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Objective: Our goal was to identify aspects of residency applications predictive of subsequent performance during pediatric internship., Methods: We conducted a retrospective cohort study of graduates of US medical schools who began pediatric internship in a large pediatric residency program in the summers of 2013 to 2017. The primary outcome was the weighted average of subjects' Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education pediatric Milestone scores at the end of pediatric internship. To determine factors independently associated with performance, we conducted multivariate linear mixed-effects models controlling for match year and Milestone grading committee as random effects and the following application factors as fixed effects: letter of recommendation strength, clerkship grades, medical school reputation, master's or PhD degrees, gender, US Medical Licensing Examination Step 1 score, Alpha Omega Alpha membership, private medical school, and interview score., Results: Our study population included 195 interns. In multivariate analyses, the aspects of applications significantly associated with composite Milestone scores at the end of internship were letter of recommendation strength (estimate 0.09, 95% confidence intervals [CI]: 0.04, 0.15), numbers of clerkship honors (est. 0.05, 95% CI: 0.01-0.09), medical school ranking (est. 0.04, 95% CI: 0.08-0.01), having a master's degree (est. 0.19, 95% CI: 0.03-0.36), and not having a PhD (est. 0.14, 95% CI: 0.02-0.26). Overall, the final model explained 18% of the variance in milestone scoring., Conclusions: Letter of recommendation strength, clerkship grades, medical school ranking, and having obtained a Master's degree were significantly associated with higher clinical performance during pediatric internship., (Copyright © 2020 Academic Pediatric Association. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

Background: Pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) is a novel HIV prevention method whereby HIV-negative individuals take the drugs tenofovir and emtricitabine to prevent HIV acquisition. Optimal adherence is critical for PrEP efficacy. Chemsex describes sexual activity under the influence of psychoactive drugs, in the UK typically; crystal methamphetamine, gamma-hydroxybutyrate(GHB) and/or mephedrone. Chemsex drug use has been associated with increased HIV transmission risk among gay, bisexual and other men who have sex with men (GBM) and poor ART adherence among people living with HIV. This study assessed whether self-reported chemsex events affected self-reported daily PrEP adherence among PROUD study participants., Methods: The PROUD study was an open-label, randomised controlled trial, conducted in thirteen English sexual health clinics, assessing effectiveness of Truvada Ⓡ -PrEP among 544 HIV-negative GBM. The study reported an 86% risk-reduction of HIV from daily PrEP. Participants were asked about chemsex engagement at follow-up visits. Monthly self-reports of missed PrEP tablets were aggregated to assess adherence between visits. Univariable and multivariable regression analyses were performed to test for associations between chemsex and reporting less than seven out of seven intended doses(<7/7ID) in the 7 days before and/or after last condomless anal intercourse(CAI)., Results: 1479 follow-up visit forms and 2260 monthly adherence forms from 388 participants were included in the analyses, with 38.5% visit forms reporting chemsex since last visit and 29.9% follow-up periods reporting <7/7ID. No statistically significant associations were observed between reporting <7/7ID and chemsex (aOR=1.29 [95% CI 0.90-1.87], p = 0.168). Statistically significant associations were seen between reporting <7/7ID and participants perceiving that they would miss PrEP doses during the trial, Asian ethnicity, and reporting unemployment at baseline., Conclusions: These analyses suggest PrEP remains a feasible and effective HIV prevention method for GBM engaging in chemsex, a practise which is prevalent in this group and has been associated with increased HIV transmission risk., (Copyright © 2019 The Authors. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

Background: Overdose is a major cause of death among PWID, and for opioid overdoses naloxone administration can reduce harm. However, globally there is limited national level data on the extent of non-fatal overdose and naloxone uptake. The first national level data on the extent of self-reported overdose and self-reported receipt of naloxone among UK PWID, providing a baseline to monitor the impact of the recent policy change regarding naloxone availability, is presented., Methods: Data on self-reported overdose and receipt of naloxone during the preceding year for 2013-2014 from a national survey of PWID was analysed. Participants who reported injecting during the preceding year were included., Results: Participants (3850) were predominantly male (75%); mean age was 36 years. The most commonly injected drugs were: heroin (91%), crack (45%) and amphetamine (29%). 15% (591) reported overdosing during the preceding year. There were no differences in the proportion reporting overdose by age or gender, but overdose was more common among those who: injected multiple drugs; recently ceased addiction treatment; injected with used needles/syringes; ever had transactional sex; had used a sexual health clinic or emergency department and lived in Wales or Northern Ireland. Among those reporting an overdose during the preceding year, a third reported two to four overdoses and 7.5% five or more overdoses; half reported receiving naloxone. Those reporting naloxone receipt in the preceding year were more likely to: live in Wales or Northern Ireland; ever received used needles/syringes; ever been imprisoned; and less likely to have injected two drug types., Conclusion: These data provide a baseline for monitoring the impact of the 2015 UK policy change to improve take-home naloxone access. Interventions tackling overdose should promote naloxone awareness and access, and target those who; are poly-drug injectors, have ceased treatment, share needles/syringes and whose drug use links to sexual activity., (Crown Copyright © 2017. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

In this article, we review published research evaluating the effectiveness of preparation interventions for adult patients undergoing surgery or invasive medical procedures. This review is meant to assist practitioners in selecting or designing an intervention. In general, preparation interventions have been shown to be effective across a range of health outcomes. However, the relative efficacy of different strategies has been difficult to assess, as has the contribution of several patient variables to outcome. Considering interventions used prior to surgery, there is not a clear demonstration of effectiveness, in part because large numbers of outcome variables have been used. In contrast, the preparation intervention literature using adult patients facing invasive medical procedures has shown the relative superiority of modeling procedures and coping strategies. In this review, we consider methodological weaknesses in previous research, and make suggestions for improving future research.