In 2008, the CoR- Academy of Medicine of Malaysia joined the Alliance for Radiation Safety in Pediatric Imaging, a coalition of 34 healthcare organizations serving over 400,000 healthcare providers world-wide. The Alliance goal is simple: to raise awareness of opportunities to lower radiation dose used in pediatric imaging examinations through its informational “Image Gently” campaign (www.imagegently.org.)  

We are now happy to announce that the Alliance has developed new materials to educate parents about medical imaging and to help them track their child’s past imaging exams:  

“My Child’s Medical Imaging Record” allow parents to record where and when a study was performed as well as the type of radiologic exam. Parent are encouraged to use this record as they do the widely-used vaccination record and to encourage t their future medical providers to make decisions regarding optimal timing of additional radiologic examinations with a better understanding of their child’s imaging history.  

“What Parents Should Know About CT Scans for Children: Medical Radiation Safety” and “What Parents Should Know About Medical Radiation Safety” are downloadable patient education brochures that provide lay definitions for various imaging exams which utilize radiation and educate parents of the benefits and potential risks associated with these studies. The brochures provide dose estimates in comparison to natural background radiation, discuss possible alternative examinations that do not utilize radiation, and equip parents with questions to ask their imaging providers so that they can make better informed decisions regarding their child’s care.  

The imaging record card and the patient brochures are available at www.imagegently.org. A special section of the Image Gently web site will also be dedicated to providing parents with the most up-to-date information regarding children’s imaging and tools to help them become better informed healthcare consumers and advocates for their children.   

We invite you to download the materials from the Image Gently web site, www.imagegently.org, and make them available to parents in their waiting rooms and offices. We also urge you to make your referring physicians aware of these resources and direct them to the Image Gently web site as appropriate.  

Click here to visit the Image Gently Web site today and pledge to do your part to “child-size” the radiation dose used in children’s imaging. Your active participation is appreciated.