Medical professionals’ awareness on radiation exposure of common radiological procedures at a tertiary care hospital in Sri Lanka

Background and Objectives: Radiation safety is increasingly important due to the widespread use of ionizing radiation in both diagnostics and treatment. Medical professionals must possess adequate knowledge to minimize radiation-related risks. This study aimed to assess the awareness of radiation exposure from common radiological procedures among medical professionals in a tertiary care hospital in Sri Lanka.Method: A descriptive, questionnaire-based study was conducted at Colombo North Teaching Hospital in 2021.Results: The study included 258 participants, most of whom were medical officers (56.2%), aged 31–35 years (43.4%), and working in medical wards (22.1%). The majority were uncertain about the ionizing radiation doses of common radiological investigations (57.8%), lacked knowledge of the average annual radiation dose from natural background exposure (75.6%), were unaware of the approximate radiation dose from a chest X-ray (67.8%), and did not know the risk of inducing fatal cancer from an abdominal CT scan (61.6%). Among the respondents, 51.9% had received training on radiation exposure, with the majority (92.6%) having received it during their undergraduate education. Overall, 95% of respondents demonstrated poor knowledge. Prior education on ionizing radiation (p = 0.02) was significantly associated with higher knowledge levels.Conclusion: This study demonstrates that medical professionals have limited awareness of radiation doses and risks associated with routine radiological procedures. Therefore, all medical professionals should receive effective education and continuous training on radiation risks and safety.