Which of the following constitutes basic safety measures during radiographic exposure for clinicians?

• A. Use appropriate PPE, proper exposure settings, and minimize exposure.
• B. Increase exposure settings to reduce retakes.
• C. Rely on patient consent to avoid PPE.
• D. Wear only gloves.

Answer: (C)

The essential idea is to keep radiation exposure as low as reasonably achievable while still getting a diagnostic image. That means using protective equipment like lead aprons and thyroid shields, and, when appropriate, leaded gloves to shield staff. It also involves choosing exposure settings and techniques that minimize dose—collimating the beam to the area of interest, maximizing distance from the source, and using the lowest factors that still produce a usable image. Together, these practices reduce occupational and patient exposure.

Increasing exposure to try to prevent retakes raises the dose without guaranteed improvement and goes against this principle. Relying on patient consent to skip PPE ignores professional safety duties—the protection should be used regardless of consent. Wearing gloves alone does not provide adequate protection against X-rays and cannot replace proper shielding and technique.