National Institute for Radiological Protection

The National Institute for Radiological Protection (NIRP), formerly the Laboratory of Industrial Hygiene, was established in October 1965 under the then Ministry of Health. It is a state-level organization on radiation medicine and radiation protection and the national technical guidance center for radiation medicine and radiation protection. It provides technical support to the nation’s radiological protection work, and technical guidance and training to local agencies. The NIRP is mainly engaged in radiation protection, radiation monitoring and evaluation, population radiation risk assessment, quality control of radiation diagnosis and treatment equipment, radiation dosimetry, and radiobiology and toxicology. It also undertakes national nuclear and radiation accident medical emergency preparedness and response, radiation workers’ health management, radiation protection equipment quality monitoring and management, radiation health protection standards management, radiation medicine and protection technology information and other related professional and technical management tasks.

 

Over the years, the NIRP has maintained close academic exchanges and technical cooperation with international agencies and organizations such as the United Nations Scientific Committee on the Effects of Atomic Radiation (UNSCEAR), the World Health Organization (WHO), the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), and the International Commission on Radiological Protection (ICRP), as well as academic organizations and research institutes in countries such as the United States, Japan, Germany and South Korea.

 

 

1. Carry out radiation health work, and provide technical support and advice for the formulation of laws, regulations, policies, planning on the safety and protection of occupational exposure, medical exposure, public exposure and other radiation health areas, and for their supervision and management;

 

2. Organize the formulation of radiation health related technical plans, guidelines and standards, manage the secretariats of the Technical Committee on Radiation Health Standards of the Standardization Administration of the China Standards Committee and the National Guidance Committee on Diagnosis and Identification of Radioactive Occupational Diseases, and carry out work on radiological health education and health promotion;

 

3. Carry out monitoring, evaluation, risk assessment and special investigation into radioactive occupational hazard factors, occupational radioactive diseases, medical radiation protection, and radioactivity in food and drinking water, and also undertake the construction and management of radiological health information systems;

 

4. Carry out health emergency preparedness and responses to nuclear and radiation emergencies, participate in on-site investigation and management of emergencies and risk assessment, provide technical support for national emergency command and decision-making, and guide the capacity building of local health emergency responses;

 

5. Carry out key scientific research and technological development on radiation health protection, prevention and control of radioactive occupational diseases, and nuclear and radiation health emergencies, and promote commercialization of research achievements;

 

6. Carry out postgraduate education and professional training on radiation health and radiation medicine;

 

7. Guide local agencies in the implementation of national radiation health work plans and programs, provide professional guidance for local radiation health institutions, conduct radiation health testing quality control and ability assessment, and participate in professional and technical assessment and other related work;

 

8. Carry out international cooperation and exchanges on radiological health; 

 

9. Accomplish other tasks entrusted by the China CDC.