Radiopharmacist · Spill-response runbook
T+0 — Detect
Stop the dispense workflow immediately. Verbal alert to the hot-lab team: "Spill on bench — isotope is Tc-99m / FDG / Lu-177 / Y-90 / etc." Radiation-safety officer notified per the SOP escalation chain.
T+1 min — Cordon
Deploy the cordon rope (5 m) around the spill zone. Place the two sunboard signs (12″×10″) — one at each main approach. Pre-strung chain-of-custody tags ready for the contaminated polybags.
T+2 min — PPE
Operator + helper into PPE: latex gloves, disposable gloves over the top, shoe covers, mask + cap, lab coat / coverall. For high-energy spills (I-131 capsule break, Lu-177 vial drop), add the mask respirator with the OV cartridge filter.
T+3 min — Contain
Absorbent paper (without plastic backing) onto the spill — let it soak the liquid radiopharmaceutical. Do not wipe yet. Forceps for any sharps fragments — straight into the polybag tagged with date + isotope + operator initials.
T+5 min — Decontaminate
Surface cleaner + Bind-It™ chemistry — one-pass wipe with the absorbent paper. Bind-It fixes the contamination to the wipe substrate; the wipe goes straight into the polybag. Repeat if survey-meter readings indicate residual.
T+10–15 min — Hold
Sealed polybag + chain-of-custody tag → matched Pb decay drum (3 mm for SPECT, 6 mm for PET / I-131 / Lu-177). Drum log entry: spill type, isotope, expected decay-out date. Wait the 10 × T½ hold before biomedical-waste handoff.
T+30 min — Verify
Survey meter sweep across the spill zone — verify all residual readings are below the trigger threshold. PPE off into the polybag (also goes into the decay drum). Radiation-safety officer signs the incident-report close-out per the AERB chain-of-custody.