Program areas at HEP
Viral Hepatitis Education, testing, linkage to care, and correctional health: hep provides Education to clients, providers, and organizations, free Hepatitis c and b testing, linkage to care, and free Hepatitis a/b vaccination. In 2022, hep resumed more normal program and service operations while still navigating the pandemic. In 2022, hep provided 326 hcv ab tests, 88 hcv rna tests, and 106 hbv tests. Hep also facilitates classes on Hepatitis, bloodborne pathogens, and harm reduction for prisons and jails throughout Washington state. In 2022, hep's correctional health program continued with mail-in correspondence coursework due to pandemic in-person restrictions in correctional facilities.
National, state, and local policy and advocacy: hep manages the national Hepatitis corrections network (nhcn) and the national viral Hepatitis roundtable (nvhr). The networks are national coalitions of medical providers, administrators, researchers, community-based organizations, and other public health advocates working together to increase access to Hepatitis prevention, testing and treatment in correctional facilities, and to eliminate viral Hepatitis in the united states. In 2022, nvhr strengthened our national coalition and strategic partnerships, helped lead the viral Hepatitis community in elmination advocacy efforts, and expanded the reach of our grassroots advocacy network.
Drug user health: hep runs a syringe service program (ssp) and partners with a local fqhc to provide medications for opioid use disorder treatment (moud) located in the hep office. In 2022, hep resumed more normal program and service operations while still navigating the pandemic. Hep continued to work with encampments to provide harm reduction throughout the pandemic. In 2022 hep distributed 289,506 sterile syringes through ssp and 2,344 doses of naloxone, an opioid-overdose reversal medication. Hep had 36 moud inductions in 2022.