Diagnostic Radiation Physics Services (DRPS) provides medical physics consulting and radiation safety services to healthcare facilities in Rochester, New York and across the Finger Lakes region. Rochester, the county seat of Monroe County, sits along the southern shore of Lake Ontario. DRPS serves imaging facilities throughout Monroe County — including Greece, Irondequoit, Brighton, Henrietta, Penfield, and Pittsford — and extends coverage into neighboring Ontario, Wayne, Livingston, and Orleans Counties.
Medical Physics Services in Rochester
DRPS provides the full spectrum of diagnostic imaging physics and radiation safety services that Rochester-area facilities require:
- Equipment Performance Evaluations (EPEs): Acceptance and annual physics surveys for general radiography, fluoroscopy, CT, mammography, and other modalities, benchmarked against AAPM and ACR performance standards.
- Shielding Design and Certification: Radiation shielding calculations for new imaging suite construction and renovation, with post-installation verification surveys and signed physicist certification letters for state registration files.
- Radiation Safety Officer (RSO) Services: Named RSO consulting for facilities holding radioactive materials licenses under New York's Agreement State program, covering program administration, dosimetry, and regulatory compliance.
- Accreditation Support: Physics testing and documentation preparation for ACR, IAC, RadSite, and Joint Commission accreditation programs.
- CT Physics Testing: Comprehensive CT performance evaluations — dose assessment, image quality, artifact analysis — aligned with ACR CT accreditation requirements and AAPM Task Group protocols.
- PET/CT and Nuclear Medicine Physics: Acceptance testing, annual surveys, and quality assurance support for PET/CT systems and nuclear medicine departments operating in the Monroe County region.
- Quality Assurance Programs: Structured physicist-directed QA protocols and ongoing consultation for imaging departments and outpatient radiology practices.
New York Radiation Regulations
Radiation-producing equipment and radioactive materials in Rochester and across New York State (outside New York City) are regulated by the New York State Department of Health (NYSDOH), Bureau of Environmental Radiation Protection, part of the Center for Environmental Health based in Albany. New York is an Agreement State, meaning it entered into agreement with the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) in 1962 and has authority to license and inspect radioactive material use at non-reactor facilities statewide.
Specific requirements for Rochester-area imaging facilities include:
- X-ray equipment registration: All healing arts radiation-producing equipment operated in Monroe County and the surrounding region must be registered with the NYSDOH Bureau of Environmental Radiation Protection before clinical use. Registration requires documentation of equipment performance; unregistered operation is prohibited under state law.
- Radioactive materials licensing: Facilities using nuclear medicine radiopharmaceuticals, PET radiopharmaceuticals, or other radioactive sources must hold a license issued by NYSDOH (not the NRC) under the Agreement State framework. DRPS assists facilities with physicist documentation required for license applications and renewals.
- MQSA compliance: Mammography facilities throughout Monroe County must comply with the federal Mammography Quality Standards Act, including annual medical physics surveys conducted by a qualified medical physicist.
- National accreditation programs: ACR, IAC, and Joint Commission accreditation requirements specify physics survey intervals and performance benchmarks that facilities must meet independently of state registration requirements.
Why Rochester Facilities Choose DRPS
Rochester-area facilities often manage multiple modality types under one roof — CT, nuclear medicine, fluoroscopy, mammography — which creates a complex annual physics workload. DRPS structures service agreements to cover all modalities under named, board-certified physicists, giving administrators a single point of contact for accreditation tracking and regulatory documentation.
Monroe County's position at the intersection of Western New York and the Finger Lakes corridor means facilities serving rural catchment areas west into Orleans County and south into Ontario and Livingston Counties may have limited access to local physics support. DRPS covers these outlying communities as part of the broader Rochester service area.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who regulates x-ray equipment registration in Rochester? X-ray facilities in Monroe County register with the NYSDOH Bureau of Environmental Radiation Protection (Albany) before placing equipment into clinical service. DRPS provides the physicist acceptance testing documentation and certification letters the registration process requires.
Is Monroe County under NRC or New York State jurisdiction for radioactive materials? New York is an NRC Agreement State (since 1962). The NYSDOH Bureau of Environmental Radiation Protection issues radioactive materials licenses for Rochester-area facilities; the NRC maintains oversight but does not directly license most materials in the state.
What does ACR CT accreditation require from a Rochester imaging facility? ACR CT accreditation requires an annual physics survey covering image quality (resolution, noise, contrast), CT dose index, and artifact performance, plus a documented physicist report with findings and corrective actions. DRPS conducts these surveys and prepares complete accreditation documentation.
Does DRPS cover Ontario County and Wayne County? Yes. DRPS serves the greater Finger Lakes region, including Ontario County (Canandaigua, Geneva), Wayne County, and other counties adjacent to Monroe County.
What is the process for shielding design on a new CT suite in Rochester? DRPS performs workload and occupancy analysis, NCRP-based shielding calculations, and a post-construction verification survey, then provides a signed physicist certification letter for NYSDOH registration files and ACR accreditation records.
Related Services
- Medical Physicist Consulting
- Radiation Safety Officer Services
- Radiation Shielding Design
- Accreditation Support
- CT Physics Testing
- PET/CT and Nuclear Medicine Physics
Region: Medical Physicist New York
Other New York cities: Medical Physicist Buffalo | Medical Physicist Syracuse