Objective To develop the radiation shielding device for an environmental radiation survey meter with an aim to precisely measure local radiation levels and evaluate decontamination effectiveness in Fukushima.Methods A kind of lead alloy was selected as the main material for the shielding device.Attenuation effects of different lead plates and lead cylinders were measured at the radiation regulatory laboratory and in a polluted area of Fukushima,respectively.The whole shielding device was designed on the basis of measurement results,attenuation effects,cost of production and practicability.Results The whole device was composed of main shielding,probe shielding and a bracket with lid.The main shielding was a lead cylinder with 10 cm in height and 3 cm in thickness.The probe shielding was a lead cylinder with 8 cm in height and 2 cm in thickness.The thickness of lid was 1 cm.Conclusions The device can be available to effectively shield the influence of ambient radiation and accurately measure local radiation levels and evaluate decontamination effectiveness.It can play a valuable part in post-disaster reconstruction of contaminated areas in Fukushima.

The mortality rate of pediatric out-of-hospital cardiac arrest is more than 80% in Japan, which is markedly higher than that in adults. Basic life support (BLS) by bystanders is essential for preventing sudden cardiac death. In the model core curriculum for pharmaceutical education in 2024, students must acquire the ability to ensure public health. As part of our educational policy, pharmacy students provide a workshop on infant BLS. This workshop is incorporated after the PUSH course, an authorized training program for BLS focused on chest compressions and AED use of people over elementary school age, for convenience. We herein investigated whether infant BLS training promoted the comprehension of and motivation to perform BLS for infants and assessed the educational relevance of pharmacy students serving as instructors of the BLS training course. Questionnaire responses were obtained from participants before and after the workshop. The majority of participants were college students and childcare workers. Knowledge of infant BLS by childcare workers was significantly more extensive than that by the other participants; however, overall understanding of infant BLS and the motivation to contribute to it increased irrespective of participant backgrounds. Overall improvement was also observed in the items necessary to implement BLS excluding artificial ventilation even though the instructions were given only by pharmacy students. The present results demonstrate that infant BLS training effectively enhanced public motivation to perform BLS for infants with cardiac arrest.

In Japan, the revised Immunization Law was enacted in December 2020, and municipalities have promoted a free vaccination project against COVID-19 with the aid of upper prefectural governments under the management of the Minister of Health, Labour and Welfare. To support prompt vaccination for residents over 65 years old, Kawachinagano City Pharmaceutical Association supplied a Prevaccination Screening Questionnaire to all pharmacies in Kawachinagano in cooperation with the local governments and medical associations. We conducted a questionnaire survey on the handling of questionnaire forms at pharmacies and the content of consultation by residents regarding vaccination, and investigated the significance of community pharmacy in regional medical activities by analyzing the responses. By the end of May 2021, the number of questionnaire forms provided to residents from pharmacies of the Kawachinagano City Pharmaceutical Association was approximately 3,000, which was attributable to the efforts of each pharmacist in almost all pharmacies to individually offer sincere consultation services to residents. In addition, residents were markedly concerned about pharmacotherapy, with the frequency of consultation by residents being higher about “treatment details, including drug use” and “adverse reactions of the vaccine.” Our study revealed that community pharmacies of the Kawachinagano City Pharmaceutical Association largely contributed to the smooth implementation of vaccination by performing routine work originally dealt to the local governments and medical institutions, which strongly suggests that community pharmacies fulfill their mission corresponding to social needs even during a pandemic.