Public health response to a large-scale endoscopy infection control lapse in a nonhospital clinic.

Objective: To determine whether transmission of blood-borne pathogens (BBPs) (hepatitis B virus [HBV], hepatitis C virus [HCV] and HIV) occurred as a result of endoscopy reprocessing failures identified during an inspection of a nonhospital endoscopy clinic in 2011.

Methods: The present analysis was a retrospective cohort study. Registered notification letters were mailed to 6992 patients who underwent endoscopy from 2002 to 2011 at one Canadian nonhospital endoscopy clinic, informing them of the infection control lapse and offering BBP testing.

Social Marginalization and Internal Exclusion: Gay Men's Understandings and Experiences of Community.

A total of 27 gay and bisexual men were interviewed about how they perceived the criminal prosecution of persons living with HIV who do not disclose their HIV status. The stories that emerged from the interviews raise questions about the nature of the gay community. The findings centre on the participants' descriptions of (1) the heterosexual meta-culture, (2) the locales of gay life, and (3) unsupportive elements in the gay community.

Improving collaboration between public health and family health teams in Ontario.

Objectives: To identify and explore areas where responsibilities may overlap between family health teams (FHTs) and public health units (PHUs); to identify facilitators or barriers to collaboration; and to identify priority areas for increased collaboration. DESIGN AND CONTEXT: Cross-sectional mixed-methods study of FHTs and PHUs in Ontario, Canada, consisting of a postal survey, key informant interviews and a roundtable meeting.

Results: The survey response rate was 46%.

Get Tested Why Not? A novel approach to internet-based chlamydia and gonorrhea testing in Canada.

Objective: The objective of the Get Tested Why Not campaign is to increase access to chlamydia and gonorrhea testing and sexual health information, with specific focus on youth.

Participants: Individuals between the ages of 15-29 are most affected by chlamydia and gonorrhea infections in Ottawa and were identified as the target population. Youth from the target population were engaged in the development and launch of the campaign.

Nondisclosure prosecutions and population health outcomes: examining HIV testing, HIV diagnoses, and the attitudes of men who have sex with men following nondisclosure prosecution media releases in Ottawa, Canada.

Background: During the past decade, the intersection of HIV and criminal law has become increasingly discussed. The majority of studies to date have approached this topic from a sociological or legal perspective. As a result, the potential effect of nondisclosure prosecutions on population health and HIV prevention work remains mostly unknown.

Measuring population health: a review of indicators.

This article reviews the historical development of population health indicators. We have long known that environmental, socioeconomic, early life conditions, individual actions, and medical care all interact to affect health. Present quantitative reporting on the impact of these factors on population health grew out of Bills of Mortality published in the 1500s.