Morning warm-up, QA and QC procedures for Varian Linear Accelerator Research Paper

Morning warm-up, QA and QC procedures for Varian Linear Accelerator System - Research Paper Example In this paper Morning warm-up, QA and QC procedures to be broadly considered within any organization/hospital in relation to the Linear Accelerator System are discussed. It is stated â€Å"Daily, monthly, and annual quality control (QC) of linear accelerators are part of the major tasks of the medical physicist to verify that patients are receiving proper radiation treatment."1  The control tests consist of the measurement of beam output, verification of the beam energy, and determination of the beam flatness and symmetry in a linear accelerator parlance. However, QA and QC procedures cover wide areas aiming all- round quality in the system Introduction In a computer assisted Varian radiation therapy machine, â€Å"a computer controls the operations of the machine to automatically set the position of the gantry relative to the couch for treatment of a patient. The automated motions of the gantry and the couch are simultaneous for decreasing the setup time. In addition, the comput er includes a collision avoidance program which averts collision between the couch or patient, and the gantry†. 2 A linear accelerator (LINAC) device is used for external beam radiation treatments for cancer and other radiation therapies such as Intensity-Modulated Radiation Therapy (IMRT) and Image Guided Radiation Therapy (IGRT).... It is stated â€Å"To overcome the problem of differential heating, it is important to slowly increase the heating of a cold tube insert. The warm-up process must be carried out first thing each morning and repeated during the day if the workload is insufficient to keep the tube warm. The manufacturer’s guidance should be followed, but in general the warm-up period will be between 10 and 20 min. "3(p146)   However, in a Varian machine, automatic warm-up program is in-built and gets activated when the temperature falls below the operating temperature. However, standard QA and QC procedures with regard to morning warm up in general is essential for quality in operations and service. Warm-up tests are carried out by the morning warm-up therapist by following standard procedures as laid down with reference to several factors and the tolerance levels. Quality Control and Quality Assurance Quality Control or Quality Assurance is a comprehensive and ongoing exercise. According to ISO definition, â€Å"Quality control  is a set of activities intended to ensure that  quality requirements are actually being met.† and â€Å"Quality assurance  is a set of activities intended to establish confidence that quality requirements will be met† .4 Both Quality Control and Quality Assurance are the parts of Quality Management which includes direction, control and coordination in relation to quality. The efficacy of the system could be ensured through proper maintenance of records, review of the activities with reference to the objectives, periodical preventive maintenance programs and continuous monitoring of the safety measures. QC/QA Procedures for Varian linear accelerator system Varian states5 that