Southeast Regional Radiation Emergency Medical Center Symposium Hosted by Dongnamwon Nuclear Medicine Hospital

Establishing Regional Bases for Radiation Response... Korea Institute of Nuclear Safety and National Radiation Emergency Medical Center Attend

The 2024 Southeast Regional Radiation Emergency Medical Center Symposium was held on the 12th at the auditorium on the 2nd floor of the Medical Institute.

The Southeast Regional Radiation Emergency Medical Center is holding a symposium and taking a commemorative photo. Photo by Southeast Regional Radiation Emergency Medical Center

This year’s symposium was held under the theme “Measures to Establish Regional Bases for Radiation Disaster Response.”

Lee Chang-hoon, Director of the Southeast Regional Radiation Emergency Medical Center, stated in his opening remarks, “Among the roles assigned to the Medical Institute, radiation emergency medical care is an area that urgently needs to grow. Despite limited personnel and infrastructure, we have conducted dozens of internal and joint drills, radiation education sessions, and medical volunteer activities throughout the year as an essential special disaster response institution reflecting the urgent needs of the region.”

He added, “If the National Radiation Emergency Medical Center establishes national direction as a control tower and the Southeast Regional Radiation Emergency Medical Center develops response capabilities at sites densely populated with nuclear power plants, South Korea’s radiation emergency medical care will build a world-class system that the public can trust.”

The first speaker at the symposium was Jeong Gyu-hwan, Head of the Radiation Regulation Division at the Korea Institute of Nuclear Safety, who presented on the “Impact of Fukushima Contaminated Water Discharge.” He emphasized, “We have established radiation safety standards based on scientific and accurate dose assessments. Regarding Fukushima contaminated water, we have secured, analyzed, and quantified data for several years and transparently disclosed the results to the public. It is important to communicate with the public and build trust to correct vague fears about radiation.”

The second presentation was given by Cho Min-soo, Director of the National Radiation Emergency Medical Center, on topics such as “Radiation’s Effects on the Human Body? The Issue is the Dose” and “Medical Response Strategies in Nuclear Attack Situations.” He stressed, “The radiation field has quantitative risk assessment tools and international standard units, making it the most scientifically manageable and responsive field. A comprehensive scientific approach that actively communicates scientifically, socially, and philosophically based on data is crucial to ensure the public feels not only safe but reassured.”

Following this, personnel from the National Radiation Emergency Medical Center introduced topics including “Procedures for Operating On-site Radiation Emergency Medical Stations and Mobile Hospitals” and “Field Response Episodes.”

Finally, Kim Hyo-jin, a researcher at the Southeast Regional Radiation Emergency Medical Center, presented on “Radiation Dose Assessment Research and Cross-Analysis Results,” discussing cross-analysis of internal and external exposure dose assessments between branches, leading to more accurate and reliable dose evaluations.

In the closing remarks, Song Joo-yeon, Head of the Radiation Emergency Medical Center, conveyed, “We will strengthen the radiation emergency medical response system by cooperating with the main institute and related organizations so that the Southeast Regional Radiation Emergency Medical Center can establish itself as the representative radiation emergency medical institution in the region.”

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.