The Quality Assurance for the PET/CT in Nuclear Medicine - Evaluation of the Daily Quality Control of the Positron Emission Tomography
Reda Hallab1*, Khalida Eddaoui2 and Nouzha Ben Raïs Aouad2

1Doctoral Study Center for Life and Health Sciences, Faculty of Medicine and Pharmacy of Rabat, Impasse Souissi, Rabat 10100, Morocco.

2Nuclear Medicine Department, IBN SINA Hospital - Ibn Sina Rabat University Hospital Center, Avenue Abderrahim Bouabid, Rabat

Corresponding Author E-mail: reda_hallab@um5.ac.ma

Abstract: Quality assurance generally refers to the measures taken to ensure that equipment meets international requirements and recommendations. PET/CT quality control is based on measures used to regularly monitor the performance of the installed imaging equipment in terms of image quality and dose and to ensure effective radiation protection. Indeed, the objective of this study is to evaluate the daily quality control, used on of the Positron Emission Tomography “PET” part of the “PET/CT”, after one year without daily quality control knowing that the medical physicist is not present in the institution. Material and methods, it was used the “PET/CT” equipment of the nuclear medicine department of a hospital, and the PET part, the Germanium 68 (Ge-68) source for “QC”, and a questionnaire related to quality assurance and radiation protection distributed in the said department. Results of this study, after the “QC” of the “PET”, some problems were identified; the correction of the defective modules was performed, and answers were collected from the distributed questionnaires. For the discussion, the absence of implementation of a quality assurance program in the nuclear medicine department, including the establishment of daily quality control procedures and radiation safety training, was attributed to the inexistence of a qualified medical physicist, referring to the questionnaire responses. To conclude, quality assurance in a nuclear medicine department and daily quality control of the “PET”, as well as the existence and control of a qualified medical physicist for medical activities with ionizing radiation sources, ensure optimal patient radiation protection.

Keywords: Daily quality control; Medical physicist; Nuclear Medicine; Quality assurance - PET/CT

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