Training Sessions for Persons Involved in Nuclear and Radiation-Related Activities

The Hazardous Substances Regulatory Authority (HSRA) is encouraging persons involved in nuclear and radiation-related activities to enhance their understanding of regulatory requirements and contribute to a safer and more compliant industry.

This can be achieved through participation in a series of training sessions slated to take place in March of this year.

Sharing details on the sessions, Director General of the HSRA, Dr. Cliff Riley, said, “They will provide participants with knowledge on the requirements outlined in the Nuclear Safety and Radiation Protection (NSRP) Act of 2015 and Regulations of 2019 as well as international best practices to ensure safety… and reduce exposure for our Radiation Safety Officers (RSOs).”

The sessions will be conducted by experienced personnel from the Authority’s Authorisation and Training Unit.

Speaking to the significance of hosting these sessions, Dr. Riley informed that “the HSRA team engages in extensive training sessions both locally and internationally, [so they have a] body of knowledge that we need to relay to our clients in Jamaica to ensure that the overall NSRP system itself is robust and we not only meet our obligations internationally from the regulator’s perspective but also from the service delivery perspective”.

The Director General told JIS News that while the sessions will primarily target RSOs, discussions will be had with Brokers to share knowledge on the “steps and procedures that they should follow [when] importing, managing, transporting as well as transferring the different ionising radiation sources that they procure on behalf of different clients”.

Additionally, he shared that “discussions with different regional health authorities are in place to ensure that there is some clarity, we are all on the same page and that there are channels in place to allow for effective communication and knowledge sharing to strengthen the overall management system across the country”.

While these sessions are the major focus for the HSRA for this quarter of the 2023/2024 financial year, they do offer training in other areas such as how to properly fill out the application forms for facilities seeking authorisation to use ionising radiation sources in their operations, emergency preparedness and response procedures, and radiation monitoring and measurement.

“We offer training for multiple reasons. The HSRA, being a regulator, [is] not here to shut down institutions. We are here to facilitate entities to ensure that they can comply with the regulations as well as provide that level of safety for their consumers as well as their employees and the environment itself,” Dr. Riley said.

Persons interested in participating in the sessions may reach out to the HSRA by calling 876-632-4289 or send an email to info@hsra.org.jm.