Telemonitoring of the Continuum of Care of Hepatitis C During the COVID-19 Pandemic in Brazil.
Telemed J E Health
; 29(11): 1673-1678, 2023 11.
Article
in En
| MEDLINE
| ID: mdl-36888957
ABSTRACT
Introduction:
To accomplish elimination of hepatitis C virus (HCV) by 2030, as proposed by the World Health Organization, the Brazilian Ministry of Health outlined the Hepatitis C Elimination Plan, which provides coverage of all critical steps in the continuum of care (CoC) of hepatitis C. As expected, the advent of COVID-19 pandemic has disrupted the CoC of hepatitis C worldwide. The Brazilian Liver Institute launched a remote patient monitoring (RPM) program to assist the general population at risk in HCV testing and to provide linkage and retention to care for HCV-positive subjects. The RPM program was also designed to relink HCV-positive patients lost to follow-up during the COVID-19 pandemic due to their limited access to the health care system.Methods:
The HCV telemonitoring number was highly advertised in Brazilian media. The RPM program was conducted by dedicated health care personnel trained to follow a predefined script designed to provide awareness, ensure consistent information for educational purposes, and recruit eligible participants to be tested for HCV.Results:
From August 2020 to December 2021, 3,738 subjects entered in contact with RPM. There were 26,884 interactions (mean 7.2 interactions per participant), mostly by WhatsApp (78%). Twenty out of those 221 subjects (9%) who tested were HCV positive. Those subjects altogether with 128 other patients with HCV, tested elsewhere, were followed in the HCV CoC. Up to now, 94% of them were linked to care, 24% are undergoing treatment and 8% achieved sustained virological response (SVR).Conclusions:
Our preliminary results showed that HCV CoC telemonitoring was a feasible and useful strategy to follow HCV at-risk subjects through all cascade of care until SVR during the COVID-19 health care disruption. It could be used beyond the defervescence of SARS-CoV-2 pandemic to ensure linkage to care of those HCV-positive patients.Key words
Full text:
1
Collection:
01-internacional
Database:
MEDLINE
Main subject:
Hepatitis C
/
COVID-19
Limits:
Humans
Country/Region as subject:
America do sul
/
Brasil
Language:
En
Journal:
Telemed J E Health
Journal subject:
INFORMATICA MEDICA
/
SERVICOS DE SAUDE
Year:
2023
Document type:
Article
Affiliation country:
Brazil