- Radiation Protection is based on three principles: justification, optimisation and limitation. Diagnostic Reference Levels (DRLs) are an important tool of optimisation and do not represent a limitation (Fig.1). Therefore, the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) and the World Health Organisation (WHO) have included the establishment, the use of, and the regular update of diagnostic reference levels for radiological procedures, including interventional procedures, in particular for children, in their Bonn call for action (action 2). By the new Basic Safety Standards Directive, DRLs have become...

The International Commission for Radiological Protection (ICRP), the European Commission (EC), many professional organisations and regulatory authorities, realising the above limitations with DRLs, have started several initiatives to overcome the limitations and to harmonise the further development of DRLs based on a broad cooperation among all stakeholders. Among these, the EuroSafe Imaging campaign and the European Society of Radiology (ESR) have contributed to several activities that will be presented together with the work of all others. The PiDRL project of the EC, the joint work...

Not only have the setting, use and regular update of DRLs been supported by international organisations (ICRP, WHO, IAEA, EU) but there is also a growing consensus that DRLs have to be defined for specific clinical questions and to be related to the image quality needed for that purpose. Despite the consensus, only very few such specific DRLs have been reported. This poster summarises the concept of DRLs, the methodology for their establishment and new approaches to overcome limitations. The EuroSafe Imaging campaign, following the...

Both authors represent the Steering Committee of the EuroSafe Imaging Campaign and have nothing to declare.

EuroSafe Imaging Call for Action: http://www.eurosafeimaging.org/about/call-for-action Bonn Call for Action: https://rpop.iaea.org/RPOP/RPoP/Content/News/bonn-call-for-action-joint-position-statement.htm ICRP Draft Report for Consultation: Diagnostic Reference Levels in Medical Imaging, http://www.icrp.org/page.asp?id=256 ICRP Publication 105: Radiological Protection in Medicine, Ann. ICRP 37 (6), 2007 ICRP: DIAGNOSTIC REFERENCE LEVELS IN MEDICAL IMAGING: REVIEW AND ADDITIONAL ADVICE A web module produced by Committee 3 of the International Commission on Radiological, http://www.icrp.org/docs/DRL_for_web.pdf PiDRL - European Diagnostic Reference Levels for Paediatric Imaging . www.pidrl.eu EuroSafe Imaging - Together for patient safety, http://www.eurosafeimaging.org/ All these sources were available at...