Scotland: Report of the National Short Life Working Group (SLWG) on Hepatitis C Virus Case Finding and Access to Care

Outreach hepatitis C care, including ‘pop-up’ clinics, as well as the use of testing vans, is a crucial aspect of the hepatitis C elimination programme. Such outreach work, which does not rely on static services to deliver care, can be an important way to reach people who are the most under-served by these services. This webinar covered the importance of outreach, as well as specific good practice examples, such as van-based outreach work, pop-up testing during the Covid-19 pandemic and Point of Care Test and Treat outreach in the West Midlands.

This summary reports features key points from the contributions at the 26th March 2021 HCV Action webinar looking at hepatitis C service recovery in England. Speakers at the webinar included: Prof Graham Foster, National Clinical Lead for ODNs, NHS England; Mark Gillyon-Powell, Head of Programme – HCV Elimination, NHS England/NHS Improvement; Stacey Smith, Director of Nursing, Humankind; Colin Lawton, Northern Regional Prison Lead, The Hepatitis C Trust; and Julia Sheehan, Women’s Prisons Peer Coordinator, The Hepatitis C Trust.