Understanding prescribing trends for hepatitis C treatment in Ontario

The introduction and wide availability of direct-acting antivirals (DAAs) as a treatment for hepatitis C through a phased rollout from 2015 to 2018 held the promise of expanded access to treatment. These simpler treatments carried fewer clinical restrictions and required less specialist support, opening the possibility for primary care providers to treat their patients with hepatitis C. Given barriers to healthcare access for people who use drugs, those of us at the Toronto Community Hep C Program were curious to find out if this had in fact happened.

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La COVID-19, les couvre-feux et la crise des surdoses : Une perspective québécoise

Pour mieux comprendre les enjeux et les priorités des personnes qui utilisent des drogues au Québec lors de la pandémie de COVID-19 et de la crise des surdoses, CATIE a mené une courte entrevue avec Frankie Lambert et Chantal Montmorency, deux membres de l’équipe de l’Association québécoise pour la promotion de la santé des personnes utilisatrices de drogues (AQPSUD). Voici ce qui tient à cœur à leur communauté.

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Adoption des prochaines pratiques : innover en période d’incertitude

L’émergence de la maladie à coronavirus (COVID-19) a chamboulé nos vies et nos façons de travailler. Tout au long de l’accumulation et de l’évolution des données probantes au cours des 11 derniers mois, nous avons pu constater la rapidité avec laquelle les principaux messages et les mesures de prévention de la COVID-19 ont changé. Nous avons également vu comment les services de santé et les services communautaires se sont adaptés en fonction des nouveaux obstacles qui se sont dressés et des nombreux impondérables. Ce travail d’adaptation face à tant de perturbations et d’incertitudes requiert beaucoup d’efforts, que nous déployons tous ensemble.

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Indigenous responses to COVID-19 and hepatitis: A conference report back

Viral hepatitis impacts Indigenous peoples around the world at much higher than average rates, harming their physical, spiritual, emotional, social and economic health. This is the result of historic and ongoing colonialism, and includes significantly worse health determinants, inadequate access to immunization and treatment, and inadequacies in the provision of culturally safe and responsive healthcare to Indigenous people. COVID-19 has further impacted Indigenous peoples, but many communities and healthcare practitioners are finding innovative ways of responding to the pandemic, while simultaneously trying to continue providing hepatitis care. Many of these responses were shared in a virtual mini-conference hosted by the...

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Making OraQuick quicker: The VIRCAN 5-Minute Rule

Point-of-care (POC) tests for hepatitis C expand testing beyond clinical settings where a blood draw is not readily available. They are an important tool in the effort to eliminate hepatitis C as an endemic disease by 2030. The only Health Canada-approved POC test is the OraQuick hepatitis C antibody test, which requires a 20-minute wait before the results can be read.

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What do online users want from HIV/STI risk calculators?

Risk calculators for HIV and other sexually transmitted infections (STIs) use answers to a set of sociodemographic characteristics (e.g., age, sex, ethnicity, geographic location), health status, or behavioural questions to estimate a person’s risk for developing or acquiring HIV and STIs. They can also indicate the most appropriate action for users to take.

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