Upgraded National Secondary Standard Dosimetry Laboratory of the Ministry of Health

The National Secondary Standard Dosimetry Laboratory (SSDL) has been upgraded in the framework of Technical Cooperation Project between the Israeli Ministry of Health (MOH) and the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA). The SSDL is located near the Sheba Medical Center and is part of the Radiation Control Unit of the MOH.
The main purpose of the SSDL is to assure traceability of radiation measurements to the International System of Units [1] through reliable calibration services for dosimetry equipment.
The SSDL is currently providing calibration services for:
(i) Radiation therapy; in terms of absorbed dose to water and air kerma in a Co-60 beam, in accordance to the IAEA TRS-398 [2]
(ii) Diagnostic radiology, including CT and mammography; for x-ray beam qualities in the range from 25 kV to 150 kV, according to the IEC 61627 [3]
(iii) Radiation protection; in terms of air kerma, ambient dose equivalent and personal dose equivalent for x-ray beam qualities in the range from 40 kV to 200 kV, according to the ISO4037 [4].
All reference dosimetry standards of the SSDL are regularly calibrated by the IAEA Dosimetry Laboratory.
During the last two years, the SSDL has been participating in international dosimetry comparisons organized by the IAEA to ensure that its calibration services are accurate and compliant with relevant international standards. The comparisons were performed with the IAEA transfer ionization chambers for (i) therapy level air kerma and absorbed dose to water measurement standards in 60Co gamma beam and (ii) diagnostic radiology level air kerma measurement standards in various X-ray radiation qualities. The results of all comparisons were well within the acceptance limits.
The SSDL is a member of the IAEA/WHO SSDL network, after fulfilling basic requirements described in the SSDL Network Charter [5] and passing an on-site audit by the IAEA experts.

[1] INTERNATIONAL BUREAU OF WEIGHTS AND MEASURES, The International System of Units, 8th Edition, BIPM, Sèvres (2006).
[2] INTERNATIONAL ATOMIC ENERGY AGENCY, Absorbed Dose Determination in External Beam Radiotherapy, Technical Reports Series No. 398, IAEA, Vienna (2000).
[3] INTERNATIONAL ELECTROTECHNICAL COMMISSION, Medical Diagnostic X Ray Equipment, Radiation Conditions for Use in the Determination of Characteristics, Rep. IEC 61267, Edition 2.0, IEC, Geneva (2005).
[4] INTERNATIONAL ORGANIZATION FOR STANDARDIZATION, X and Gamma Reference Radiation for Calibrating Dosemeters and Doserate Meters and for Determining their Response as a Function of Photon Energy — Part 1: Radiation Characteristics and Production Methods, ISO 4037-1:1996, ISO, Geneva (1996).
[5] INTERNATIONAL ATOMIC ENERGY AGENCY, SSDL Network Charter, 2nd Edition, (2017)