Hepatitis services at an injecting drug user outreach clinic.
OBJECTIVE
To provide a culturally appropriate, accessible and affordable hepatitis outreach clinic for injecting drug users, a traditionally hard-to-reach population.


METHODS
The community-based clinic, a collaborative project between the Wellington Drugs and Health Development Project and Capital Coast Health, was established in Wellington in 1997. Characteristics of the first 100 injecting drug users with hepatitis C assessed through the clinic are presented.


RESULTS
Of 51 patients found to be hepatitis C positive, five have received hepatitis C treatment, four at the outreach and one at a base hospital. 25 have been vaccinated for hepatitis B. The clinic has established trust and rapport with the injecting-drug-user community.


CONCLUSIONS
The hepatitis outreach clinic is an innovative project, crossing the primary/secondary interface of health services provision and providing personal health services within a public health initiative. The success of this model indicates potential value in offering outreach hepatitis clinics for injecting drug users in the major cities to close a gap in health service provision.
Moriarty
H
H
Drugs and Health Development Project, Wellington. H.Moriarty@paradise.net.nz
Kemp
R
R
Robinson
G
G
D000328:Adult; D005260:Female; D006526:Hepatitis C / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000628:therapy* / Q000635:transmission; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009520:New Zealand; D016320:Substance Abuse Treatment Centers; D015819:Substance Abuse, Intravenous / Q000150:complications*