Participatory environmental health research: A tool to explore the socio-exposome in a major european industrial zone.

OBJECTIVES: We show that participatory research approaches can be a useful tool across disciplines and data collection methods to explore the socio-exposome near one of the largest industrial harbors in Europe. We analyzed resident involvement in each project and their capacity to affect structural changes. METHODS: Longitudinal participatory environmental monitoring studies on lichens, petunias, aquatic systems and groundwater were conducted under the program VOCE (Volunteers for the Citizens' Observation of the Environment), which mobilized nearly 100 volunteers to collect and report data. A community-based participatory health survey, Fos EPSEAL was also carried out during the same period. We describe citizens' involvement in each study following Davis and Ramirez-Andreotta's (2021) 'best practice' grid. We also use residents' insights to refine understanding of the socio-exposome. RESULTS: The region is significantly impacted by industrial pollution and fenceline communities are disproportionately exposed. The community-based participatory health survey documented negative health outcomes among the residents, including a higher prevalence of chronic symptoms and diabetes (e.g., 11.9%) in the Fos-Berre Lagoon region than in other communities. This methodology shows the benefits of the co-production of knowledge in environmental health: not only does it enable epistemological transformations favorable to the vulnerable population, but it also triggered public action (i.e., media and public authorities' attention leading to official expertise reports, filing of collective complaints before the courts). CONCLUSION: This body of multiple participatory research studies over time is a useful approach to better understand the socio-exposome and health issues in an industrial zone.

Participatory research with a rural Aboriginal Community Controlled Health Organisation: lessons learned using the CONSIDER statement.

CONTEXT: In Australia, Aboriginal Community Controlled Health Organisations (ACCHOs) are geographically proximal to where Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander People reside and are valued for providing holistic and culturally safe primary health care. Partnering with ACCHOs in research is appropriate for redressing health inequities experienced by Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander People, which includes a high burden of chronic disease. Historically, some approaches to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander health research have been unethical. Greater accountability in the research process, transparency in reporting, and use of culturally appropriate research methodologies are key recommendations to improving the ethical integrity of research. The need for strengthening the reporting of health research involving Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander People and Indigenous peoples globally led to the development of the CONSolIDated critERia for strengthening the reporting of health research involving Indigenous peoples (CONSIDER statement), which is a synthesis of international ethical guidelines. This project report uses the CONSIDER statement to critically reflect on participatory research undertaken in partnership with an ACCHO in the rural context and to identify lessons of value for future research. ISSUE: By using the CONSIDER statement as a tool for critical reflection, it was identified that processes used to establish a research partnership with an ACCHO were key to setting the research agenda, including identifying ethical issues, the needs of local Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander People, and expectations from the research. The participation of Aboriginal community members throughout the entire research process was not only methodologically important but was also ethically appropriate. Research activities in this project included opportunities for Aboriginal community members to directly share their perspectives and experiences and develop local solutions to issues affecting them. Outcomes included evidence to support future funding applications, community-derived priorities that assisted with government reporting, and locally identified methods for addressing chronic disease management. Key to this was building the research capacity and capability of local Aboriginal community members, which also reflected the ethical principles of reciprocity and equity. This also provided opportunities for non-Indigenous researchers to learn from local Aboriginal community members and develop skills in culturally appropriate research. LESSONS LEARNED: Using the CONSIDER statement was beneficial in enabling researchers to critically reflect on a participatory research project undertaken in partnership with a rural ACCHO. Researchers identified that participatory approaches can be used to generate research of relevance to local Aboriginal community members and their ACCHOs, and to support health service reporting, and future funding applications. Research timelines and activities needed to be flexible and adaptable, to allow for staff turnover and unforeseen events of cultural significance. Similarly, it is important for researchers to be receptive to change and open to learning. Although research partnerships are established on trust and mutual respect, it is recommended that greater formal provisions are required to protect the intellectual property of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities involved in research. These lessons are likely to be transferrable to other settings and are of value to researchers seeking to partner with ACCHOs in research.

Interdisciplinary community-based participatory health research across the industrial region of the Étang de Berre : The EPSEAL Fos Crau study.

