A Contingency Plan for Catastrophic Loss of Bioassay Services

The catastrophic loss of direct or indirect bioassay services can severely impact a site or facility's radiation protection program. While highly unlikely, circumstances such as fire, hurricane, other extreme weather conditions, unanticipated events, or contractual business decisions could result in the loss of either the onsite or offsite measurement capabilities for direct or indirect radiobioassay services. The process and elements that need to be addressed in obtaining alternate or replacement bioassay services can be described in relatively simple terms, but can be very complex and time consuming to implement. The contingency plan developed for one large, complex radiobioassay program is a good example for addressing these items.