Chapter DHS 157

DHS 157.03 Note Note: “Hands-on experience” includes taking radiographs, calibration of survey instruments, operational and performance testing of survey instruments and devices, film development, posting of warning signs in radiation areas, transportation of radiography equipment, posting on a bulletin board of records and radiation area surveillance, as applicable.

DHS 157.03(155) (155) “Healing arts” means a profession concerned with diagnosis and treatment of human maladies, including the practice of medicine, dentistry, osteopathy chiropractic and podiatry.

DHS 157.03(156) (156) “Healing arts screening” means the exposure of a human being to x-rays without prior examination disclosing a need for an x-ray procedure and prescription for such a study by a practitioner of the healing arts.

DHS 157.03(157) (157) “Heat unit” means a unit of energy equal to 0.75 joule. It is approximately equal to the energy given by the product of the peak kilovoltage, milliampere and seconds, which is kVp x mA x time in seconds.

DHS 157.03(158) (158) “Helmet” means a rigid respiratory inlet covering that also provides head protection against impact and penetration.

DHS 157.03(159) (159) “High dose-rate remote afterloader” or “HDR” means a device that delivers a dose rate in excess of 12 gray (1200 rads) per hour.

DHS 157.03(160) (160) “High radiation area” means an area, accessible to individuals, in which radiation levels from radiation sources external to the body could result in an individual receiving a dose equivalent in excess of one mSv (0.1 rem) in one hour at 30 centimeters from any source of radiation or 30 centimeters from any surface that the radiation penetrates.

DHS 157.03(161) (161) “Hood” means a respiratory inlet covering that completely covers the head and neck and may also cover portions of the shoulders and torso.

DHS 157.03(162) (162) “Human use” means the internal or external administration of radiation or radioactive material to human beings.

DHS 157.03(163) (163) “Image intensifier” means a device, installed in its housing, which instantaneously converts an x-ray pattern into a corresponding light image of higher intensity.

DHS 157.03(164) (164) “Image receptor support” means, for mammographic systems, that part of the system designed to support the image receptor during mammography.

DHS 157.03(165) (165) “Image receptor” means any device, such as a fluorescent screen or radiographic film, which transforms incident x-ray photons either into a visible image or into another form that may be made into a visible image by further transformations.

DHS 157.03(166) (166) “Independent certifying organization” means an independent organization that meets all of the criteria specified in 10 CFR 34, Appendix A.

DHS 157.03(166m) (166m) “Indian Tribe” means an Indian or Alaska native tribe, band, nation, pueblo, village, or community that the Secretary of the Interior acknowledges to exist as an Indian tribe pursuant to the Federally Recognized Indian Tribe List Act of 1994, 25 U.S.C. 479a.

DHS 157.03(167) (167) “Individual” means any human being.

DHS 157.03(168) (168) “Individual monitoring” means the assessment of any of the following:

DHS 157.03(168)(a) (a) Dose equivalent by the use of individual monitoring devices or by the use of survey data.

DHS 157.03(168)(b) (b) Committed effective dose equivalent by bioassay or by determination of the time-weighted air concentrations to which an individual has been exposed.

DHS 157.03(169) (169) “Individual monitoring devices,” mean devices designed to be worn by a single individual for the assessment of dose equivalent. Examples of individual monitoring devices are film badges, thermoluminescent dosimeters, optically stimulated luminescent dosimeters, pocket dosimeters, direct reading dosimeters and personal air sampling devices.

DHS 157.03(170) (170) “Industrial radiography” means an examination of the structure of materials by the nondestructive method of utilizing ionizing radiation to make radiographic images.

DHS 157.03(171) (171) “Inherent filtration” means the filtration of the useful beam provided by the permanently installed components of the tube housing assembly.

DHS 157.03(172) (172) “Injection tool” means a device used for controlled subsurface injection of radioactive tracer material.

DHS 157.03(173) (173) “Inspection” means an official examination or observation by the department including tests, surveys and monitoring to determine compliance with rules, regulations, orders, requirements and conditions of the department.

DHS 157.03(174) (174) “Interlock” means a device preventing the start or continued operation of equipment unless certain predetermined conditions prevail.

DHS 157.03(175) (175) “Internal dose” means that portion of the dose equivalent received from radioactive material taken into the body.

DHS 157.03(176) (176) “Ionizing radiation” means alpha particles, beta particles, gamma rays, x rays, neutrons, high-speed electrons, high-speed protons and other particles capable of producing ions. “Ionizing radiation” does not include radiowaves or microwaves, visible, infrared or ultraviolet light.

DHS 157.03(177) (177) “Irradiation” means the exposure of a living being or matter to ionizing radiation.

DHS 157.03(178) (178) “Irradiator” means a facility that uses radioactive sealed sources for the irradiation of objects or materials and in which radiation dose rates exceeding 5 grays (500 rads) per hour exist at one meter from the sealed radioactive sources in air or water, as applicable for the irradiator type, but does not include irradiators in which both the sealed source and the area subject to irradiation are contained within a device and are not accessible to personnel.

