Global Experts Call for Strengthening Radiation Protection in Medicine

Medical experts from around the world called for strengthening radiation protection in medicine in the Bonn+ Call for Action outlined at a recent IAEA conference.

Bonn+ will build on and modernize the 2012 Bonn Call for Action that fostered global coordination for radiation safety in medicine. The aim is to ensure that protection and safety remain the highest priority amid rapid advances in new technologies.

Bonn+ emerged from a week of discussions at the International Conference on Radiation Protection in Medicine: X Ray Vision, held at IAEA headquarters in Vienna in December 2025. The event was co-sponsored by the World Health Organization and the Pan American Health Organization.

More than 650 participants from over 120 countries attended the conference, including medical professionals, regulators, patient advocates, health researchers and others with an interest in radiation protection in medicine.

"We are all now more aware of the potential opportunities to reinforce safety of patients, professionals and caregivers, enabling society to maximize the benefits of ionizing radiation in medical uses and to face the challenges ahead," said Karine Herviou, IAEA Deputy Director General and Head of the Department of Nuclear Safety and Security, at the close of the event.

"We all share a common overarching goal of ensuring the justified, optimized use of radiation in medicine and to protect patients from unnecessary and unintended exposures while achieving the clinical objective," she added.