RADIATION EMERGENCY MEDICAL PREPAREDNESS AND

Scientific Events 2nd International Symposium convened by Fukushima MedicalUniversityBy Dr. SAITO Kiyoshi - Vice President of Fukushima Medical University2nd International Symposium, 2021The Radiation Medical Science Center for the Fukushima Health ManagementSurvey had its 2nd International Symposium on 02-03 February, 2020 inFukushima City for Fukushima residents, health and medical workers, students,teachers, and government officials.This international symposium was held to deepen the understanding of residentsabout the "Fukushima Health Management Survey (FHMS)" and to shareexperiences and knowledge from around the world. The theme of 2ndInternational Symposium was "Build Back Better, Together. Fukushima HealthManagement Survey updated, focusing on thyroid and mental health".At the symposium, Center Director Dr. KAMIYA Kenji, as well as other physiciansand researchers at the Center, presented the latest information on the results ofthe FHMS.Also, with the participation of three internationally renowned experts fromAustralia and the United States, along with domestic experts in various fields, thesymposium concluded successfully with lively discussion, addressing questionsfrom the audience and introducing the latest research results.The Center, while continuing to play a part in the revitalization andreconstruction of Fukushima through the practice of "watching over people'shealth," will strive to promulgate the results and lessons learned from the FHMSin a science-based, concise manner as much as possible as an entity involved thehealth and medical care.The CONFIDENCE (COping with uNcertaintiesFor Improved modelling and DEcision making inNuclear emergenCiEs) project, part of the H2020research project CONCERT, ended in 2019. Itbrought together 31 organisations from 18European countries to perform research on keyuncertainties relevant for decision making innuclearandradiologicalemergencymanagement, covering the early and transitionphase of an accident. Expertise from most of theRadiation Protection Platforms were combinedto tackle pending topics such as the uncertaintyof meteorological and radiological data and theirfurther propagation in decision support systemsincluding atmospheric dispersion, dose and riskestimation, food chain modelling andcountermeasuresimulations.Definingmanagement strategies with stakeholders,investigations of formal decision aiding tools –all in relation to the prevailing uncertainties atthe different phases of the accident was alsopart of the research activities. Consideration ofsocial, ethical and communication aspects aswell as education and training activities wereintegral part of the project. The CONFIDENCE Dissemination workshop“Coping with uncertainties for improvedmodelling and decision making in nuclearemergencies” summarised the achievements ofthe project and highlighting the added value forthe scientific community but also for the endusers of simulation models and decision supportsystems in national emergency centres.Results are published in the journalradioprotection and freely available under OpenAccess rules.The editorial “Editorial: the main results of theEuropean CONFIDENCE project” summarises thestructure of the project and provides referencesto all CONFIDENCE articles in Radioprotection. 4

Scientific Events May 2020 - NERIS Webinar on Chernobyl wildfiresOn 28 May 2020, In April 2020, wildfires were reported in the exclusion zonearound the damaged Chernobyl nuclear reactor. The fires reached the red forest,one of the most contaminated natural environments, and came as close as twokm from the sarcophagi covering the damaged reactor. These are not the firstwildfires after the 1986 accident and radiation scientists have recognized thepotential to return radioactive material into the air, especially cesium-137 andstrontium-90. This poses an obvious and immediate health risk to fire fighters,but smoke plumes may also transport this re-suspended radioactive materialover long distances, resulting in redistribution of the historic fall-out from theaccident. At the local and regional scale, people are concerned about thepotential radiological impact too.Several institutes have made assessments of the situation to answer theseconcerns, with a combination of satellite imagery and local observations of thefires’ location and intensity, radionuclide detection and models of atmosphericdispersion and transport of particles. Methods developed for the managementof earlier nuclear and radiological emergencies were used and new tools, likesource inversion techniques, were tested. A number of institutes have issuedgeneral statements as well as detailed reports on the Chernobyl wildfires,available to the public on websites and social media.In this webinar, we discussedthe analyses carried out bydifferent institutes, includingtheir rationales, methods,results, communication to thegeneral public as well ascollaboration among them.First several speakers brieflypresented the situation fromtheir perspective. Then, in thesecondhalf,specificquestions from the audiencewere addressed by the speakers and a moderated discussion followed.A complete report and all the available materials can be found online.(NERIS webinar: Chernobyl wildfires, May 2020)Speakers:Valery Kashparov – Ukrainian Institute for Agricultural Research, NationalUniversity of Life and Environmental Sciences (UIAR) - Ukraine Dmitry Bazyka –National Center for Radiation Medicine in Kiev, the WHO Collaborating Centerfor Radiation and Health - Ukraine Wolfgang Raskob – Karlsruhe Institute ofTechnology (KIT) – Germany Jasper Tomas – National Institute for Public Healthand the Environment (RIVM) – The Netherlands Olivier Saunier – Institute forRadiological Protection and Nuclear Safety (IRSN) – France Astrid Liland –Norwegian Radiation and Nuclear safety Authority (DSA) – Norway JohanCamps – Belgian Nuclear Research Centre (SCK CEN) - Belgium Nick Beresford –UK Centre for Ecology & Hydrology –United KingdomNews from the field Internal exposure of firefightersparticipating in response to Chernobylforest fires.By Prof. Dimitry Bazyka, National ResearchCenter for Radiation Medicine, the WHOCollaborating Center for Radiation and Health,Kyiv UkraineA fire started in the Chernobyl exclusion zone onApril 4, during COVID-19 lock-down in Ukraine.At the time many staff members of the NationalResarch Center for Radiation Medicine(NRCRM) were already working remotely,nevertheless all relevant departments of theNRCRM were available to provide the necessaryhealth care.Several health risk factors were taken intoaccount: psychological and physical pressure,high temperature, smoke, toxic compounds,radionuclide contamination and inhalation.A two-tiered individual dosimetry for internalexposure was used: mobile/stationary WholeBody Counters (operational WBCs) as well asexpert. From April 6th to May 15th 470firefighters were examined and 523 WBCmeasurements were conducted.Operational WBC monitoring results:The majority (95%) of internal 137 Cs exposureof the firefighters did not exceed the minimumdetected dose (14 μSv).Expert WBC monitoring results:The individual effective dose of internalexposure of firefighters did not exceed - 5.1 μSvfor group 1 (Kiev city); 3.5 μSv for group 2(Cherkasy Region); 11.8 μSv for group 3 (Kievregion), which is much lower than the dose limitfor the population according to the Ukrainianlegislation.Discussion Chair: Lindis Skipperud – NMBU/CERAD – Norway ChatModerators: Yevgeniya Tomkiv and Deborah Oughton – NMBU/CERAD – NorwayWebinar recording link: NERIS Webinar, video recordPhoto: courtesy of D. VishnevskyPhoto: RT 5

