U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission

Office of Public Affairs, Region IV

611 Ryan Plaza Drive - Suite 400

Arlington, Texas 76011-8064

RIV: 98-18 FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

CONTACT: Breck Henderson April 28, 1998

OFFICE: 817/860-8128

PAGER: (800) 443-7243 (065477)

NRC PROPOSES TO FINE WOOD RIVER MEDICAL CENTER $2,750

FOR VIOLATIONS IN ITS NUCLEAR MEDICINE PROGRAM

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission staff has proposed a $2,750 civil

penalty against Wood River Medical Center of Sun Valley, Idaho, for numerous

violations of NRC requirements in its nuclear medicine program.

NRC is taking this action as the result of findings from an inspection

conducted last November 4-December 30; an investigation that was completed on

February 23; and information provided by the medical center before the inspection

and during an enforcement conference held February 6 at the NRC Region IV

office in Arlington, Texas.

NRC’s inspection and investigation confirmed that a technician deliberately

falsified required radiation surveys. The civil penalty is based on this violation and

20 other instances of noncompliance with NRC administrative, monitoring, training

and record-keeping requirements. Wood River also was cited for another

procedural violation, but a fine was not proposed.

The NRC has determined that none of these safety violations resulted in a

radiation exposure to hospital staff or patients. In his letter informing Wood River

of the civil penalty, NRC Regional Administrator Ellis Merschoff noted that the

violations were discovered after a former medical center technologist, on his own

initiative, told hospital management that he had prepared inaccurate records of

radiation surveys never performed. The medical center then contracted with a

consultant to review its nuclear medicine program, informed the NRC of the

reported records falsification, and later reported the consultant’s findings to the

agency. Although the consultant did not find every violation, Mr. Merschoff said,

he identified the more significant ones.

Mr. Merschoff pointed out that a lack of oversight by the radiation safety
officer and hospital administration contributed to the willful falsification of records.

NRC investigators determined that the former employee involved had never been

formally trained as a nuclear medicine technologist. The individual also said he

was working up to 200 hours during a two-week pay period and did not fully

understand many of the tasks he was assigned.

“These violations clearly indicate a deterioration of your radiation safety

program,” Mr. Merschoff wrote. He added that training and program reviews

scheduled after an NRC inspection in 1993 proved ineffective in ensuring lasting

corrective actions for violations observed at that time because of a similar lack of

oversight. The regional administrator said NRC decided to propose a fine because

of “the lack of oversight...over a period of several years and the pervasiveness of

the breakdown in your radiation safety program.”

The hospital must respond to the Notice of Violation in writing within 30

days. The response must document specify actions taken to prevent recurrence of

the violations. During this time the company may pay the fine or file a protest.

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