DHS 157.03(179) (179) “Irradiator operator” means an individual who has successfully completed the training and testing described in s. DHS 157.73 (12) and is authorized by the terms of the license to operate the irradiator without a supervisor present.

DHS 157.03(180) (180) “Irradiator operator supervisor” means an individual who meets the requirements for an irradiator operator and who physically oversees operation of the irradiator by an individual who is currently receiving training and testing described in s. DHS 157.73 (12).

DHS 157.03(181) (181) “Isocenter” means the center of the sphere through which the useful beam axis passes while the gantry moves through its full range of motions.

DHS 157.03(182) (182) “Kilovolt” or “kV” means the energy equal to that acquired by a photon with one electron charge in passing through a potential difference of 1,000 volts in a vacuum.

DHS 157.03 Note Note: Current convention uses kV to designate photons and keV to designate electrons.

DHS 157.03(183) (183) “Kilovolts peak” or “kVp” means the maximum value of the potential difference across an x-ray tube during an exposure.

DHS 157.03(184) (184) “kWs” means kilowatt second.

DHS 157.03(185) (185) “Land disposal facility” means the land, buildings and structures, and equipment used for the disposal of radioactive wastes.

DHS 157.03(185m) (185m) “Last-image hold” or “LIH” means an image obtained either by retaining one or more fluoroscopic images, which may be temporally integrated, at the end of a fluoroscopic exposure or by initiating a separate and distinct radiographic exposure automatically and immediately in conjunction with termination of the fluoroscopic exposure.

DHS 157.03(185r) (185r) “Lateral fluoroscope” means the x-ray tube and image receptor combination in a biplane system dedicated to the lateral projection. It consists of the lateral x-ray tube housing assembly and the lateral image receptor that are fixed in position relative to the table with the x-ray beam axis parallel to the plane of the table.

DHS 157.03(186) (186) “Lay-barge radiography” means industrial radiography performed on any water vessel used for laying pipe.

DHS 157.03(187) (187) “Lead equivalent” means the thickness of the material in question affording the same attenuation as lead.

DHS 157.03(188) (188) “Leakage radiation” means radiation emanating from the diagnostic source assembly except for any of the following:

DHS 157.03(188)(a) (a) The useful beam.

DHS 157.03(188)(b) (b) Radiation produced when the exposure switch or timer is not activated.

DHS 157.03(189) (189) “Lens dose equivalent” or “LDE” means the external dose equivalent to the lens of the eye at a tissue depth of 0.3 centimeter (300 mg/cm2).

DHS 157.03(189m) (189m) “License verification system” means the national verification system that enables authorized government authorities and authorized licensees to verify certain information about licensees authorized to possess, use, or ship radioactive materials.

DHS 157.03 Note Note: The system may be used to confirm that a license is valid and accurate, a licensee is authorized to acquire quantities and types of radioactive materials, and the licensee’s category 1 or 2 quantities of radioactive material inventories do not exceed the possession limits of the license.

DHS 157.03(190) (190) “Licensed or registered material” means radioactive material received, possessed, used, transferred or disposed of under a general or specific license or registration issued by the department.

DHS 157.03(191) (191) “Licensed practitioner” means a chiropractor, dentist, physician, podiatrist, physician assistant, nurse practitioner or radiologist’s assistant licensed in the state of Wisconsin.

DHS 157.03(192) (192) “Licensing state” means any state approved by the Conference of Radiation Control Program Directors, Inc., as having regulations equivalent to the Suggested State Regulations for Control of Radiation relating to NARM and an effective program for the regulatory control of NARM.

DHS 157.03(193) (193) “Light field” means the area of the intersection of the light beam from the beam-limiting device and one of the set of planes parallel to and including the plane of the image receptor, whose perimeter is the locus of points at which the illumination is one-fourth of the maximum in the intersection.

DHS 157.03(193e) (193e) “Local components” means parts of a radiation generating device x-ray system and include areas that are struck by x-rays such as radiation source housings, beam port and shutter assemblies, collimators, sample holders, cameras, goniometers, detectors, and shielding, but do not include power supplies, transformers, amplifiers, readout devices, and control panels.

DHS 157.03(193m) (193m) “Local law enforcement agency” or “LLEA” means a public or private organization that has been approved by a federal, state, or local government to carry firearms and make arrests, and is authorized and has the capability to provide an armed response in the jurisdiction where the licensed category 1 or category 2 quantity of radioactive material is used, stored, or transported.

DHS 157.03(194) (194) “Logging tool” means a device used subsurface to perform well logging.

DHS 157.03(195) (195) “Loose-fitting facepiece” means a respiratory inlet covering that is designed to form a partial seal with the face.

DHS 157.03(196) (196) “Lost or missing licensed or registered source of radiation” means a licensed or registered source of radiation whose location is unknown. This definition includes licensed or registered material that has been shipped but has not reached its planned destination and whose location cannot be readily traced in the transportation system.