BACKGROUND: We conducted a community-based participatory environmental health study in three towns: two in the heart of Marseille's industrial zone (Fos-sur-Mer and Port-Saint-Louis-du-Rhône), and one on the periphery located about 30 km away (Saint-Martin-de-Crau). METHODS: We first conducted a cross-sectional survey of a random sample of residents in each of the three towns. We asked study participants to self-report a wide variety of health issues (Port-Saint-Louis: n = 272, Fos-sur-Mer: n = 543, Saint-Martin-de-Crau: n = 439). We then conducted focus groups with residents and other stakeholders to share preliminary data in order to propose areas of reflection and collaboratively produce contextually-situated knowledge of their health and environment. We directly standardized the prevalences (by age and gender) to the French metropolitan population to make our results more comparable. RESULTS: Study participants who lived closer to the core industrial zone (residents of Fos-sur-Mer and Port-Saint-Louis-du-Rhone) had higher prevalences of eye irritation, nose and throat problems, chronic skin problems and headaches than people who lived further away (residents of Saint-Martin-de-Crau). Residents also offered diverse qualitative insights about their environment and health experiences. DISCUSSION: We observed elevated prevalences of diseases that affected residents across the industrial zone (Fos-sur-Mer and Port-Saint-Louis-du-Rhône) compared to those living outside (Saint-Martin-de-Crau), and qualitative evidence of how residents made sense of their health experiences strengthening an understanding of their own empirical observations which helps to produce knowledge about health in an industrial context. The results of the workshops show an important benefit from the co-production of local knowledge. CONCLUSION: We encourage future researchers to do in-depth, community-based research to comprehensively describe the health of residents in other heavily polluted zones, product local knowledge and to help identify policy solutions, engender trust among the local people, and identify opportunities for intervention.

Strongly Participatory Science and Knowledge Justice in an Environmentally Contested Region.

This article draws insights from a case study examining unanswered health questions of residents in two polluted towns in an industrial region in southern France. A participatory health study, as conducted by the author, is presented as a way to address undone science by providing the residents with relevant data supporting their illness claims. Local residents were included in the health survey process, from the formulation of the questions to the final data analysis. Through this strongly participatory science (SPS) process, the townspeople offered many creative ideas in the final report for how the data could be used to assist in improving their health and environment and policy work is already in evidence, resulting from the study. Drawing from the literature on participatory science and expertise as well as from the initial outcomes of the local health study, I propose that SPS produces a form of knowledge justice. Understanding knowledge and its making as part of a social justice agenda aligns well with environmental justice frames. Through SPS, local residents have a hermeneutical resource to make sense of their embodied lives and augment their claims with strong data supporting actions for improving their health and environment.

Scale-up of collaborative TB/HIV activities in Guyana.

OBJECTIVE: To assess scale-up of recommended tuberculosis (TB)/HIV activities in Guyana and to identify specific strategies for further expansion. METHODS: Medical records and clinic registers were reviewed at nine TB clinics and 10 HIV clinics. At TB clinics, data were collected on HIV testing and antiretroviral therapy (ART) for patients with TB/HIV; at HIV clinics, data were collected on intensified case finding (ICF), tuberculin skin test (TST) results, and provision of isoniazid preventive therapy (IPT). RESULTS: At TB clinics, among 461 patients newly diagnosed with TB, 419 (90.9%) had a known HIV status and 121 (28.9%) were HIV-infected. Among the 63 patients with TB/HIV, 33 (52.4%) received ART. Among the 45 patients with TB/HIV for whom dates of HIV diagnosis were available, 38 (84.4%) individuals knew their HIV status prior to TB diagnosis. At HIV clinics, among 127 patients eligible to receive a TST, 87 (68.5%) received a TST, 66 (75.9%) had a TST result, seven (10.6%) had a newly positive result, two had a previously positive result, and six of nine patients with positive results (66.7%) received IPT. ICF could not be assessed because of incomplete or discrepant documentation. CONCLUSIONS: An in-depth evaluation of TB/HIV activities successfully identified areas of success and remaining challenges. At TB clinics, HIV testing rates are high; further scale-up of ART for persons with TB/HIV is needed. At HIV clinics, use of TST to focus IPT is a feasible and efficient strategy; improving rates of annual TST screening will allow for further expansion of IPT.

Internal audits can safeguard hospital revenue.

