Diagnostic Radiation Physics Services (DRPS) provides medical physics consulting and radiation safety services to healthcare facilities throughout Tampa and the Tampa Bay region. Tampa is the principal city of Hillsborough County and the anchor of the Tampa–St. Petersburg–Clearwater Metropolitan Statistical Area, which encompasses Hillsborough, Pinellas, Pasco, and Hernando counties. The broader Tampa Bay region also includes Manatee, Polk, Sarasota, and Citrus counties. DRPS serves imaging centers, outpatient radiology practices, hospitals, and multi-site health systems throughout this region — from Tampa's urban core and the waterfront communities of St. Petersburg and Clearwater to suburban areas such as Brandon, Wesley Chapel, Land O' Lakes, and Bradenton.
Medical Physics Services in Tampa
DRPS delivers a complete portfolio of diagnostic medical physics services for imaging facilities across Hillsborough County and the surrounding Tampa Bay counties.
Equipment Performance Evaluations (EPEs) — Scheduled and on-demand physics testing for general radiography, fluoroscopy, mammography, CT, PET/CT, nuclear medicine, and bone densitometry (DXA). EPE reports document equipment performance against applicable national standards and regulatory requirements, supporting facility QA programs and external accreditation submissions.
Radiation Shielding Design and Certification — Site-specific shielding calculations for new construction, equipment replacements, and facility renovations. DRPS prepares shielding design reports and post-construction radiation surveys with written certification letters acceptable to the Florida Department of Health, Bureau of Radiation Control and to accrediting bodies.
Radiation Safety Officer (RSO) Services — Named RSO services for Tampa-area facilities holding Florida radioactive materials licenses, including radiation safety program administration, radiation safety committee support, personnel dosimetry oversight, and regulatory correspondence with the Bureau of Radiation Control.
Accreditation Support — Physics testing and documentation for ACR (American College of Radiology), IAC (Intersocietal Accreditation Commission), RadSite, and Joint Commission accreditation programs. DRPS prepares site survey reports, phantom image reviews, and physicist attestations formatted to each accrediting body's requirements.
CT Physics Testing — Comprehensive CT performance evaluations covering image quality, dose metrics (CTDIvol, DLP), scanner calibration, and protocol review. Services fulfill the annual CT physicist survey requirements for ACR CT accreditation and support ongoing dose optimization efforts.
PET/CT and Nuclear Medicine Physics — Acceptance testing, annual performance evaluations, and radiation safety oversight for PET/CT systems and nuclear medicine departments, including source calibration verification, uniformity testing, and ACR PET accreditation support.
Quality Assurance Programs — Structured QA program design, physicist oversight, and technologist training to support ongoing compliance between scheduled physics visits.
Florida Radiation Regulations
Florida is an NRC Agreement State. The Florida Department of Health, Bureau of Radiation Control (BRC), administers the state radiation control program under the Florida Radiation Protection Act (Chapter 404, Florida Statutes). The BRC licenses radioactive materials users — including hospitals, nuclear medicine facilities, and PET centers — and registers X-ray-producing equipment statewide.
Tampa-area facilities must maintain current X-ray registration with the BRC and, if they possess or use radioactive materials (including PET radiopharmaceuticals and nuclear medicine isotopes), hold an active BRC radioactive materials license with a designated RSO.
At the national level, mammography facilities must comply with FDA/MQSA requirements. Facilities seeking ACR, IAC, or Joint Commission accreditation must also satisfy the physics testing and documentation standards those bodies require. DRPS maintains familiarity with BRC inspection expectations and accreditation timelines to help Tampa-area facilities remain in continuous compliance.
Why Tampa Facilities Choose DRPS
The Tampa Bay region encompasses one of Florida's most diverse healthcare markets, with large integrated health systems, academic medical affiliates, Veterans Administration facilities, and a growing network of independent outpatient imaging centers. This market diversity creates varied physics consulting needs — from the complex annual RSO program requirements of a multi-modality hospital department to the focused EPE and accreditation support an outpatient mammography center needs once a year.
DRPS provides board-certified diagnostic medical physicists (DABR) experienced across the full diagnostic imaging spectrum. Our consultants deliver clear, written deliverables — EPE reports, shielding certifications, RSO program documentation, and accreditation physics submissions — that satisfy both Florida BRC requirements and major accrediting body standards without requiring follow-up revisions.
For Tampa Bay health systems with facilities across multiple counties, DRPS coordinates scheduling and reporting across sites to reduce administrative burden on facility administrators and RSOs.
Frequently Asked Questions
Which counties in the Tampa Bay area does DRPS serve? DRPS serves facilities in Hillsborough, Pinellas, Pasco, Hernando, Manatee, Polk, Sarasota, and Citrus counties — the full Tampa Bay region.
What does Florida require for X-ray equipment registration in Tampa? X-ray equipment in Florida must be registered with the Florida Department of Health, Bureau of Radiation Control. Registration must be kept current, facilities must allow BRC inspections, and equipment must comply with applicable Florida Administrative Code radiation control regulations. DRPS EPE reports are structured to reflect the metrics BRC inspectors review.
Does DRPS provide shielding design for new CT scanner installations in the Tampa area? Yes. DRPS performs site-specific shielding calculations based on the scanner model, clinical workload, room geometry, and adjacent occupancy information. We deliver a written shielding design report suitable for permit submission and then conduct a post-installation radiation survey with a written certification letter.
Can DRPS serve as the named RSO for a Tampa nuclear medicine facility? Yes. DRPS provides named RSO services for facilities holding Florida BRC radioactive materials licenses, including nuclear medicine, PET/CT, and other radioactive materials programs.
How does DRPS handle multi-site accreditation support for Tampa Bay health systems? DRPS coordinates scheduling and report formatting across multiple facility sites, allowing health system administrators to manage ACR, IAC, or Joint Commission accreditation renewals for several locations under a single consulting relationship. Contact DRPS to discuss your portfolio's specific timeline and modality mix.