Scientific Events ENhancinG stAkeholder participation in the GovernancE ofradiological risks for improved radiation protection andinformed decision-making – ENGAGEBy Catrinel Turcanu, Nuclear Science and Technology Studies Unit, InstituteEnvironment, Health and Safety, Belgian Nuclear Research Centre SCK en)investigated the formal or informaldemands and expectations forstakeholder engagement in radiationprotection, and how these aretranslated into practices at nationaland local levels. It addressed threefields of exposure to ionising radiation, including nuclear emergencypreparedness, response and recovery (EPR&R). The project sought to clarify why,when and how stakeholders engage in radiation protection; study how radiationprotection culture is defined and developed, and whether it can facilitatestakeholder engagement; design a knowledge base for recording cases ofstakeholder engagement; provide guidance and co-develop recommendationsfor more robust stakeholder engagement in radiation protection.Related to EPR&R, ENGAGE highlighted that informal and bottom-upengagement can be valuable complements to institutional initiatives, butsometimes lack appreciation and support of authorities. In general, there is aneed for wider recognition among emergency management actors thatstakeholder engagement is more than a tool to reach pre-established goals: italso contributes to improved policies and decisions and has a strong ethicalunderpinning. Furthermore, emergency planning, response and recovery wouldbenefit from i) a stronger integration of stakeholder engagement in EPR&R plansand policies, with a clear allocation of responsibilities, and ii) an open and flexibleway of organizing engagement processes. Finally, ENGAGE highlighted theimportance of developing radiological protection culture in the preparednessphase in a participatory way.Photo: Participants at final ENGAGE workshop, Bratislava, Slovakia, September11-13, 2019. Source: Tatiana Duranova, VUJE.ENGAGE is part of CONCERT. This project has received funding from the EURATOM research and trainingprogramme 2014-2018 under grant agreement No 662287.6The international conferenceBiosphere compatibility of atomicenergy in Yekaterinburg, RF By Alexander Akleyev, URCRM, Chelyabinsk,the Russian FederationIn March 2020, the Urals Research Center forRadiation Medicine (URCRM) jointly with theInstitute of Industrial Ecology hosted y of atomic energy” inYekaterinburg, Russia. The event provided anopportunity for presenting the findings of theCenter’s research projects in fundamental andapplied research in the field of radiobiologyand biodosimetry.A series of outstanding reports werepresented by the URCRM specialists anddiscussed at this scientific forum as follows: Challenging issues of present-dayradiobiology (A. Akleyev), Modern dosimetry systems in radiationepidemiology (M. Degteva) EPR-dosimetry for reconstructing thedetails of human exposure inuncontrolled radiation situations (E.Shishkina), Study of layer-by-layer changes in thelens in chronically exposed people (L.Mikryukova), Biology of telomeres and radiation (Ya.Krivoshchapova), Non-targeted effects in radiobiology (Yu.Akhmadullina).The Center is open for internationalcooperation in the areas mentioned above.Please contact our secretariat, should furtherinformation be needed.

