TRASNUSAFE: Training Schemes for Managers on Nuclear Safety Culture

TRASNUSAFE, a Project supported by the European Commission (FP7 - GA 249674), aims at designing, developing and validating two training schemes on nuclear safety culture for professionals operating at a high level of managerial responsibilities in nuclear installations. One of the training schemes is related to the nuclear industry, while the other is related to the other installations making use of ionizing radiation based technology, mainly the medical sector including the transport of radioisotopes. Both training schemes have a common basis reflecting the challenging approach to risk management, followed by sector-specific specialised modules.. The first section of the paper deals with a general presentation of the Project running since end 2010, including its objectives, structure and methodology. Associating 15 organisations from 9 different countries, 3 international associations, including EITA, the European Isotopes Transport Association, and a large set of important potential users, TRASNUSAFE is a joint effort of universities, research centres, regulators and industrial companies. The final product will consist in a package of five training modules for managers of both industrial and medical sectors, ready for use after validation through pilot sessions foreseen in 2013. The Project started with a wide analysis of the needs. It was followed by the work of two reflection groups organised within the “European ALARA Network” (EAN) and the “European Training and Education in Radiation Protection Foundation” (EUTERP) networks. The second section of the paper presents the five training modules. A common generic introductory module is entitled “Managerial Competences and Leadership for Safety Culture (Nuclear and Radiation)”. This module is designed for senior managers. Its purpose is to raise the knowledge and understanding about safety culture in order to avoid incidents occurring as a result of human errors or organizational deficiencies and to develop adequate concern about the importance of radiological protection issues in the operation of facilities, hospitals and others. For the managers, these topics are closely linked to economical operation and societal responsibility. The four specific modules involve: For the Medical sector: “Setting up a Management System”, and “Economic Relevance of Safety Culture in Medical Applications”; For the Nuclear Industry: “Observation Techniques”, and “Compliance of contractors with safety systems”.