Title:
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Hep-CORE: a cross-sectional study of the viral hepatitis policy
environment reported by patient groups in 25 European countries
in 2016 and 2017
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Author:
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Lazarus, Jeffrey V.; Stumo, Samya R.; Harris, Magdalena; Hendrickx, Greet; Hetherington, Kristina L.; Maticic, Mojca; Jauffret-Roustide, Marie; Tallada, Joan; Simojoki, Kaarlo; Reic, Tatjana; Safreed-Harmon, Kelly; Hep-CORE Study Group
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Abstract:
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INTRODUCTION: The first World Health Organization (WHO) global
health sector strategy on hepatitis B and C viruses (HBV and
HCV) has called for the elimination of viral hepatitis as a
major public health threat by 2030. This study assesses policies
and programmes in support of elimination efforts as reported by
patient groups in Europe. METHODS: In 2016 and 2017, hepatitis
patient groups in 25 European countries participated in a
cross-sectional survey about their countries' policy responses
to HBV and HCV. The English-language survey addressed overall
national response; public awareness/engagement; disease
monitoring; prevention; testing/diagnosis; clinical assessment;
and treatment. We performed a descriptive analysis of data and
compared 2016 and 2017 findings. RESULTS: In 2017, 72% and 52%
of the 25 European study countries were reported to not have
national HBV and HCV strategies respectively. The number of
respondents indicating that their governments collaborated with
civil society on viral hepatitis control increased from 13 in
2016 to 18 in 2017. In both 2016 and 2017, patient groups
reported that 9 countries (36%) have disease registers for HBV
and 11 (44%) have disease registers for HCV. The number of
countries reported to have needle and syringe exchange
programmes available in all parts of the country dropped from 10
(40%) in 2016 to 8 in 2017 (32%). In both 2016 and 2017, patient
groups in 5 countries (20%) reported that HCV treatment is
available in non-hospital settings. From 2016 to 2017, the
reported number of countries with no restrictions on access to
direct-acting antivirals for HCV increased from 3 (12%) to 7
(28%), and 5 fewer countries were reported to refuse treatment
to people who are currently injecting drugs. CONCLUSIONS: The
patient-led Hep-CORE study offers a unique perspective on the
readiness of study countries to undertake comprehensive viral
hepatitis elimination efforts. Viral hepatitis monitoring should
be expanded to address policy issues more comprehensively and to
incorporate civil society perspectives, as is the case with
global HIV monitoring. Policy components should also be
explicitly added to the WHO framework for monitoring
country-level progress against viral hepatitis. |
Subject(s):
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-Hepatitis vírica -Política sanitària -Viral hepatitis -Medical policy |
Rights:
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cc by (c) Lazarus et al., 2018
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/es/ |
Document type:
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Article Article - Published version |
Published by:
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Wiley
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