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Department Overview: UCSF's Office of Environment, Health & Safety (EH&S) is dedicated to fostering a safe, healthy, and environmentally responsible environment for all faculty, staff, students, patients, and visitors across the University and UCSF Health system. EH&S serves as the central resource for workplace safety, environmental stewardship, and regulatory compliance within a complex, multi-site academic health institution. The department provides comprehensive programs and services that support compliance with federal, state, and local regulations while enabling UCSF's mission of advancing health through research, education, and patient care. Core program areas include biosafety, chemical safety, environmental protection, ergonomics, facilities safety, fire and life safety, industrial hygiene, radiation and laser safety, hazardous materials management, spill response, food facility safety, personal protective equipment (PPE) selection, hazardous building materials, and hazardous waste management, among others. EH&S partners closely with campus leadership, clinical operations, research programs, and affiliated organizations to proactively identify risks, implement effective controls, and promote a culture of safety and environmental responsibility. The department also provides critical support to the UCSF Health system and multiple affiliated entities, ensuring consistent standards and practices across diverse operational settings. Through a combination of technical expertise, consultation, training, and program development, EH&S plays a vital role in maintaining compliance, reducing risk, and supporting the safe conduct of world-class research, education, and patient care activities at UCSF. Job Summary: The Alternate Radiation Safety Officer (ARSO) supports the leadership and implementation of a comprehensive, enterprise-wide Radiation Protection Program within a complex academic health system operating under a broad-scope radioactive materials license issued by the State of California. Reporting to the Radiation Safety Officer (RSO), this role serves as a key operational leader and technical expert for both ionizing and non-ionizing radiation safety across UCSF's clinical, research, and academic environments. The ARSO provides day-to-day program oversight and directly supervises a team of two to four EH&S professionals, ensuring high-quality service delivery, regulatory compliance, and consistent application of radiation safety standards across multiple campuses and affiliated sites throughout the Bay Area. This position plays a critical role in implementing program priorities, managing workflows, and developing staff while fostering a strong culture of safety and accountability. In partnership with the RSO and the institutional Radiation Safety Committee (RSC), the ARSO contributes to the safe and compliant use of radioactive materials, radiation-producing machines, magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), lasers, and other non-ionizing radiation sources, including radiofrequency, microwave, and related energy field hazards. The role supports program administration by identifying hazards, recommending and implementing corrective actions, and verifying compliance with applicable federal, state, and local regulations, as well as University policies. The ARSO may act on behalf of the RSO as delegated, including exercising authority to intervene in operations when necessary to address unsafe conditions or non-compliance, up to and including recommending restriction or suspension of activities in accordance with established policies and regulatory requirements. The position also contributes to institutional committee activities, including supporting the Radiation Safety Committee and related groups such as the Radioactive Drug Research, Laser Safety, and MR Safety Committees. This role collaborates with researchers, clinicians, and operational leaders to support the review and safe implementation of radiation use, including emerging technologies and clinical research applications. The ARSO helps ensure that UCSF maintains compliance with licensing requirements and remains prepared for inspections and interactions with regulatory agencies, including the California Department of Public Health Radiologic Health Branch (RHB). The ideal candidate brings strong technical expertise, supervisory experience, and the ability to operate effectively in a large, decentralized organization. This position requires sound judgment, the ability to influence and guide diverse stakeholders, and a commitment to advancing a proactive, service-oriented radiation safety program that supports UCSF's mission of excellence in research, education, and patient care.
| % of time |
Essential Function (Yes/No) |
Key Responsibilities (To be completed by Supervisor) |
| 30 |
Yes |
Provides technical leadership, functional guidance and supervises technical and professional personnel, including selection, performance management and taking corrective action as required.
- Supervises team of Radiation Safety Specialists in the performance of day-to-day radiation safety operations for UCSF.
- Updates radiation safety manuals and procedures on a regular basis.
- Represents UCSF radiation safety in UC RSO working group, Bay Area UASI, Health Physics Society, and other community, state, and federal organizations.
- Named on UCSF's Radioactive Materials License, and acts as RSO in submitting license amendments, registration updates, and responding to CDPH Radiologic Health Branch requests.
- Shares 24/7 call with other members of the Radiation Safety Team and is one of the first notified of a potential radiation exposure or contamination incident in the healthcare or academic research setting.
- Investigates and determines appropriate risk mitigation and knows when to call for additional support.
- In coordination with the EH&S Spill Response Team, may act as the Incident Commander for radioactive materials spills.
- Addresses radiation concerns by patients, visitors and/or staff to determine hazards, address concerns, and determines appropriate corrective actions.
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| 5 |
Yes |
Participates in the selection, development and evaluation of staff to ensure the efficient operation of the function |
| 5 |
Yes |
Ensures staff are fully and properly trained to meet mandatory training requirements of positions |
| 10 |
Yes |
Ensures that quality control procedures are executed to effectively and efficiently monitor and meet regulations. Internal and external audit compliance
- Audits radiation use in a variety of academic and healthcare settings to ensure regulatory compliance and radiation safety.
- Escorts inspectors from regulatory or credentialing agencies, answers their questions, and demonstrates how the institution is adhering to the regulations and safety standards.
- Facilitates updates to the radiation producing machine registrations or radioactive materials license with the CDPH.
Safety Committees
- Ensures institutional accountability for safety and regulatory compliance through technical knowledge and operational support to any of the following university committees: Radiation Safety Committee (RSC), Radioactive Drug Research Committee (RDRC), Laser Safety Committee (LSC), MRI Safety Committee, and other colleagues in healthcare and academic settings across the enterprise.
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| 15 |
Yes |
Coordinates environmental / occupational health and safety programs and environmental programs, including performing audits to identify and control and / or mitigate significant loss-producing exposure. Radiation Use Authorizations
- Creates, modifies, and maintains radiation use authorizations, ensuring calibration of meters, leak testing of sealed sources, personnel training and shipping/receiving radioactive materials to help keep the university in compliance with the radioactive materials license and other applicable regulations.
- Provides technical oversight to Department Safety Advisors (DSA) in their campus audits and Hazardous Materials Management (HMM) Technicians in handling and processing of radioactive materials.
- Regularly audits use of radioactive materials and ionizing/non-ionizing radiation producing machines.
- May serve as a technical expert on various non-ionizing radiation sources, such as magnetic resonance, radiofrequency, cell towers, and other high energy light sources.
Radiation Dosimetry
- Monitors the dosimetry badge results for staff and investigates elevated exposure results.
Radiation Surveys
- Determines the correct instrument to measure types of radioactive contamination and/or exposure.
- Plans strategy for conducting the survey.
- Performs and reports out survey results.
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| 25 |
Yes |
Provides direction and guidance on complex environmental, health, and safety issues encountered by subordinate staff. Clinical Patient Therapies Cutting edge scientific discovery yields constantly evolving clinical applications using novel radiotherapeutics, each with their unique and changing radiation hazards.
- Develops risk mitigation strategies generally for each new therapy and assesses individual patients daily to ensure adequate radiation safety.
- Informs, educates, and emphasizes specific safety precautions with in-patients, their families, nurses, physicians, and other staff before treatment, each inpatient day, and at discharge, to ensure safety of all involved, compliance with applicable regulations and good radiation safety practice.
- Plans set up of the patient room to prevent contamination.
- Reviews radiation safety precautions with patients and their families during procedures and prior to their discharge.
- Determines when the patient will be discharged and communicates restrictions for discharge to ensure complete compliance with regulations and good radiation safety practice.
Radiation Security The presence of powerful radioactive sources at the university requires close collaboration with law enforcement, dispatch, and emergency management.
- Acts as the technical expert advising in cases where there are security concerns involving radiation.
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| 5 |
Yes |
Develops and conducts training. Radiation Safety Training Wherever radioactive materials or radiation producing machines are used across the enterprise, the ARSO may be asked to provide radiation safety training tailored to the specific radiation hazards and risk mitigation measures appropriate to the situation.
- Provides radiation safety training tailored to the specific audience.
- Answer questions and concerns about radiation risk based on sound science, industry best practice and regulatory compliance.
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| 5 |
Yes |
Other duties as assigned. |
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Required qualifications:
- Bachelor's degree in related area and / or equivalent experience / training
- Direct experience with diagnostic and therapeutic uses of ionizing and nonionizing radiation utilized throughout the medical center, including procedures in Radiology, Nuclear Medicine, Radiation Oncology, Interventional Radiology and other departments
- Comprehensive knowledge and understanding of EH&S technical requirements, logistics, materials and operations, rules, regulations, laws, etc.
- Skills to effectively direct and supervise subordinate staff who are assigned duties in different programs; skills to effectively integrate several highly regulated subjects and program areas
- Solid written, verbal and interpersonal communications skills, including strong skills to interact successfully with a widely diverse population
- Solid skills to appropriately, efficiently and effectively respond to emergencies and critical situations.
- In depth knowledge of medical applications of radiation, radiation detection and measurement, shielding, cyclotron applications, effluent monitoring and applicable State and Federal regulations; Demonstrated knowledge to serve as a subject matter expert on the appropriate receipt, use, transport, and disposal of radioactive materials in research, diagnostic, and therapeutic applications
Demonstrated knowledge of radiation safety regulations and at least 5 years of directly related experience is required for the role of ARSO. The primary regulatory jurisdictions are Titles 8 and 17, California Code of Regulations; and Titles 10, 21, and 49, Code of Federal Regulations. Position oversees and conducts radiation safety training for employees. Position requires knowledge of current regulations, the level of compliance of the University to the appropriate regulations, and the (continued) appropriate guidance of recognized expert organizations such as the NCRP, ICRP, HPS, etc.
Preferred Qualifications:
Required qualifications:
- Bachelor's degree in related area and / or equivalent experience / training
- Direct experience with diagnostic and therapeutic uses of ionizing and nonionizing radiation utilized throughout the medical center, including procedures in Radiology, Nuclear Medicine, Radiation Oncology, Interventional Radiology and other departments
- Comprehensive knowledge and understanding of EH&S technical requirements, logistics, materials and operations, rules, regulations, laws, etc.
- Skills to effectively direct and supervise subordinate staff who are assigned duties in different programs; skills to effectively integrate several highly regulated subjects and program areas
- Solid written, verbal and interpersonal communications skills, including strong skills to interact successfully with a widely diverse population
- Solid skills to appropriately, efficiently and effectively respond to emergencies and critical situations.
- In depth knowledge of medical applications of radiation, radiation detection and measurement, shielding, cyclotron applications, effluent monitoring and applicable State and Federal regulations; Demonstrated knowledge to serve as a subject matter expert on the appropriate receipt, use, transport, and disposal of radioactive materials in research, diagnostic, and therapeutic applications
Demonstrated knowledge of radiation safety regulations and at least 5 years of directly related experience is required for the role of ARSO. The primary regulatory jurisdictions are Titles 8 and 17, California Code of Regulations; and Titles 10, 21, and 49, Code of Federal Regulations. Position oversees and conducts radiation safety training for employees. Position requires knowledge of current regulations, the level of compliance of the University to the appropriate regulations, and the (continued) appropriate guidance of recognized expert organizations such as the NCRP, ICRP, HPS, etc.
Preferred Qualifications:
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University of California - San Francisco
170800
Jun 12, 2026