We have an XRD machine that had a fault that needed clearing. To save the service engineer future visits he passed on the information on how to get into the maintenance mode and bypass the radiation interlocks so that we could clear the fault ourselves next time and save the cost of a visit. I was astounded to discover that this had happened and that such information had been passed to someone (albeit very clever and sensible) who had no formal radiation training. The employee has now asked for a radiation leak detector to ensure safety. Surely the service engineer has overstepped the mark here?

This is not necessarily a radiation exposure problem. The engineer was wrong to give you the access but is it really that dangerous? Are you actually exposed to radiation by doing this? If so what training does the engineer have and what procedures are required? Simply to reset the equipment after a fault has arisen is really quite simple to do, it is the identification of why the fault occurred in the first place is important. However, it changes nothing, was it a machine fault or a radiation issue, if the latter simply resetting the fault will not manage the issue, more competent assistance is required.

Depending upon the X-ray intensity you could also run the serious risk of cancer. After all, 64 women die each year [statistically] from cancers caused by mammograms, and there is not-a-lot of radiation from them.