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The Welsh BBV hepatitis action plan
Noel Craine, Research Scientist, Public Health Wales
Abstract
Preventing, diagnosing and treating hepatitis C and
hepatitis B infection in Wales remains a significant challenge to
health services across the country. In response to this challenge the
Welsh Assembly Government have funded a 5 year blood borne viral
hepatitis action plan starting this year (2010). The presentation
will (1) provide a brief overview of the research that informed the
design of the plan, (2) highlight the key areas the action plan will
address and (3) describe the future research that will inform an evaluation of the impact of the plan.
Three groups have been set up to guide the implementation of the plan
addressing respectively; prevention education and awareness raising,
treatment and care pathways, and diagnosis and surveillance. The
capacity of seven blood borne viral hepatitis treatment centers is
being strengthened to improve treatment of infection, dried blood spot
testing is being rolled out across substance misuse services and Welsh
prisons to improve diagnosis, and enhanced surveillance of infection
and the detailed monitoring of outcomes of both diagnostic testing and
treatment of positive individuals is being developed. The action plan
is being funded within a framework that recognises the importance of
robustly measuring the key targets of (a) increasing the successful
treatment of infected individuals and (b) reducing the prevalence of
infection in the population.
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Biography
Dr Noel Craine has worked for a number of years as a research
scientist within the Welsh NHS with a particular interest in the
epidemiology and prevention of blood borne viral transmission. He
works as part of the Public Health Wales Health Protection Team who's
remit covers the organisation of the implementation of the Wales Blood
Bourne Viral Hepatitis Action Plan.
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