Medical Physics Expert (MPE) Services
IRS Ltd provides a full and comprehensive range of Medical Physics Expert (MPE) services, as indicated in Article 85 of the recast Basic Safety Standards document. To this end, we employ suitably qualified and experienced scientific staff that are accredited by the Health Professions Council (HPC) to act as Clinical Scientists.

Support Services
Our scientific staff are ably supported by highly trained and competent technical officers, as well as the Company’s extensive Business Management function.

Quality IT Infrastructure
The Company has an extremely wide range of test equipment and capabilities, including a high level IT infrastructure. This enables IRS to continuously support existing MPE requirements with an excellent degree of efficiency.

Top Quality Service Delivery
Underpinning our operational capability runs a key aspect of the Company’s ethos; staff participation in a comprehensive research and development programme.

This programme is aimed at developing our services and generating the associated knowledge and skills required for the future. This ensures that IRS can provide the highest standard of service TODAY as well as being able to provide the highest level of support in a rapidly changing healthcare marketplace TOMORROW.

The Most Effective Service
IRS are driven by the goal of refining and enhancing the field of medical physics on behalf of our customers. We aim to provide all sectors with a technologically sophisticated, high quality service founded upon the principles of efficiency, innovation and competitive pricing.

Background

IRS is a pioneer in the development of the role and function of the Medical Physics Expert (MPE) in healthcare, with over 40 years experience in providing scientific support to medical imaging. Through its on-going and well established research and development programme, IRS continues to develop as well as integrate the necessary scientific knowledge required to provide effective MPE services. This helps to ensure the safe, optimum and cost effective use of ionising radiations in modern clinical practice for the benefit of patients.

Over many years, IRS staff have played a key role in developing the fields of quality assurance and quality control in medical imaging. Such work underpins the role of the MPE at both the national and international levels. This has included the production of the first standardised test protocols for the assessment of x-ray imaging equipment performance in diagnostic radiology.

Use of standard test protocols and procedures continues to underpin the role and function of the MPE as new and improved diagnostic and therapeutic technologies continue to be applied to modern clinical practices.

Legislative requirements

The role of the MPE is defined in the UK under the Ionising Radiations (Medical Exposure) Regulations [IRMER] 2000. These Regulations were derived from the European Council Directive 97/43 concerned with radiation protection of the patient. IRS staff provided advisory and scientific inputs to the Directive, particularly in relation to supporting scientific activities during its evolution. This included multi-partner research activities funded by the EC Framework Programmes (1 -5), including the development of Quality Criteria Guidelines for adult and paediatric radiographic and CT examinations. More recently, all 5 Council Directives concerned with radiation protection have been brought together into a single Basic Safety Standard (BSS) document.

Competency and Training

The role of the MPE under IRMER 2000, following adoption of the recent BSS, is outlined in Article 85 of this document. Equally, specific actions to be taken regarding the equipment associated with medical exposure of patients to ionising radiations, which will be of direct concern to an MPE, are outlined in Article 59.

However, to ensure that IRS is able to provide the most effective and up to date services as an MPE, staff must undergo appropriate training . To ensure that this is the case, all IRS scientific and technical staff undertake a rigorous and appropriate programme of training that involves three main elements:

A core aim of IRS’s RnD programme is the development of forefront tools and capabilities that support evolving service provision requirements. To aid and enhance our capability to act as an MPE, the Company started development of a bespoke QADDS software package (Quality Assurance Dose Data System) in 1995. Since that time, QADDS has undergone continuous development and enhancement, leading to the recent launch of a comprehensive web-based patient dose audit and analysis system called QADRIS . This will be integrated with QA data management and associated support tools, all of which will be launched soon under the RADIALIS banner.

Accredited MPEs

IRS staff actively seek accreditation by the Health Professions Council to act as Clinical Scientists. At present four members of staff have achieved this accreditation: