Acta Dermato-Venereologica 98-8CompleteContent | Page 27

811 SHORT COMMUNICATION Failure of a Print Media Sun Safety Campaign to Reach High-risk Occupational Groups Alexander G. S. ZINK 1,2 , Melvin RÜTH 1 , Reinhold WATZELE 3 , Claudio R. NIGG 4 and Eva A. REHFUESS 2 Department of Dermatology and Allergy, Technical University of Munich, Biedersteiner Str. 29, DE-80802 Munich, 2 Institute for Medical Information Processing, Biometry and Epidemiology, Pettenkofer School of Public Health, LMU Munich, Munich, 3 Sozialversicherung für Landwirtschaft, Forsten und Gartenbau, Kassel, Germany, and 4 Office of Public Health Studies, University of Hawai’i at Mānoa, Maui, USA. E-mail: [email protected] 1 Accepted Apr 26, 2018; Epub ahead of print Apr 27, 2018 At the regional level, analogous to the national level, the same Non-melanoma skin cancer (NMSC) is the most com- information was published in the Bavarian Agricultural Journal mon cancer worldwide (1). With a large proportion of the on 15 September 2017. This special-interest journal is Germany’s adult German population currently at risk, it is estimated, highest-circulation subscription agricultural journal, with a circula- that the prevalence of NMSC will double by 2030 (2). tion of approximately 100,000 copies reaching 85% of all Bavarian Main risk factor for NMSC is solar ultraviolet (UV) ra- farms (12). The weekly magazine provides agricultural professions with the latest news on all aspects of agricultural life, including diation (3), which has led to the classification of NMSC finance, health and agricultural market prices, thereby ensuring a as an occupational disease for outdoor workers in some large and continued readership. countries (4). Naturally, sun protection during outdoor In both cases, the responses and engagement of the target au- work and leisure is the main target of many interventions diences were assessed based on the number of website visits during conducted at individual, organizational and community the 1-month period following publication of the printed campaigns. In addition, the total time spent on the website and completion levels (5). Typically, these campaigns place messages via of the online questionnaires were assessed. Usage statistics and television, radio, billboards and print media with the aim audience characteristics (age, sex, location) were tracked through of promoting sun-protective behaviour (6). They usually Google Analytics dashboards. The same descriptive analysis was target general or recreational sun behaviours among the performed for comparison over a 1-month control period, 2 months general population, or among children and adolescents, after the Bavarian approach. which means they are difficult to implement in adult high-risk occupational groups with their specific tasks RESULTS (6–8). Previous studies in occupational professions have focused mainly on seasonal or permanent, predominantly During the month after national publication, a total of 128 male, workers, who are often employed by the recreation individuals (46.1% women) of all age groups (> 18 years) industry (9, 10). visited the website for mean 1 min 2 s. Interestingly, In Germany, farmers and agricultural workers are at website visitors were located in 10 of 16 German Federal very high risk of NMSC (11), but, to date, effective pre- States, with no visitors from Eastern Germany (Fig. S1 1 ). vention measures for this occupational group have recei- ved limited attention. The aim of this study was therefore to explore to what extent the placement of sun protection https://www.medicaljournals.se/acta/content/abstract/10.2340/00015555-2958 messages in different profession-specific special interest magazines could effecti- Table I. Characteristics of the website visitors during the 1-month period after the vely reach male and female farmers and national launch, the Bavarian launch and a 1-month control period other agricultural workers in Germany. 1 METHODS The study consisted of a national and regio- nal approach placing general information on NMSC and associated sun-protective behaviour in print media. This placement of information was combined with an invitation to visit a study website for further information, as well as to participate in a brief online survey. Eleven questions based on pr evious studies (11) addres- sed risk and protective behaviour during work. At the national level, the information was placed in the free member magazine of the German farmers’ compulsory health and ac- cident insurance. The magazine is published 4 times a year, contains up-to-date information on a range of topics, including healthcare, and has a circulation of 1.35 million across Germany. Publication was on 2 June 2017 (Table SI 1 ). Publication date Website analysis Agricultural households receiving the information Visitors on website, n Sex, n (%) Women Men Age groups, n (%) 18–24 years 25–34 years 35–44 years 45–54 years 55–64 years >  65 years Time spent on website, mean (range) National Bavaria Control period 2 Jun 2017 2 Jun–2 Jul 2017 1,350,000 15 Sep 2017 15 Sep–15 Oct 2017 100,008 n.a. 15 Dec 2017–15 Jan 2018 0 128 12 1 59 (46.1) 69 (53.9) 5 (41.7) 7 (58.3) 0 1 (100) 35 (27.3) 43 (33.6) 20 (15.6) 16 (12.5) 7 (5.5) 7 (5.5) 1 min 2 s (9 s–5 min 2 s) 2 (16.6) 4 (33.3) 2 (16.6) 2 (16.6) 1 (8.3) 1 (8.3) 1 min 49 s (16 s–4 min 57 s) 0 1 (100) 0 0 0 0 3 s 7 of 96 b 3 Russia 0 58.3 41.7 0 100 0 0 Geographical region, n 10 of 16 a Completed questionnaires, n 0 Devices used, % Desktop 59.4 Tablet 33.6 Mobile 7.0 a German federal states, b Bavarian districts. This is an open access article under the CC BY-NC license. www.medicaljournals.se/acta Journal Compilation © 2018 Acta Dermato-Venereologica. doi: 10.2340/00015555-2958 Acta Derm Venereol 2018; 98: 811–812