title: Short communication: a system for remote monitoring of a hospital linear accelerator.
abstract: Linear accelerators are complex machines with many parameters affecting the quality of the treatment beam delivered. A high level of technical support is required but this can be difficult to achieve if the linear accelerator is at a centre distant from a medical physics department. This paper describes a solution to this problem whereby a newly installed linear accelerator at the Royal Shrewsbury Hospital is remotely monitored from the Royal Hospital, Wolverhampton. The system enables run-up procedures to be completed by guiding radiographers at Shrewsbury through a series of steps. It consists of electronic hardware connected to the linear accelerator, under the control of a computer. The machine parameters are read and tested against preset tolerances. The monitoring system has been installed and is in routine use. The benefits have been shown to be: a saving in staff time and travel costs, the satisfactory completion of run-up procedures, a higher level of efficiency in the medical physics service provided and effective quality control. Finally, some future developments are presented. These include the development of a real time remote monitoring system that constantly monitors the linear accelerator, allowing the Medical Physics Department access to the machine parameters at any time.
authors.affiliation: Department of Clinical Physics and Bioengineering, Walsgrave Hospital, Coventry, UK.
authors.forename: C S
authors.initials: CS
authors.lastname: Jennings
mesh_terms: D003658:Decision Making, Computer-Assisted; D006801:Humans; D010315:Particle Accelerators / Q000191:economics / Q000592:standards*; D011786:Quality Control