Radiation Threats and Your Safety: A Guide to Preparation and Response for Professionals and Community / Edition 1

by Armin Ansari

Overview

While it has aided far many more than it has harmed, radiation is forever etched in the public's mind as an indiscriminate and particularly pernicious killer. Consequently, it is especially critical in this age of terrorist threats that we equip ourselves with accurate information and practical tools that will serve us in the rare chance that we find ourselves in a radiation crisis.

Radiation Threats and Your Safety: A Guide to Preparation and Response for Professionals and Community offers a calm and authoritative approach to crisis preparation. Written by a health physicist from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the book informs us about what we should know ahead of time, how to prepare, and the best ways to respond to a nuclear or radiological incident either as an emergency responder or community/family member. Organized to serve both as a preparation guide and as a reference in a crisis, this book --

• Uses common language while avoiding unnecessary scientific jargon
• Details protocols for both accidental and intentional radiation emergencies such as nuclear explosions and dirty bombs
• Shows how to prepare a family emergency plan
• Covers medical responses to radiation emergencies including radiation drugs
• Provides an emergency supply list
• Discusses radiation from microwaves and cellular phones as well as food irradiation

There is no reason why we should feel helpless when faced with a radiation emergency. We can take action to protect ourselves, our families, and our communities. How we react to a radiation emergency will determine its true final impact. To this end, we need information and leaders we can depend upon. This book provides the factual details and the approach needed to proactively prepare for any radiation emergency, while a

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780367385033
Publisher:	Taylor & Francis
Publication date:	09/19/2019
Pages:	344
Product dimensions:	6.12(w) x 9.19(h) x (d)

Table of Contents

Preface ix

The Author xiii

Part 1 Understanding Radiation

1 Introduction 3

2 Radiation in Everyday Life 7

3 Radiation 101 23

Part 2 The Impact of Radiation

4 Accidental Radiation Emergencies 47

5 Intentional Radiation Emergencies 75

6 Health Effects of Radiation 103

7 Environmental Effects of Radiation 125

8 Psychosocial Effects of Radiation 143

Part 3 Responding to Radiation

9 Protecting Yourself and Your Family 159

10 Preparing Your Family Emergency Plan 185

11 Medical Response to Radiation Emergencies 195

12 Radiation Drugs 217

13 Government Response to Radiation Emergencies 243

14 Responding as Professionals 261

15 Responding as a Community 275

Part 4 Conclusion

16 Living with the Threat 291

Glossary 293

Appendix A Emergency Supply List 299

Appendix B Radiation from Microwaves and Cellular Phones 303

Appendix C Food Irradiation 309

Index 315

What People are Saying About This

From the Publisher

The author … has skillfully assembled a body of knowledge on preparedness and response to accidental and intentional radiological and nuclear incidents targeted at concerned citizens and early responders. … this book is a good contribution on the subject. It is a good resource for both perspective and plain-language explanations of sometimes complex subjects. I would recommend it to health physicists, emergency managers, and those involved with public communication.
— George J. Vargo, Health Physics, June 2011

I was very impressed with the book and would strongly recommend it … . The book is well written and places many very intimidating subjects in simple language. … I personally was particularly impressed with the author’s ability to communicate the risks associated with radiation in terms that are both expert and toned down to layman terms. … The book also contains a number of unique items, or perhaps little gems, such as insights not commonly found in the literature nor echoed in circles of health physicists. … In conclusion, I found the book to be well written and of high quality with a potentially wide audience who could substantially benefit from reading and using it.
—Nuclear Technology, Vol. 171, August 2010

Dr. Ansari efficiently presents a lot of valuable information in understandable terms. I found the book very useful and think it will be well received by non-scientists and professionals who need to know about radiation safety and nuclear-radiologic preparedness for their work.
—Richard J. Martin, J.D.

I found it to be a great resource … for the non-radiation expert.
—Adela Salame-Alfie, Ph.D., New York State Department of Health

... the best and most comprehensive treatment of this subject…informative and enjoyable to read…. This book will make a valuable addition to my reference library and, I would think, to yours as well. And to your physician’s, your neighbors’, your therapist’s, your hospital’s, your relatives’, and for anyone else who might have to deal with a radiological emergency or its aftermath.
—Health Physics News

Editorial Reviews

The author … has skillfully assembled a body of knowledge on preparedness and response to accidental and intentional radiological and nuclear incidents targeted at concerned citizens and early responders. … this book is a good contribution on the subject. It is a good resource for both perspective and plain-language explanations of sometimes complex subjects. I would recommend it to health physicists, emergency managers, and those involved with public communication.
— George J. Vargo, Health Physics, June 2011

I was very impressed with the book and would strongly recommend it … . The book is well written and places many very intimidating subjects in simple language. … I personally was particularly impressed with the author’s ability to communicate the risks associated with radiation in terms that are both expert and toned down to layman terms. … The book also contains a number of unique items, or perhaps little gems, such as insights not commonly found in the literature nor echoed in circles of health physicists. … In conclusion, I found the book to be well written and of high quality with a potentially wide audience who could substantially benefit from reading and using it.
—Nuclear Technology, Vol. 171, August 2010

Dr. Ansari efficiently presents a lot of valuable information in understandable terms. I found the book very useful and think it will be well received by non-scientists and professionals who need to know about radiation safety and nuclear-radiologic preparedness for their work.
—Richard J. Martin, J.D.

I found it to be a great resource … for the non-radiation expert.
—Adela Salame-Alfie, Ph.D., New York State Department of Health

... the best and most comprehensive treatment of this subject…informative and enjoyable to read…. This book will make a valuable addition to my reference library and, I would think, to yours as well. And to your physician’s, your neighbors’, your therapist’s, your hospital’s, your relatives’, and for anyone else who might have to deal with a radiological emergency or its aftermath.
—Health Physics News

From the Publisher