Community-Based Services to Improve Testing and Linkage to Care Among Non–U.S.-Born Persons with Chronic Hepatitis B Virus Infection — Three U.S. Programs, October 2014–September 2017

Harris, Aaron M.; Link‐Gelles, Ruth; Kim, Karen; Chandrasekar, Edwin; Wang, Su; Bannister, Nicole; Pong, Perry; Chak, Eric; Chen, Moon S.; Bowlus, Christopher L.; Nelson, Noele P.

doi:10.15585/mmwr.mm6719a2

Cited by 35 publications

(26 citation statements)

References 8 publications

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“…During the past few decades, community-based hepatitis B campaigns have played an important role in educating and screening Asian American immigrants. Despite numerous such campaigns, however, studies directly examining their efficacy and sustainability with respect to LTC are lacking [16–18]. Specifically, those found through screening campaigns to be HBV infected need to be assessed for adequate LTC.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Long term outcome of a community-based hepatitis B awareness campaign: eight-year follow-up on linkage to care (LTC) in HBV infected individuals

Hyun

Ko²,

Lee

et al. 2019

BMC Infect Dis

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Background Chronic hepatitis B (CHB) is a major cause of liver-related morbidity and mortality. High HBV prevalence in immigrants and ethnic minorities and numerous barriers to healthcare access are associated with serious health disparities in the United States. Reportedly, self-awareness of HBV infection is low, suggesting a greater need for effective screening and education. Further, low levels of linkage to care (LTC) (completion of a first doctor’s visit after the diagnosis of chronic HBV infection) may be responsible for the lack of engagement over the continuum of care and for needed services. Methods Demographics and survey data were obtained from 97 Korean American adults chronically infected with HBV, initially identified through a series of community screening events in northern New Jersey between Dec. 2009 and June 2015. Eight year follow-up on these HBV-infected individuals was obtained to determine their access to care, and thus the efficacy of a campaign to improve LTC. The participants’ self-awareness of HBV infection and other factors for LTC were also evaluated. Results Of a total of 97 HBV-infected participants (age range 30 to 79), 74 were aware of their infections at screening. The remaining 23 had been unaware of their infections until screening. Eight years after the campaign, some 66 of these 97 individuals accessed care (LTC rate 68%). Health insurance status, presence or absence of symptoms and level of knowledge of CHB were among the most significant factors in LTC. Conclusion A community-based hepatitis B screening and education campaign can be instrumental in prompting HBV infected individuals to access care, as demonstrated in the cumulative increase in LTC in our cohort. Despite many years of awareness of HBV infection, many are not accessing care owing to a lack of health insurance, suggesting a pressing need for advocacy and health education to improve access to affordable coverage in the Asian American population. Community efforts and strategies similar to the ones employed in the current study may serve as a model to improve the engagement of HBV-infected individuals in high risk immigrant populations.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Long term outcome of a community-based hepatitis B awareness campaign: eight-year follow-up on linkage to care (LTC) in HBV infected individuals

Hyun

Ko²,

Lee

et al. 2019

BMC Infect Dis

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“…The majority of people with CHB live in countries that now have national viral hepatitis plans [11]. Many of these plans encompass population-specific communications campaigns to improve awareness and promote testing [12]; community-based programs to provide testing and linkage to care to under-served and high-risk communities [13][14][15]; and pilot projects integrating HBV testing and care into health systems to improve the capacity of primary care providers to test and manage people with CHB [15][16][17][18][19].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The Lived Experience of Chronic Hepatitis B: A Broader View of Its Impacts and Why We Need a Cure

Block

Wang

et al. 2020

Viruses

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Chronic hepatitis B (CHB) is one of the most widespread liver diseases in the world. It is currently incurable and can lead to liver cirrhosis and cancer. The considerable impacts on society caused by CHB through patient mortality, morbidity, and economic loss are well-recognised in the field. This is, however, a narrow view of the harms, given that people living with CHB can be asymptomatic for the majority of their life-long infection. Of less-appreciated importance are the psychosocial harms, which can continue throughout an affected person’s lifetime. Here we review the broad range of these impacts, which include fear and anxiety; financial loss and instability; stigma and discrimination; and rejection by society. Importantly, these directly affect patient diagnosis, management, and treatment. Further, we highlight the roles that the research community can play in taking these factors into account and mitigating them. In particular, the development of a cure for hepatitis B virus infection would alleviate many of the psychosocial impacts of CHB. We conclude that there should be a greater recognition of the full impacts associated with CHB to bring meaningful, effective, and deliverable results to the global community living with hepatitis B.

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“…Less than one in five susceptible individuals initiated hepatitis B vaccination. This is lower than the reported 52-89% among migrant populations in the USA and might be explained by 1) dissimilar populations, 2) free of charge vaccination or vaccination at a reduced price and 3) the use of a combination of letters, phone calls, e-mail and in-person appointments to contact susceptible individuals for vaccination in these studies [11,[34][35][36][37][38]. This is in contrast to our study, in which susceptible individuals were invited by a letter to consult their general practitioner for hepatitis B vaccination in accordance with standard practices in Belgium.…”

Section: Plos Onementioning

confidence: 56%

Early detection of chronic hepatitis B and risk factor assessment in Turkish migrants, Middle Limburg, Belgium

et al. 2020

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Community-Based Services to Improve Testing and Linkage to Care Among Non–U.S.-Born Persons with Chronic Hepatitis B Virus Infection — Three U.S. Programs, October 2014–September 2017

Cited by 35 publications

References 8 publications

Long term outcome of a community-based hepatitis B awareness campaign: eight-year follow-up on linkage to care (LTC) in HBV infected individuals

Long term outcome of a community-based hepatitis B awareness campaign: eight-year follow-up on linkage to care (LTC) in HBV infected individuals

The Lived Experience of Chronic Hepatitis B: A Broader View of Its Impacts and Why We Need a Cure

Early detection of chronic hepatitis B and risk factor assessment in Turkish migrants, Middle Limburg, Belgium

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