Health Physics in 1959
Belinda Kershaw worked at the Harwell site for 36 years in various capacities , as a Radiation Protection Adviser , in facilities and waste operations . She retired in 2020 .
I was born in January 1959 . In March that year a series of lectures was given at Harwell by the Health Physics Division . The lecture notes would have made interesting reading for a new baby girl who would ultimately work in HP at Harwell . There is much in there that is still relevant today .
As I flicked through I paused at Lecture 2 “ The Organisation of a Radiation Protection Service ” by Idris Jones , who was the Health Physics Operations Manager . Here are some examples of what I found . Some things are not a surprise to me , others I was not expecting . I think it would be interesting to hear the reactions of others working in Radiation Protection , of all ages and stages in their career . What do you think when you first read these pearls of Health Physics wisdom from 1959 ? I am sure lots of us have old examples like this from old reports and documents . Perhaps people could try and find something from the year they were born ?
( a ) Choice of staff It is obvious that not all would be
suitable for this work . There is the temperament of the candidate to be considered – whether he is psychologically equipped to maintain an attitude of cooperation and goodwill to his superiors and his team .
Medical suitability should rank very high in the choice of staff . In the recommendations of the International Committee on Radiological Protection ( 9 ) it is stated that some haematologists consider that a man should not be permitted to do this type of work if his total white cell count is less than 4,000 / mm3 . In this connection , the large day to day variation in white cell count ( 15 %) in unexposed persons should be borne in mind . Nevertheless , all new employees in radiological work should have a pre-employment blood count . Other important medical aspects are , family medical history , occupational history , and history of any previous exposures received as a result of , for example , therapeutic treatment . In some industries research is being undertaken into the concept of accident proneness and , if ways and means of diagnosing such a condition could be developed , the exclusion of those predisposed to accidents could be undertaken at the outset .
I wonder who and how the judgement was made in 1959 that someone was of the right “ temperament ”. Given the number of exforces staff we had at Harwell , I think they were seen as being entirely suitable . Nowadays psychological testing is carried out during recruitment … but have our criteria for choice of staff changed ? Do we still look for an “ attitude of co-operation and goodwill to superiors and team ”?
I was certainly surprised at the emphasis given at that time to medical suitability . I do
22 Radiation Protection Today www . srp-rpt . uk