Hemorrhagic Strokes Attributable to Chronic Alcohol Consumption and Heavy Episodic Drinking in France.

OBJECTIVES: To estimate the number of cases and deaths related to hemorrhagic stroke (HS) attributable to a chronic alcohol consumption and to heavy episodic drinking (HED) in France. METHODS: A population-attributable fraction (PAF) estimation approach was used. Relative risks for HS with alcohol consumption were extracted from the INTERSTROKE study. Levels of alcohol consumption in the French population were collected from the 2017 Health Barometer. Data on HS morbidity and mortality were extracted from the French National Health Data System (SNDS). RESULTS: We estimated that 7.2% (n = 2,100) and 6.6% (n = 1,900) of cases with HS were attributable to chronic alcohol consumption and HED, respectively. PAFs were higher in men than in women with 11.5% vs 2.6% for a chronic consumption and 10.7% vs 2.1% for HED, respectively. We estimated that 7.0% of HS deaths (n = 1,100) were attributable to chronic alcohol consumption and 5.1% attributable to HED (n = 800). Finally, 16.3% of patients with HS (n = 4,700) and 14.1% of HS deaths (n = 2,300) were attributable to overall chronic alcohol consumption or to monthly HED. DISCUSSION: These results remind the importance of alcohol consumption in the occurrence of HS and the importance of implementing primary and secondary prevention measures, particularly among young people, where HED is most common.

Addressing Burnout among Healthcare Technology Management Professionals.

This article suggests ways in which healthcare delivery organizations (HDOs) may address and mitigate burnout among healthcare technology management (HTM) professionals. Burnout is defined as a state of emotional and physical exhaustion resulting from workplace stressors. Although not intended to be a fully comprehensive empirical analysis of causes of burnout, this article discusses four likely causes for burnout that are particularly relevant to HTM professionals in HDOs: (1) gaps in developing a trained and sustainable workforce, (2) growing demand for HTM expertise across knowledge domains, (3) increasing occupational stressors related to patient safety, and (4) perceived lack of understanding of employee needs. Next, based on existing literature, the article proposes four possible solutions in response to each of these issues: (1) developing human resource planning and mentoring to ensure adequate transfer of skills and knowledge, (2) implementing ways to accomplish knowledge filtering, (3) integrating HTM workers in quality improvement initiatives, and (4) implementing employee voice practices. The article concludes by discussing the possible benefits that may be derived from implementing these solutions.

Human Papillomaviruses in Adolescents: Knowledge, Attitudes, and Practices of Pharmacists Regarding Virus and Vaccination in France.

Human papillomaviruses (HPVs) are responsible for one of the most common sexually transmitted diseases in the world, and their oncogenic role has been well demonstrated in genital, anal, and oropharyngeal areas. However, a certain distrust and a lack of knowledge about this vaccine are perceptible among French adolescents and their parents. Thus, health professionals and, more particularly, pharmacists appear to be key persons to promote HPV vaccination and restore confidence in the target population. The present study aims to assess the knowledge, attitudes, and practices regarding HPV vaccination among pharmacists, particularly in boys, following the 2019 recommendation to vaccinate them. The present study was designed as a cross-sectional, quantitative, and descriptive survey that was conducted from March to September 2021 among pharmacists in France. 215 complete questionnaires were collected. Gaps in knowledge were found, only 21.4% and 8.4% obtained a high level of knowledge related to, respectively, HPV and vaccination. Pharmacists were confident in the HPV vaccine (94.4%), found it safe and useful, and felt that the promotion of the vaccine was part of their role (94.0%). However, only a few have already advised it, which they justify due to a lack of opportunity and forgetfulness. Faced with this, training, computerized reminders, or supportive materials could be implemented to improve the advice and thus the vaccination coverage. Finally, 64.2% were in favor of a pharmacy-based vaccination program. In conclusion, pharmacists are interested in this vaccination and the role of promoter. However, they need the means to facilitate this mission: training, computer alerts, supportive materials such as flyers, and the implementation of vaccination in pharmacies.

Development and Validation of the Epidemiological Tattoo Assessment Tool to Assess Ink Exposure and Related Factors in Tattooed Populations for Medical Research: Cross-sectional Validation Study.

BACKGROUND: Tattooing, whose popularity is growing worldwide, is an invasive body art that involves the injection of chemical mixtures, the tattoo ink, into the upper layer of the dermis. Although these inks may contain environmental toxins, including known human carcinogens, their long-term health effects are poorly studied. To conduct the urgently required epidemiological studies on tattoos and their long-term health effects, a validated method for assessing the complex tattoo exposure is needed. OBJECTIVE: We aimed to develop and validate the Epidemiological Tattoo Assessment Tool (EpiTAT), a questionnaire to self-assess tattoo ink exposure in tattooed populations suitable for application in large epidemiological cohort studies. METHODS: One of 3 preliminary versions of the EpiTAT using one of the alternative tattoo measurement units hand surface, credit card, or body schemes was randomly filled in by tattooed volunteers in Lyon, France. To identify the most suitable unit of tattoo self-assessment, a validation study was conducted with the selected respondents (N=97) to compare the self-assessments of tattoo surface, color, and coverage with validation measurements made by trained study personnel. Intraclass correlation, the Kendall rank correlation, and 2-tailed t tests were used to statistically compare tattoo size, color area, and tattoo coverage separately for each questionnaire version. Participants' opinions on the alternative measurement units were also considered in the overall evaluation. For quality control of the validation measures, digital surface analysis of 62 photographs of selected tattoos was performed using Fiji/ImageJ. RESULTS: In general, the results revealed overestimation of self-assessed measures compared with validation measures (eg, mean tattooed body surface 1768, SD 1547, cm2 vs 930, SD 1047, cm2, respectively, for hand surface; P<.001) and validation measures compared with digital image analysis (mean individual tattoo surface 147, SD 303.9, cm2 vs 101, SD 154.7, cm2, respectively; P=.05). Although the measurement unit credit card yielded the most accurate measures for all variables of interest, it had a much lower completion rate (78/129, 60.5%) than hand surface (89/104, 85.6%) and body schemes (90/106, 84.9%). Hand surface measured total tattoo size more accurately than body schemes (absolute agreement intraclass correlation coefficient: 0.71 vs 0.64, respectively). CONCLUSIONS: The final version of the EpiTAT contains 21 items and uses hand surface as a visual unit of measurement. Likert scales are used to assess color and coverage as a proportion of the total tattoo area. The overestimation of tattoo size by self-reporting merits further research to identify potential influential factors or predictive patterns that could be considered when calculating exposure.