Hospitals should routinely perform internal audits of all functions affecting billing accuracy to mitigate the effects of payer audits and to protect revenue by improving billing processes. A primary focus for internal audits should be on coding accuracy, because coding errors leading to denials often reflect gaps in coders' knowledge or training. Effective communication between coding and denials management professionals is a critical success factor. Audits should support appeals processes, and audit findings should be used in educational initiatives aimed at improving coding accuracy.

Collaborative Workshops for Community Meaning-Making and Data Analyses: How Focus Groups Strengthen Data by Enhancing Understanding and Promoting Use.

Community-based participatory research is a growing approach, but often includes higher levels of community engagement in the research design and data collection stages than in the data interpretation stage. Involving study participants in this stage could further knowledge justice, science that aligns with and supports social justice agendas. This article reports on two community-based participatory environmental health surveys conducted between 2015 and 2019 in an industrial region near Marseille, France, and focuses specifically on our approach of organizing focus groups to directly involve residents and community stakeholders in the analysis and interpretation process. We found that, in these focus groups, residents triangulated across many different sources of information-study findings, local knowledge, and different types of expert knowledge-to reach conclusions about the health of their community and make recommendations for what should be done to improve community health outcomes. We conclude that involving residents in the data analysis and interpretation stage can promote epistemic justice and lead to final reports that are more useful to community stakeholders and decision-makers.

Code of Sustainable Practice in Occupational and Environmental Health and Safety for Corporations.

At a conference held at Stony Brook University in December 2007, "Dangerous Trade: Histories of Industrial Hazard across a Globalizing World," participants endorsed a Code of Sustainable Practice in Occupational and Environmental Health and Safety for Corporations. The Code outlines practices that would ensure corporations enact the highest health and environmentally protective measures in all the locations in which they operate. Corporations should observe international guidelines on occupational exposure to air contaminants, plant safety, air and water pollutant releases, hazardous waste disposal practices, remediation of polluted sites, public disclosure of toxic releases, product hazard labeling, sale of products for specific uses, storage and transport of toxic intermediates and products, corporate safety and health auditing, and corporate environmental auditing. Protective measures in all locations should be consonant with the most protective measures applied anywhere in the world, and should apply to the corporations' subsidiaries, contractors, suppliers, distributors, and licensees of technology. Key words: corporations, sustainability, environmental protection, occupational health, code of practice.

Community-based trial of R-CHOP and maintenance rituximab for intermediate- or high-grade non-Hodgkin lymphoma with first-cycle filgrastim for older patients.

BACKGROUND: Administration of full-dose R-CHOP (rituximab/cyclophosphamide/doxorubicin/vincristine/prednisone) chemotherapy is important to maximize response in patients with intermediate-or high-grade non-Hodgkin lymphoma but might be difficult in older patients. PATIENTS AND METHODS: This community-based study was conducted to determine response, toxicity, and disease-free survival in patients with intermediate-or high-grade non-Hodgkin lymphoma receiving R-CHOP with filgrastim. Patients received 6-8 cycles of R-CHOP followed by 4 cycles of maintenance rituximab for responders. Patients aged > 60 years or with increased infection risk received filgrastim 5 microg/kg per day in all R-CHOP cycles; other patients received filgrastim after a neutropenic event (no planned administration for cycle 1). RESULTS: Of 101 patients enrolled, 60 (59%) were aged > 60 years and received filgrastim in all cycles. Thirty-three patients aged 60 years vs. 93% 60 years vs. 95% 60 years vs. 71% 60 years vs. 78% or= 38.3 degrees C with absolute neutrophil count < 500/mm) occurred in 17% of patients overall (22% > 60 years vs. 10% 60 years vs. 2% 60 years receiving R-CHOP with filgrastim support in all cycles received comparable doses of chemotherapy and had similar overall response rates compared wtih those of younger patients receiving no preemptive cycle-1 filgrastim.

Redesigning a Participatory Health Study for a French Industrial Context.

The Marseille, France, metropolitan area is home to a heavily concentrated industrial region directly adjacent to residential communities. These towns have been subjected to a wide variety of social science and public health studies, but residents continue to have many questions about health concerns for which they currently have primarily anecdotal evidence. Reflecting on our in-progress research in two of these towns, we argue that community-based participatory research that draws from both social science and public health science can be successfully adapted to the French political and cultural context and is key for developing environmental health research that is relevant for community residents and local leaders. Understanding and working within the customs of the local values and practices culture is critical for community-based participatory research regardless of location but is particularly paramount when working in non-United States contexts, since local values and practices will shape the particular techniques used within the community-based participatory research framework.

