|
|
Learning Objective:
By the end of the presentation participants will be able to:
1. Characterize prevalence of hepatitis C virus (HCV) among veterans and common psychiatric and substance abuse co-morbidities
2. Describe efficacy of Brief Alcohol Intervention (BAI)
3. Identify BAI components appropriate for HCV infected veterans
4. Characterize challenges to successful implementation and evaluation
Background:
The estimated prevalence of HCV infection among veterans utilizing VA healthcare is 5.4 %, and the VA treats more people with HCV than any other healthcare system. Alcohol use is associated with increased rates of liver fibrosis and decreased response to antiviral treatment, primarily due to treatment dropout. Although alcohol reduction counseling is indicated for drinkers with HCV infection, this is not routinely done. Brief alcohol interventions (BAI) are effective in reducing alcohol consumption, and may be applied to patients with chronic HCV infection.
Setting:
BAI toolkit developed and piloted by representatives from all four VA Hepatitis C Resource Centers (HCRC) with sites in Seattle, Portland, San Francisco, Minneapolis and New Haven.
Population e.g. API Youth, MSM, IDU:
Veterans with chronic HCV infection and current alcohol misuse
Project Description:
To facilitate clinician-initiated discussion of alcohol use and patient-centered behavior change interventions, the BAI toolkit was designed to include: (1) clinic posters; (2) patient education brochure; (3) patient wallet cards for self-monitoring of alcohol use and personal goals; (4) motivational counseling card for use during provider/patient interactions; (5) teaching guide with sample scripts for providers; and (6) DVD demonstration.
Results/Lessons Learned:
Outpatient clinic implementation may require a variety of presentation formats for communicating risk information to patients, on-site clinical champions, routine feedback and consultation for providers learning new skills, and consideration of alternate outcomes for alcohol dependent persons often best served by integrated substance abuse treatment. BAI for hepatitis C patients can be successfully customized for various clinic settings.
Web Page: www.hepatitis.va.gov
See more of E5 - Hepatitis C Education and Care for Veterans
See more of The 2005 National Viral Hepatitis Prevention Conference