BackgroundBurnout is a recognized challenge among the oncology workforce. It affects both genders with a higher frequency among women. This study examined the factors contributing to the development of burnout among female oncologists from the Middle East and North Africa.MethodsAn online cross-sectional survey was distributed to oncology professionals from different countries in the MENA region. The validated Maslach Burnout Inventory of emotional exhaustion, Depersonalization, and Personal Achievement plus questions about demography/work-related factors and attitudes toward oncology were included. Data were analyzed (...) to measure BO prevalence and related factors.ResultsBetween 10 February and 15 March 2020, 545 responses were submitted by female oncologists. The responses pre-dated the COVID-19 pandemic emergence in the region. BO prevalence was 71% among female professionals. Women aged 25% on administrative work daily. Nearly half of the respondents expressed a recurring thought of quitting oncology and 70% had no burnout support or education. Inability to deliver optimal care was reported as distressing for career development in 82%. Factors significantly influencing the BO risk were identified. Marital status, having children, academia and years in practice did not impact the risk of BO among female oncologists from MENA.ConclusionFemale oncologists from the Middle East and North Africa were found to have a high prevalence of BO. In this cohort, the majority of women oncology workers were young and in their early to mid-career stages. Burnout was linked to being younger, practicing in North African nations, having a heavy administrative load, and having persistent thoughts of quitting. Practicing a hobby and engaging in oncology communication, on the other hand, reduced the chance of BO. Burnout support and education, specifically for oncology women, is required. (shrink)

L’imprécision des sources orales et écrites, l’éparpillement et la disparité de ces dernières, rendent difficile la connaissance des personnages de l’histoire des sociétés de culture orale. Le récit oral sur Fadhma n’Soumeur, dont la notoriété et l’impact sur la société kabyle sont incontestables, est plus proche de la légende que de l’histoire tandis que l’historiographie coloniale, ignorant les réalités du pays occupé, est marquée par des considérations politiques et passionnelles.

En arabe la poésie reste le genre adopté par le plus grand nombre d’écrivains, avec de nombreuses publications (recueils de poésie et surtout dans les journaux et revues, créneaux d’expression plus accessibles que les maisons d’édition). Il est vraiment difficile de citer tous les noms, surtout pour la nouvelle génération. Une des novatrices fut la poétesse Ahlam Mostaghanemi qui a frayé la voie pour cette forme d’expression qui était presque tabou jusqu’au début des années quatre vingt. Mais...

On le sait depuis les travaux de Germaine Tillon, le « destin » fait aux femmes dans les sociétés méditerranéennes n’est pas seulement spécifique à une religion. Tous les Dieux ont eu en commun de ne faire que peu de place aux femmes, jamais à égalité avec les hommes qui ont interprété le Verbe en leur faveur. On pourrait ainsi expliquer l’un des partis pris du volume qui est présenté ici : considérer l’espace méditerranéen comme un espace commun, avec des (...) différences et des ressemblances, de... (shrink)

The Monographs produced by the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) apply rigorous procedures for the scientific review and evaluation of carcinogenic hazards by independent experts. The Preamble to the IARC Monographs, which outlines these procedures, was updated in 2019, following recommendations of a 2018 expert Advisory Group. This article presents the key features of the updated Preamble, a major milestone that will enable IARC to take advantage of recent scientific and procedural advances made during the 12 years since (...) the last Preamble amendments. The updated Preamble formalizes important developments already being pioneered in the Monographs Programme. These developments were taken forward in a clarified and strengthened process for identifying, reviewing, evaluating and integrating evidence to identify causes of human cancer. The advancements adopted include strengthening of systematic review methodologies; greater emphasis on mechanistic evidence, based on key characteristics of carcinogens; greater consideration of quality and informativeness in the critical evaluation of epidemiological studies, including their exposure assessment methods; improved harmonization of evaluation criteria for the different evidence streams; and a single-step process of integrating evidence on cancer in humans, cancer in experimental animals and mechanisms for reaching overall evaluations. In all, the updated Preamble underpins a stronger and more transparent method for the identification of carcinogenic hazards, the essential first step in cancer prevention. (shrink)

In this essay I discuss Zineb Sedira’s two-screen video projection “Saphir” in relation to the landscape which Hélène Cixous has called the “the immense landscape of the trans-, of the passage.” My non-conclusive text explores the acts of transition taking place on the dual screen of Sedira’s video work. The work – filmed in the harbour area of Algiers – forms a multifaceted visual narrative of departures and arrivals. Within this narrative an intriguing choreography develops between two solitary characters, (...) a man and woman, who never meet but nonetheless, step by step, mutually perform a ritualistic dance. “Saphir” – which borrows its name from a French colonial hotel – is filled with ambiguities that evoke the landscape described by Cixous. Contemplating its topography, I become involved in Cixous’s bodily word world. “Passage” is what she calls part of this landscape, but it is also a word. It is a password which when split in two in the French language becomes ill-behaved and unwise. But could the word, I ask, also lead to a wise step (un pas sage )? And where do the steps danced by Sedira’s man and woman lead? (shrink)