ALARA+ Coalition Launches Toolkits to Accelerate Adoption of Enhanced Radiation Protection

August 6, 2026—The Society for Cardiovascular Angiography & Interventions (SCAI) and the Society of Interventional Radiology announced that the release of the ALARA+ (“As Low And As Light As Reasonably Achievable”) Coalition’s resources to help hospital leadership and decisionmakers implement enhanced radiation and occupational safety guidelines for clinicians and staff working in catheterization labs.

According to the press release, the new resources give hospital administrators, catheterization lab teams, and policymakers practical tools to implement enhanced radiation safety devices (ERPDs) and the ALARA+ safety framework.

The coalition advised that the new implementation toolkits translate the recently published ALARA+ guidelines into practical steps to protect catheterization lab team members from both occupational radiation exposure and orthopedic injuries related to protective equipment.

The four ALARA+ toolkits, which are available online at www.ALARA-PLUS.org, include the following:

• A Radiation Safety Foundations Toolkit
• An ERPD Implementation Toolkit
• An Economic & Business Toolkit
• An Advocacy Toolkit

The press release advised that the toolkits are endorsed by SCAI, SIR, the American College of Cardiology (ACC), Alliance for Cardiovascular Professionals (ACVP), American Society of Echocardiography (ASE), Heart Rhythm Society (HRS), Society of NeuroInterventional Surgery (SNIS), Society of Vascular and Interventional Neurology (SVIN), and the Society for Vascular Surgery (SVS).

The new resources build on the “ALARA+ Summit on Radiation and Orthopedic Risks in Fluoroscopic Laboratories” and the “SCAI/ASE/HRS/SIR/SVS Expert Consensus Statement on Enhanced Radiation Protection: Time for Mandatory and Urgent Action.”

In March 2026, the summit report was published by Arash Salavitabar, MD, et al in JSCAI, as well as Heart Rhythm, Journal of Vascular and Interventional Radiology, and Journal of Vascular Surgery–Vascular Insights.

In July 2026, the multisociety expert consensus statement by David G. Rizik, MD, was published in JSCAI et al, which was announced by SCAI.

“The cath lab should be a workplace where clinicians can build a full career without sacrificing their health and where the next generation sees a future worth choosing,” commented SCAI President J. Dawn Abbott, MD. “Trainees are watching mentors leave the field with injuries and illness, and too many are choosing other specialties as a result. If we want a strong pipeline of interventional cardiologists to meet growing patient demand, we have to fix the work environment itself. These resources from the ALARA+ Coalition give every institution the tools to do exactly that.”