Recommendations for the selective use of herpes simplex virus type 2 serological tests.

BACKGROUND: Herpes simplex virus (HSV) type-specific serological tests are now widely available, but indications for their use have not been well defined. The California Sexually Transmitted Diseases (STD) Controllers Association convened a committee of clinicians and researchers to make recommendations for the use of type-specific HSV type 2 (HSV-2) serological tests. METHODS: By means of a systematic review of the literature, evidence to support screening in selected high-risk groups was compiled. Screening recommendations were developed by applying standard screening criteria to each specific population. RESULTS: The committee concluded that, in addition to serological testing for the diagnostic evaluation of patients with symptoms, screening of asymptomatic patients is likely to be beneficial among the following groups: those at high risk for STDs and human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection who are motivated to reduce their sexual risk behavior, HIV-infected patients, and patients with sex partners with genital herpes. In contrast, universal screening for HSV-2 infection in pregnant women is unlikely to be beneficial. CONCLUSIONS: The targeted use of HSV-2 serological tests for specific diagnostic situations and selected populations should benefit patients, providers, and the community. Until more data become available, these recommendations provide justification for selective diagnostic and screening uses of HSV-2 serological tests.

Wrapping it up in a person: Examining employment and earnings outcomes for Ph.D. recipients.

In evaluating research investments, it is important to establish whether the expertise gained by researchers in conducting their projects propagates into the broader economy. For eight universities, it was possible to combine data from the UMETRICS project, which provided administrative records on graduate students supported by funded research, with data from the U.S. Census Bureau. The analysis covers 2010-2012 earnings and placement outcomes of people receiving doctorates in 2009-2011. Almost 40% of supported doctorate recipients, both federally and nonfederally funded, entered industry and, when they did, they disproportionately got jobs at large and high-wage establishments in high-tech and professional service industries. Although Ph.D. recipients spread nationally, there was also geographic clustering in employment near the universities that trained and employed the researchers. We also show large differences across fields in placement outcomes.

Physicians' enquiries into their patients' alcohol use: public views and recalled experiences.

AIMS: To examine public opinion and experiences of family physician involvement in alcohol use issues and to identify patient characteristics associated with these opinions and experiences. DESIGN: A secondary analysis of population survey data from the 1993 Ontario Alcohol and Other Drug Opinion Survey (OADOS), a random household telephone survey of adults in Ontario, Canada. Opinion and experiences regarding alcohol use were examined by drinking status. PARTICIPANTS: All survey respondents (n = 941; 65% response rate). Population expansion weights were applied to ensure the sample's representativeness of the adult population of Ontario. MEASUREMENTS: Measures assessed the prevalence of opinions and experiences of family physicians: (1) asking patients about their drinking; (2) advising regular drinkers to cut down/quit; and (3) helping patients with alcohol problems. Self-reported past-year alcohol consumption and related problems were used to construct a categorical variable describing current drinking status. FINDINGS: Public opinion supported routine inquiries into patients' drinking habits and advising regular drinkers to cut down. However, the experience of being asked by a physician about drinking, being advised to cut down or being helped with alcohol problems was uncommon. Respondents' drinking status was associated with experiences of being asked about drinking and being advised to cut down. CONCLUSIONS: Physician training should inform physicians that public opinion supports inquiries about drinking and advisement to reduce consumption, as it does not appear that family doctors are meeting these expectations of patients.

Scale-up of collaborative TB/HIV activities in Guyana / Ampliar las actividades de colaboración contra la tuberculosis y la infección por el VIH en Guyana

