Medical provider honors affected nuclear workers

Nuclear Care Partners have been helping nuclear workers exposed to radiation and other toxic chemicals for decades.

“They were truly pioneers,” said NCP-Idaho Falls Marketing Director Angela Hays Carey. “They were literally building the (nuclear) industry from scratch.”

Idaho Falls native William Slusser said some of the best years of his life were the 24 years he spent as a contract worker for the Idaho National Laboratory.

“I started Feb. 1, 1977, as a raw recruit. I didn’t know anything about the work and I had a pretty good time working out there,” said Slusser. “It provided a living for my family and it was the first real job that I had for a long time.”

Like many other nuclear workers, Slusser didn’t know the materials he handled on a daily basis contained toxic materials.

“I worked mostly around spent reactors,” he said “Now I have beryllium lung disease, that clogs up the lungs like asbestos.”

Four times a week, Slusser is cared for by nurses with Nuclear Care Partners, funded by the Department of Energy. NCP officials said they aren’t home health providers, because they only assist past nuclear workers, caring for them for as long as needed.

“They were working with little-understood chemicals, doing their best before OSHA came in to protect them. Unfortunately a lot of them suffered lifelong illnesses,” said Carey. “A lot of our patients, They are up and walking, they’re not traditional home care patients they have a great life and our goal is to keep them healthy.”

In 2011 the U.S, Senate decided to make Oct. 30 the official National Day of Remembrance for Nuclear Workers. According to the Cold War Patriots Organization, more than 700,000 people have worked at the 350 facilities in 43 states. Many of them have developed some sort illness related to radiation or toxic chemicals from their employment.