you’re no longer over the acceptable radiation rate.

  • mkwt@lemmy.world
    link
    fedilink
    arrow-up
    43
    ·
    1 month ago

    There’s a big difference if you’re shooting x-rays on patients 8 hours per day, 2000 hours per year, vs. going in and getting one X-ray every once in a while.

  • brucethemoose@lemmy.world
    link
    fedilink
    arrow-up
    15
    ·
    1 month ago

    Caregivers generally keep track of how much radiation patients get, and even those limits are quite conservative/safe. And like others said, it’s very much one of those things where “a little is like standing out in the sun, a thousand times that is not.”

    Modern X-ray machines give much smaller doses (for the same type of scan) than older ones.

    I have a retired radiologist in the family, and the lead aprons and other protective things were hard on their back (among other things). They’re still dealing with it. And yet, family still worried about how much radiation they were exposed to. So… yeah, I have some respect for that job hazard.

    • Illogicalbit@lemmy.world
      link
      fedilink
      arrow-up
      1
      ·
      1 month ago

      Additionally a patient may get at most a few doses per year whereas the practitioner is potentially giving X-rays many times a day.

  • kinkles@sh.itjust.works
    link
    fedilink
    arrow-up
    13
    arrow-down
    7
    ·
    1 month ago

    I bet all the people here ignoring the funny to give the same explanation feel very smart today

    • chatokun@lemmy.dbzer0.com
      link
      fedilink
      arrow-up
      1
      ·
      1 month ago

      Most of it is we see this so often it isn’t really funny anymore, plus recent trends have lowered our faith that someone is making a tired and actually knows that the joke is wrong. It’s really better to explain things just in case.