Uses of psychotropic drugs by university students in Switzerland.

The use of psychotropic drugs among students is well known, but very few studies have been carried out outside North America, and data on Switzerland are particularly scarce. This study investigates the factors that determine the use of drugs and psychotropic substances among students at the University of Lausanne. Our hypotheses were that study pressure could lead to psychotropic drug use; that use could be either regular or experimental; and that users and non-users would have different opinions about the reasons for use and the consequences. Based on a convenience sample (n = 1199) collected by Master's students from other university students as part of a course given in 2019, our three hypotheses were confirmed. The use of psychotropic drugs is well associated with poorer academic performance. Regarding frequency of use, certain types of psychotropic drugs are used regularly (e.g. antidepressants), while others are used on occasionally (e.g. tranquilizers). Psychotropic substances such as cannabis and cocaine, on the other hand, are mainly used irregularly. Finally, the majority of psychotropic drug users report that they use them as part of their medical treatment, while the majority of non-users suggest that they use them mainly to reduce anxiety and stress in everyday life and at school. Our results show that Switzerland, like other countries, is affected by the phenomenon of psychotropic drug use by students, even outside medical supervision. Accordingly, better information on the negative effects of these substances should then be provided to all university students.

[PrEP in French-speaking Switzerland: between anxiety and trust, antiretroviral use for HIV prevention]. / La PrEP en Suisse romande entre anxiété et confiance: Utilisation des antirétroviraux en prévention du VIH.

The preventive properties of antiretrovirals have been recognized for many years, and pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) has been used in Switzerland since 2016 to prevent HIV acquisition by HIV-negative people. The aim of this article is to provide an overview of PrEP uses in French-speaking Switzerland from the experience of users of this preventive drug. The main results of our research highlight the existence of two experiential versions of PrEP, i.e. subjective definitions shared by the people concerned by the indication. The first version relates to the effects of PrEP on anxiety, where taking a preventive drug drastically reduces the fear of contamination, and the second version relates to the capacity of the drug to modulate trust between individuals.

Les propriétés préventives des antirétroviraux sont reconnues depuis de nombreuses années, et en Suisse on recourt depuis 2016 à la prophylaxie pré-expositionnelle (PrEP) afin de prévenir l'acquisition du VIH par des personnes séronégatives. Cet article a pour objectif de faire un état des lieux de son utilisation en Suisse romande au travers de l'expérience vécue par les usagers et usagères. Les principaux résultats de notre recherche mettent en lumière l'existence de deux versions expérientielles de la PrEP, c'est-à-dire des définitions subjectives partagées par les personnes concernées par cette indication. La première version a trait à ses effets sur l'anxiété, où la prise d'un traitement préventif permet de réduire drastiquement la crainte du virus, et la seconde est relative à la capacité du médicament à moduler la confiance entre les individus.

Merging care and prevention: preventive properties of antiretroviral drugs and HIV chronification in the case of Switzerland.

Medication is closely involved in the subjective experience of chronic diseases, but also in the chronification process of illnesses which is described in this paper in the specific case of HIV. The development of antiretroviral drugs (ARVs) and the progressive recognition of their potential dual use as treatment as prevention (TasP) and pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) reshape the experience of HIV and its transmission. Acknowledging the importance of a socioanthropological approach to drugs, this paper highlights how therapeutic strategies of treatment and prevention currently shape the process of HIV chronification and its experience for people concerned with ARVs in Switzerland, whether they are seropositive patients on lifelong treatment or seronegative people affected by the preventive properties of drugs.

Interdisciplinary Medication Adherence Program: The Example of a University Community Pharmacy in Switzerland.

The Community Pharmacy of the Department of Ambulatory Care and Community Medicine (Policlinique Médicale Universitaire, PMU), University of Lausanne, developed and implemented an interdisciplinary medication adherence program. The program aims to support and reinforce medication adherence through a multifactorial and interdisciplinary intervention. Motivational interviewing is combined with medication adherence electronic monitors (MEMS, Aardex MWV) and a report to patient, physician, nurse, and other pharmacists. This program has become a routine activity and was extended for use with all chronic diseases. From 2004 to 2014, there were 819 patient inclusions, and 268 patients were in follow-up in 2014. This paper aims to present the organization and program's context, statistical data, published research, and future perspectives.