Health Alert:

Starting Feb. 29, masking is optional but encouraged in UPMC medical facilities and most patient care settings.

Visiting a Patient Who is Receiving Low Dose Rate (LDR) Brachytherapy

Please read this sheet before visiting a patient who is receiving LDR Brachytherapy. Your family member or friend is receiving a special treatment during his or her hospital stay. This treatment involves the use of radioactive materials, or sources. Please remember that the sources are radioactive. Your family member or friend is not.

While visiting, certain safety precautions are necessary for your protection:
  • Due to federal regulations, pregnant women and children under the age of 18 are not permitted to visit.
  • Each time you visit, you must report to the nurses station before entering the room. You must sign your name on the document provided by the nurse at the station. This helps us document who visited the patient. The length of visits is limited.
  • The distance between you and the patient is also limited. Hospital personnel will tell you the only place in the room where you can visit safely. You must not move or rearrange any of the furniture in the room.
  • When you leave the room, you and your personal belongings will not be radioactive.