Over the last few years, the role of patients in the health system has become essential to improving the quality of care and services. However, the literature shows that patient engagement is not always ideally applied to improve the quality and safety of care and that patient engagement can be tokenistic. Through experiences conducted in Quebec, it is possible to outline a structured process involving both professional stakeholders and patients that illustrates optimal conditions to be applied for successful teamwork involving patients. Résumé Au cours des dernières années, le rôle des patients dans le système de santé est devenu essentiel pour améliorer la qualité des soins et des services. Cependant, la littérature montre que l'engagement des patients n'est pas toujours réalisé idéalement pour améliorer la qualité et la sécurité des soins et que l'engagement des patients peut être symbolique. Au travers de l'expérience menée au Québec, il est possible de faire ressortir un processus structuré portant à la fois sur les intervenants et les patients, qui permet de mettre en oeuvre les conditions optimales à une réussite du travail d'équipe incluant des patients.

Monitoring atmospheric concentrations of radioxenons is relevant to provide evidence of atmospheric or underground nuclear weapon tests. However, when the design of the International Monitoring Network (IMS) of the Comprehensive Nuclear‐Test‐Ban Treaty (CTBT) was set up, the impact of industrial releases was not perceived. It is now well known that industrial radioxenon signature can interfere with that of nuclear tests. Therefore, there is a crucial need to characterize atmospheric distributions of radioxenons from industrial sources—the so‐called atmospheric background—in the frame of the CTBT. Two years of Xe‐133 atmospheric background have been simulated using 2013 and 2014 meteorological data together with the most comprehensive emission inventory of radiopharmaceutical facilities and nuclear power plants to date. Annual average simulated activity concentrations vary from 0.01 mBq/m3 up to above 5 mBq/m3 nearby major sources. Average measured and simulated concentrations agree on most of the IMS stations, which indicates that the main sources during the time frame are properly captured. Xe‐133 atmospheric background simulated at IMS stations turn out to be a complex combination of sources. Stations most impacted are in Europe and North America and can potentially detect Xe‐133 every day. Predicted occurrences of detections of atmospheric Xe‐133 show seasonal variations, more accentuated in the Northern Hemisphere, where the maximum occurs in winter. To our knowledge, this study presents the first global maps of Xe‐133 atmospheric background from industrial sources based on two years of simulation and is a first attempt to analyze its composition in terms of origin at IMS stations.

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Global simulations of the atmospheric dispersion of worldwide industrial Xe‐133 releases have revealed a large spatial and day‐to‐day variability of the resulting so‐called Xe‐133 atmospheric background. Most stations of the International Monitoring System (IMS) of the Comprehensive nuclear‐Test‐Ban Treaty Organization actually detect Xe‐133 regularly. Measured levels are explained by a varying combination of local and distant industrial sources and can interfere with discrimination of nuclear test signatures. Therefore, a better understanding of the Xe‐133 atmospheric background is needed. In this study, a validated 2 year simulation data set and a 4 year measurement data set of Xe‐133 activity concentrations have been analyzed in order to characterize possible seasonal variations of the Xe‐133 atmospheric background due to atmospheric circulation, with a focus on (i) global distributions, (ii) occurrences of detections by the IMS network, and (iii) time series of monthly averages at IMS stations. Results show a larger spatial extent of the atmospheric background during winter months, which translates into a larger number of detections on the IMS network during winter months for both hemispheres. Some IMS stations present a significant seasonal variability in terms of levels, or both in terms of levels and origins. However, not all IMS stations are subject to seasonal variations, given their location with respect to sources and large‐scale atmospheric circulation. In addition, a first set of predicted information about expected levels of atmospheric background at IMS stations not yet operational is provided, given the current knowledge of sources.