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Learning Objective:
By the end of the presentation participants will be able to:
Describe a Hepatitis A & B Vaccination Model within an Outpatient Opioid Treatment Program.
Background:
Hepatitis A and B are viral infections that are vaccine-preventable. Hepatitis A/B vaccinations are now recommended for Injection Drug Users (IDU), especially those who are HCV positive. However, IDUs, (usually male and between the ages of 20-50 years) are difficult to reach with preventive medical care, particularly for vaccines that take 2 (hepatitis A) or 3 (hepatitis B) visits to complete. In Connecticut, IDUs underutilize public health services in traditional outpatient health care settings. Therefore, screening for viral hepatitis and vaccination for hepatitis A/B are seldom available to this group. Currently, most drug treatment programs have no program to routinely immunize IDUs against hepatitis A/B because of fiscal constraints.
Setting:
Four of the Hartford Dispensary (HD) sites in Connecticut (initially two Hartford sites, then replicated in Norwich and Willimantic).
Population e.g. API Youth, MSM, IDU:
HCV positive patients susceptible to HBV on methadone maintenance.
Project Description:
Between May of 2002 and November 2003, the HD and the State of Connecticut Department of Public Health (DPH) partnered to develop, implement and evaluate a hepatitis A&B vaccination model. During this 18-month period, the HD provided on-site hepatitis A&B screening and the three-dose vaccination series supplied by DPH. Clinical staff completed a required training and patient education was provided.
Results/Lessons Learned:
1,355 eligible patients of the 2,620 patients served during this time period, chose to participate and receive the first Hepatitis A/B vaccination. 974 (84%) of the 1,159 patients scheduled for the 2nd dose received it. 690 (70.8%) of those patients received the 3rd dose. These results indicate that an on-site vaccination program is an effective delivery model for this population. This model was replicated in two other sites. The results are still being analyzed.
See more of H6 - Models of Hepatitis Vaccination in Substance Abuse Treatment Settings
See more of The 2005 National Viral Hepatitis Prevention Conference