Education, Training, ExerciseLund 2019 - RENEB and EURADOS WG10 intercomparison exercise.On behalf of the joint RENEB and EURADOS WG10 intercomparison taskgroup – by Prof. Matthias Port, Institute for Radiation Biology, Munich,GermanyRadiological emergencies require early and precise diagnosis of exposedindividuals usually in the absence of an adequate individual doseassessment. Biological and physical retrospective dosimetry offer severaltechniques for dose estimation and for retrospective evaluation ofradiation injuries to initiate appropriate treatment and support clinicalguidance. In 2019 an exercise was performed jointly under the leadershipof RENEB (Running the European Network of Biodosimetry) and EURADOSWG 10: Retrospective Dosimetry. Following a similar field test conducteda few years ago within the European CATO project, a “real life” scenarioof a small scale radiation accident was simulated, including 4 phantomseach exposed in a different way, in order to test the ability of biologicaland physical methods to assess the exposure type and dose. The mainaim of the exercise was to apply biological and physical methods for doseestimation simultaneouslyand to compare the results.In this innovative andchallenging exercise weused protracted exposureto an Iridium-192 source onblood samples at varyingdistances from the source(see photo of phantoms setup). Blinded retrospectivedosimetric measurementsbased on human bloodsamples were done bydicentrics assay in parallelwith a gene expressionanalysis of candidate genesusing qRT-PCR technology by several laboratories within the RENEB andEURADOS WG 10 network. Physical dosimetric analysis was performed bya large number of laboratories from EURADOS WG 10. Exact dosimetricevaluation as well as individual analysis of the laboratory results arecurrently being processed and scientific publications are underpreparation. Expected to be published in 2020/2021 are new andsignificant findings for radiation emergency preparedness. We want tothank the organizers as well as all participants of the exercise and lookforward to the upcoming scientific discussion. Education, Training,Exercise WHO on-line training courses: Open WHOWHO Academy : WHO Academy NewsWHO Academy Home US CDC on-line training courses:Radiation Emergency Training and Education(HHS/CDC) Basic radiation principles Radiological Contaminationand Exposure Types of Radiation Radiation Basics Made Simple,including: Sources of Radiation Radioactive Decay Measuring Radiation Biological Effects ofRadiation Radiation Protection Decontamination Environmental Impact ofRadioactivity Responding to RadiationEmergencies Radiation detectors,screening of externalcontamination How to Use Hand-held RadiationSurvey Equipment (Part 1) Ionization Chambers (Part 2) Alpha Scintillation Detectors (Part3) PublicHealthResponsetoRadiological and Nuclear Threats Radiological Terrorism: Just in TimeTraining for Hospital Clinicians 7

Education, Training, ExerciseComing, Going Training activities of the Civil Protection School of Austria sFederal Ministry of the InteriorBy Almira Geosev, Austria s Federal Ministry of Interior, Civil Protection SchoolThe Civil Protection School of Austria s Federal Ministry of the Interior had topostpone most of its training activities planned for the first half of the year dueto COVID-19. However, in February and March, several trainings for special forcesof the Austrian Police were held with a special focus on Personal ProtectiveEquipment (PPE). Many of the trainees, all radiation protection specialists, werepart of so-called competence teams to respond to deployments with COVID-19cases or suspected cases involved. We also provided our CBRN expertise whenquestions about decontamination came up. Furthermore, two members of ourunit supported the national crisis and disaster response staff established at theMinistry of Interior.The COVID-19 pandemic did not stop activitiesfor the IAEA “international Network forEducation and Training” (iNET-EPR), whereAustria currently holds the Network Vice Chair(Mrs. Almira Geosev, in photo). Several onlinemeetings of the working groups took place,including the IAEA webinar on June 2nd withmore than 200 participants. At this occasion,Almira presented our activities as an IAEACapacity Building Centre in EmergencyPreparedness and Response (CBC-EPR) from2016 to date. Last, but not least the Web Portalof iNET-EPR has been launched.Check it out: IAEA - iNet-EPRPhoto: participants ofthe training at theCivilProtectionSchool of Austria sFederal Ministry ofthe Interior (by. A.Geosev) WHO EURO Workshop on Rapid Risk Assessment of Acute PublicHealth Events (by Zhanat CARR, WHO, Geneva)On 20-24 July 2020, WHO Country Office in Ankara, Turkey,organized a national workshop on Rapid Risk Assessment of AcutePublic Health Events for health care professionals of Turkey, whoare involved in planning and managing health emergencies andmitigation of their consequences. The training programme includeda full day dedicated to each of the biological, chemical, radionuclear hazards, as well as natural disasters. WHO RadiationProgramme provided technical support for the WS and organized atable-top exercise involving a nuclear emergency scenario. 8 Since July 2019, Dr. Maria AngelicaWasserman became director of Institute ofRadiation Protection and Dosimetry (IRD), atthe National Nuclear Energy Commission(CNEN), Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Angélica hasspent the past 24 years as a researcher,contributing in the field of the tropicalradioecology.IRD is one of the WHO Liaison Institutes inSouth America.The institute is also the National WarningPoint under the IAEA’s Convention on EarlyNotification of a Nuclear Accident. Lesley Prosser left her job at thePublic Health England in June 2020.Lesley joined the UK National RadiologicalProtection Board (NRPB) in 1988. Themajority of Lesley’s career was focussed onRadiation Emergency Preparedness andResponse, eventually becoming the Head ofthe Radiation Hazards and EmergenciesDepartment in PHE.We express our enormous gratitude forLesley’scontributions to strengthenemergency arrangements in the UK andinternationally,especiallyundercollaboration related to PHE Centre forRadiation, Chemical and EnvironmentalHazards being a WHO collaborating centreand a long-standing member of REMPAN.