ABSTRACT Objective To assess scale-up of recommended tuberculosis (TB)/HIV activities in Guyana and to identify specific strategies for further expansion. Methods Medical records and clinic registers were reviewed at nine TB clinics and 10 HIV clinics. At TB clinics, data were collected on HIV testing and antiretroviral therapy (ART) for patients with TB/HIV; at HIV clinics, data were collected on intensified case finding (ICF), tuberculin skin test (TST) results, and provision of isoniazid preventive therapy (IPT). Results At TB clinics, among 461 patients newly diagnosed with TB, 419 (90.9%) had a known HIV status and 121 (28.9%) were HIV-infected. Among the 63 patients with TB/HIV, 33 (52.4%) received ART. Among the 45 patients with TB/HIV for whom dates of HIV diagnosis were available, 38 (84.4%) individuals knew their HIV status prior to TB diagnosis. At HIV clinics, among 127 patients eligible to receive a TST, 87 (68.5%) received a TST, 66 (75.9%) had a TST result, seven (10.6%) had a newly positive result, two had a previously positive result, and six of nine patients with positive results (66.7%) received IPT. ICF could not be assessed because of incomplete or discrepant documentation. Conclusions An in-depth evaluation of TB/HIV activities successfully identified areas of success and remaining challenges. At TB clinics, HIV testing rates are high; further scale-up of ART for persons with TB/HIV is needed. At HIV clinics, use of TST to focus IPT is a feasible and efficient strategy; improving rates of annual TST screening will allow for further expansion of IPT.

RESUMEN Objetivo Evaluar la ampliación de las actividades recomendadas contra la tuberculosis (TB) y la infección por el VIH en Guyana y definir estrategias específicas para nuevas expansiones. Métodos Se examinaron los expedientes médicos y registros clínicos de nueve consultorios de atención de la TB y diez consultorios de atención de la infección por el VIH. En los consultorios de atención de la tuberculosis, se recopilaron datos sobre las pruebas de detección del VIH y el tratamiento antirretroviral (TAR) para pacientes con TB e infección por el VIH; en los consultorios de atención de la infección por VIH, se recopilaron datos a partir de una búsqueda intensiva de casos, los resultados de la prueba de la tuberculina y la provisión de tratamiento preventivo con isoniazida. Resultados En los consultorios de atención de la tuberculosis, de 461 pacientes recién diagnosticados con tuberculosis, 419 (90,9%) conocían su estado con respecto a la infección por el VIH y 121 (28,9%) estaban infectados por el virus. De los 63 pacientes con TB e infección por el VIH, 33 (52,4%) recibieron TAR. De los 45 pacientes con TB e infección por el VIH cuya fecha de diagnóstico de la infección por el VIH se conocía, 38 (84,4%) supieron de su estado con respecto a la infección por el VIH antes de recibir el diagnóstico de la tuberculosis. En los consultorios de atención de la infección por el VIH, de 127 pacientes que reunían los requisitos para la prueba de la tuberculina, 87 (68,5%) recibieron la prueba, 66 (75,9%) tuvieron un resultado, siete (10,6%) tuvieron un resultado positivo nuevo, dos habían tenido un resultado positivo anteriormente, y seis de nueve pacientes con resultados positivos (66,7%) recibieron tratamiento preventivo con isoniazida. No pudo evaluarse la búsqueda intensiva de casos debido a que la documentación estaba incompleta o era discrepante. Conclusiones Una evaluación exhaustiva de las actividades contra la TB y la infección por el VIH permitió determinar las áreas donde se había tenido éxito y los retos pendientes. En los consultorios de atención de la tuberculosis, las tasas de realización de pruebas de detección del VIH son elevadas; se necesita ampliar el alcance del TAR para llegar a las personas con TB e infección por el VIH. En los consultorios de atención de la infección por el VIH, el uso de la prueba de la tuberculina para focalizar la búsqueda intensiva de casos es una estrategia factible y eficaz; el mejoramiento de las tasas de tamizaje anual con la prueba de la tuberculina permitirá ampliar la búsqueda intensiva de casos.

Role of multidetector computed tomography in the diagnosis and management of patients attending the rapid access chest pain clinic, The Scottish computed tomography of the heart (SCOT-HEART) trial: study protocol for randomized controlled trial.

