An investigation on the performance of dose calibrators in nuclear medicine centers in Iran

Background: To investigate the status of the nuclear medicine (NM) centers in Iran for the performance of dose calibrators, 18 out of 54 centers providing NM services in Iran were randomly selected and inspected in 1997. In the first phase of the study the selected centers were inspected for performing of quality control (QC) tests of dose calibrators. The linearity of the activity response, precision, accuracy, and the physical functions of the instruments, were studied. In the second phase of the study, carried out in 2006, 28 out of 75 NM centers were investigated for QC tests performance. Materials and Methods: The QC tests were performed by using standardized radio nuclides of Tc-99m and Cs-137 in the first phase, and Tc-99m and I-131 in the second phase of the studies. Standard procedures were used for carrying out the tests. Results: According to the obtained results in the first phase of the study, 10 centers were found to be in unacceptable situation. Following this study, all the concerned NM centers were informed about the results, and at the same time the repair and adjustment of the dose calibrators were requested. In addition, the appropriate training courses along with the QC testing manuals were provided to the centers. Based on the data of the second phase of the study, only 6 NM centers were in unacceptable situation. The results indicated the effectiveness of the improvements carried out in the working procedures of the centers during interval between the two phases of investigation.