Coming, GoingEducation, Training, Exercise NIMS TRAINING PROGRAM 2020Each day across the nation, communitiesexperience incidents and disasters thatrequire an effective response from localagencies working across jurisdictions andusing similar processes and systems. FEMA’sNational Incident Management System (NIMS)provides principles, structures, and processesthat link the nation’s responders together,enabling them to meet challenges that arebeyond the capacity of any single jurisdictionor organization. The effectiveness of NIMShinges on how well incident personnel at alllevelsunderstandtheirrolesandresponsibilities. Training is critical to building acommon understanding and ensuring thatresponders apply NIMS concepts across state, local, tribal, and territorialjurisdictions and partners. NIMS training is one piece of a comprehensiveincident management program involving a continuous cycle of planning,organizing, equipping, exercising, evaluating, and taking corrective actions. In2017, FEMA revised NIMS to incorporate lessons learned, best practices, andchanges in national policy, including updates to the National PreparednessSystem.1 This NIMS Training Program incorporates the revised NIMS content andclarifies recommended training for incident personnel. This training programsupersedes all prior versions of NIMS training and the Five-Year NIMS TrainingPlan.NIMS Training Program 2020 IAEA’swebinars series 2020Dr. Adilson Bernardo has been selectedas Director of Electro-nuclear MedicalAssistance Foundation (FEAM). Dr. AdilsonBernardo is a physician with largeexperience in radiation emergencypreparedness and response. Has worked asa member of the radiation emergencymedical team of Almirante Alvaro AlbertoNuclear Central Station (CNAAA), Angra dosReis, Brazil, from 1978 to 1998. From 2001to 2003 was the coordinator of all themedical response in case of nuclearaccidents at CNAAA. During this time,actively participated in several drills of theLocal Emergency Plan. Public Health England Centre forRadiation, Chemical and EnvironmentalHazards (PHE CRCE), UK are focusing on various aspects of emergency preparedness andresponse, including for example: "Combined Emergencies" (2020/05/28)"Protection Strategy" (2020/06/10)"NPP Emergency Case Study: Three Mile Island NPP Emergency inlight of new EPR guidance" (2020/06/24)"Medical Physicists: Preparedness and response for nuclear andradiological emergencies" (2020/07/09)"Developing ebinar and related materials are available on IAEA’s e-learningplatform for registered users with NUCLEUS account:https://websso.iaea.org/Dr Connaugh Fallon is a Senior RadiationProtection Scientist and On-call Officer inthe Emergency Response Group at PHE’sCentre for Radiation, Chemical andEnvironmental Hazards. This role includesthe coordination and support of PHE’semergency response capabilities. Connaughhas a research background in nuclearforensicsandenvironmentalradiochemistry, with a PhD from theUniversity of Manchester. Prior to joiningPHE in January 2020, Connaugh was avisiting researcher at the University ofHelsinki Image credit: IAEA webinar repository website9

News from Network Members Updates from the Swiss Federal Office for Public Health (SFOPH)On 21 February 2020, SFOPH held a national meeting of medicalspecialists in Bern, Switzerland. Meeting participants discussed thearrangements for clinical management of patients over-exposedto ionizing radiation, treatment modalities, resources allocation,capacity building, specialist training and education possibilities,and resources allocations. The meeting was atten

IRPA15 Congress, both events postponed to January 2021; - IAEA’s Competent Authorities meeting was held via Webex on 15 to 18 June 2020; - The 10th Meeting of the IAEA’s Emergency Preparedness and Response Standards Committee (EPReSC) was held virtually on July 15 2020 - the annual meeting of the Global Health