BACKGROUND: Rapid access chest pain clinics have facilitated the early diagnosis and treatment of patients with coronary heart disease and angina. Despite this important service provision, coronary heart disease continues to be under-diagnosed and many patients are left untreated and at risk. Recent advances in imaging technology have now led to the widespread use of noninvasive computed tomography, which can be used to measure coronary artery calcium scores and perform coronary angiography in one examination. However, this technology has not been robustly evaluated in its application to the clinic. METHODS/DESIGN: The SCOT-HEART study is an open parallel group prospective multicentre randomized controlled trial of 4,138 patients attending the rapid access chest pain clinic for evaluation of suspected cardiac chest pain. Following clinical consultation, participants will be approached and randomized 1:1 to receive standard care or standard care plus ≥64-multidetector computed tomography coronary angiography and coronary calcium score. Randomization will be conducted using a web-based system to ensure allocation concealment and will incorporate minimization. The primary endpoint of the study will be the proportion of patients diagnosed with angina pectoris secondary to coronary heart disease at 6 weeks. Secondary endpoints will include the assessment of subsequent symptoms, diagnosis, investigation and treatment. In addition, long-term health outcomes, safety endpoints, such as radiation dose, and health economic endpoints will be assessed. Assuming a clinic rate of 27.0% for the diagnosis of angina pectoris due to coronary heart disease, we will need to recruit 2,069 patients per group to detect an absolute increase of 4.0% in the rate of diagnosis at 80% power and a two-sided P value of 0.05. The SCOT-HEART study is currently recruiting participants and expects to report in 2014. DISCUSSION: This is the first study to look at the implementation of computed tomography in the patient care pathway that is outcome focused. This study will have major implications for the management of patients with cardiovascular disease. TRIAL REGISTRATION: ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier: NCT01149590.

Racial and ethnic disparities in hospitalizations and deaths associated with 2009 pandemic Influenza A (H1N1) virus infections in the United States.

PURPOSE: Concerns have been raised regarding possible racial-ethnic disparities in 2009 pandemic influenza A (H1N1) (pH1N1) illness severity and health consequences for U.S. minority populations. METHODS: Using data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System, Emerging Infections Program Influenza-Associated Hospitalization Surveillance, and Influenza-Associated Pediatric Mortality Surveillance, we calculated race-ethnicity-specific, age-adjusted rates of self-reported influenza-like illness (ILI) and pH1N1-associated hospitalizations. We used χ(2) tests to evaluate racial-ethnic disparities in ILI-associated health care-seeking behavior and pH1N1 hospitalization. To evaluate pediatric deaths, we compared racial-ethnic proportions of deaths against U.S. population distributions. RESULTS: Prevalence of self-reported ILI was lower among Hispanics (6.5%), higher among American Indians/Alaska Natives (16.2%), and similar among non-Hispanic blacks (7.7%) compared with non-Hispanic whites (8.5%). No racial-ethnic differences were identified in ILI-associated health care-seeking behavior. Age-adjusted pH1N1-associated Emerging Infections Program hospitalization rates were higher among all minority populations (range: 8.1-10.9/100,000 population) compared with non-Hispanic whites (3.0/100,000). The proportion of pH1N1-associated pediatric deaths was higher than expected among Hispanics (31%) and lower than expected among non-Hispanic whites (45%) given the proportions of the U.S. population they comprise (22% and 58%, respectively). CONCLUSIONS: Racial-ethnic disparities in pH1N1-associated hospitalizations and pediatric deaths were identified. Vaccination remains the primary intervention for preventing influenza.

Hepatitis B sero-prevalence and risk behaviors among immigrant men in a population-based household survey in low-income neighborhoods of northern California.

BACKGROUND: Despite an effective vaccine, 60,000 new HBV infections were reported in the US in 2004; 95% in adults. We evaluate HBV sero-prevalence, risk behaviors and self-reported vaccination among Latino immigrant, Asian immigrant and US born low income men in five northern California counties. METHODS: Population based, cross sectional survey of HBV sero-prevalence and risk behaviors in men aged 18 to 35 years. RESULTS: Among 1,512 men screened, Asian immigrants were most likely to have had prior HBV infection (15.1%) and chronic infection (3.8%) compared to US born (prior 5.1%, chronic 0.6%) and Latino immigrant men (prior 2.0%, chronic 0.3%.) Reported HBV vaccination was lowest for Latino immigrants (12%) compared to Asian immigrants and US born men (35% in both.) Latino immigrants reported less educational attainment, medical insurance coverage and access to a physician in the last six months. DISCUSSION: Healthcare providers should routinely screen Asian immigrants for HBV regardless of their self reported vaccination status. Latino immigrants may comprise an important group of under-vaccinated, at risk persons in California. HBV testing and vaccination of immigrants soon after US arrival should be encouraged.