title: Hepatitis C among drug users: consensus guidelines on management in general practice.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Hepatitis C (HCV) is a common cause of morbidity among patients who attend general practitioners (GPs) in Ireland for methadone maintenance treatment.
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  To describe the development and content of guidelines for the management of HCV among current or former opiate users in the Eastern Regional Health Authority area attending GPs for methadone treatment.
  
  
  METHODS
  The guidelines were produced in five stages: identification of key stakeholders; development of evidence-based draft guidelines; discussion of content; determination of 'Delphi'-facilitated consensus and review by a sample of GPs for whom the guidelines would be intended.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The guidelines contain advice for GPs on all aspects of care of patients at risk of HCV, including general and preventative care, care of other bloodborne and hepatotoxic viruses, and the factors to be considered and appropriate evaluation prior to referring a patient for assessment at a hepatology unit.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  GPs have an important role to play in the care of patients at risk of, or infected with, HCV.
authors.affiliation: Eastern Regional Health Authority.
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Barry
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Bourke
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Buckley
authors.forename: B
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Coughlan
authors.forename: D
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Crowley
authors.forename: W
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Cullen
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Dooley
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Keating
authors.forename: D
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Kelleher
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Moloney
authors.forename: F
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Murray
authors.forename: P A
authors.initials: PA
authors.lastname: McCormick
authors.forename: P
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: MacMathuna
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: O'Connor
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: O'Grady
authors.forename: C
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: O'Sullivan
authors.forename: P
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: O'Sullivan
authors.forename: C
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Quinn
authors.forename: B
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Smyth
authors.forename: B
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Sweeney
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D017677:Age Distribution; D019317:Evidence-Based Medicine; D005194:Family Practice / Q000592:standards* / Q000639:trends; D005260:Female; D006526:Hepatitis C / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000209:etiology / Q000517:prevention & control*; D006801:Humans; D015994:Incidence; D007494:Ireland / Q000453:epidemiology; D008875:Middle Aged; D010818:Practice Patterns, Physicians'; D011379:Prognosis; D018570:Risk Assessment; D012720:Severity of Illness Index; D017678:Sex Distribution; D015819:Substance Abuse, Intravenous / Q000150:complications*; D015996:Survival Rate