Radiographers Knowledge, Practice, and Compliance with Radiation Protection measures in the Radiology Department

Background: Radiographers dispense radiation, thus their practice should always be optimized. Most studies evaluating radiographers' knowledge, awareness, and attitude towards adherence to radiation protection safety standards, focuses only on the responses obtained via questionnaire, which can be biased. Hence, this current study focuses on both responses and observation during practice. The study aimed to evaluates knowledge, practices, and compliance of radiation protection guidelines among radiographers in tertiary hospitals in Maiduguri. Materials and Methods: A longitudinal study design was used. A semi-structured, self-administered questionnaire in conjunction with a data capture sheet to record the observations made regarding the compliance and practice of radiation protection. Qualitative and quantitative data were collected for a period of six months, from May to November 2022, from three tertiary hospitals in Maiduguri. The data was analyzed using IBM SPSS Version 20.0. Result: A total of 35 respondents, comprising 23 (65.7%) males, and 12 (34.3%) females were recorded. The majority of the respondents show good knowledge of radiation protection, such as principles of radiation protection 26 (74.3%), patient dose limit 19 (54.3%). The responses also show good practice of radiation protection, which includes high Kv technique practice 26 (74.3%), use of light beam diaphragm 32 (91.4%), closing doors before making exposure 33 (91.4%), notwithstanding, there is poor use of personal monitoring devices 16 (45.7%). And based on the observation, majority of radiographers (81.7%) don't rule out cyesis in women of reproductive age prior to radiographic examination. Conclusion: The study found that most of the radiographers demonstrated a good understanding of radiation protection and moderate compliance with national and international standards of radiation protection. Some institutions lack quality assurance programs which is a violation of National Nuclear Regulatory Authority (NNRA) safety guidelines.