DHS 157.03(197) (197) “Low dose-rate remote afterloader” or “LDR” means a device that delivers a dose rate of less than or equal to 2 gray (200 rads) per hour.

DHS 157.03(197m) (197m) ”Low specific activity” means radioactive material with limited specific activity which is nonfissile or is excepted under s. DHS 157.92 (2) (c), and which satisfies the descriptions and limits set forth in ss. DHS 157.03 (198), (199) or (200). Shielding materials surrounding the low specific activity material may not be considered in determining the estimated average specific activity of the package contents.

DHS 157.03(198) (198) “Low specific activity – I” or “LSA-I material” means any of the following:

DHS 157.03(198)(a) (a) Uranium and thorium ores, concentrates of uranium and thorium ores, and other ores containing naturally occurring radioactive radionuclides which are intended to be processed for the use of radionuclides.

DHS 157.03(198)(b) (b) Natural uranium, depleted uranium, natural thorium or their compounds or mixtures, provided they are unirradiated and in solid or liquid form.

DHS 157.03(198)(c) (c) Radioactive material, other than fissile material, for which the A2 value is unlimited.

DHS 157.03(198)(d) (d) Other radioactive material in which the radioactive material is distributed throughout and the estimated average specific activity does not exceed 30 times the value for exempt material activity concentration determined under ch. DHS 157 Appendix O.

DHS 157.03(199) (199) “Low specific activity – II” or “LSA-II material” means either of the following:

DHS 157.03(199)(a) (a) Water with tritium concentration up to 0.8 terabecquerel per liter (20.0 Ci/L).

DHS 157.03(199)(b) (b) Other material in which the radioactive material is distributed throughout, and the average specific activity does not exceed 10-4 A2/g for solids and gases and 10-5 A2/g for liquids.

DHS 157.03(200) (200) “Low specific activity – III” or “LSA-III material” means solids, such as consolidated wastes or activated materials, excluding powders, that satisfy the requirements of 10 CFR 71.77, and for which all of the following apply:

DHS 157.03(200)(a) (a) The radioactive material is distributed throughout a solid or a collection of solid objects, or is essentially uniformly distributed in a solid compact binding agent, for example, concrete, bitumen or ceramic.

DHS 157.03(200)(b) (b) The radioactive material is relatively insoluble, or it is intrinsically contained in a relatively insoluble material, so that, even under loss of packaging, the loss of radioactive material per package by leaching, when placed in water for 7 days, would not exceed 0.1 A2.

DHS 157.03(200)(c) (c) The estimated average specific activity of the solid, excluding any shielding material, does not exceed 2 x 10-3 A2/g.

DHS 157.03(201) (201) “Low toxicity alpha emitters” means natural uranium, depleted uranium, natural thorium; uranium-235, uranium-238, thorium-232, thorium-228 or thorium-230 when contained in ores or physical or chemical concentrates or tailings; or alpha emitters with a half-life of less than 10 days.

DHS 157.03(202) (202) “mA” means milliampere.

DHS 157.03(203) (203) “Mammography” means radiography of the breast, but does not include radiography of the breast performed during invasive interventions for localization or biopsy procedures.

DHS 157.03(204) (204) “Management” means the chief executive officer or other individual having the authority to manage, direct or administer the licensee’s or registrant’s activities, or those persons’ delegate or delegates.

DHS 157.03(205) (205) “Manual brachytherapy” means a type of brachytherapy in which the radioactive sources are manually inserted either into the body cavities that are in close proximity to a tumor or directly into the tumor volume.

DHS 157.03 Note Note: Examples of radioactive sources are seeds and ribbons.

DHS 157.03(206) (206) “mAs” means milliampere second.

DHS 157.03(207) (207) “Maximum line current” means the root-mean-square current in the supply line of an x-ray machine operating at its maximum rating.

DHS 157.03(208) (208) “Medical event” means an administration of radiation or radioactive material to a patient or human research subject that requires reporting to the department.

DHS 157.03(209) (209) “Medical institution” means an organization in which medical disciplines are practiced.

DHS 157.03(210) (210) “Medical physicist” means an individual with any of the following qualifications:

DHS 157.03(210)(a) (a) Certified by the American board of radiology or the American board of health physics in one or more of the following:

DHS 157.03(210)(a)1. 1. Therapeutic radiological physics.

DHS 157.03(210)(a)2. 2. Roentgen-ray and gamma-ray physics.

DHS 157.03(210)(a)3. 3. X-ray and radium physics.

DHS 157.03(210)(a)4. 4. Radiological physics.

DHS 157.03(210)(a)5. 5. Comprehensive health physics.

DHS 157.03(210)(b) (b) Certified by the American board of medical physics in radiation oncology physics.

DHS 157.03(210)(c) (c) Certified by the Canadian college of medical physics.

DHS 157.03(211) (211) “Medical use” means the intentional internal or external administration of radioactive material or the radiation from radioactive material to patients or human research subjects under the supervision of an authorized user.