Hepatitis b screening & prevention services in seattle, Washington: A community-based public health model for chronic disease management and care

Hepatitis B (HBV), the leading cause of infectious disease related morbidity & mortality, chronically infects 350 million people worldwide. With the rise of immigrant populations in the United States, the CDC now recommends HBV screenings for all individuals born in high endemic countries. However, data suggests that, due to cultural, linguistic, and socio-economic reasons, these prevention services are not widely utilized. This proposal will describe the yearlong hepatitis B preventative care program and its outcomes implemented in the adult African and Asian communities of Seattle Washington, where 89% of the population with HBV is foreign-born. HBV health services were provided on four levels: outreach (education), diagnosis (community-based screenings), prevention (community and clinic-based vaccinations), and managed care (referral). The project entailed collaborating with several key community leaders, who were involved with all elements of the program, including recruitment, event planning, and cultural support. In using a community-based public health approach for the African and Asian communities, we were able to successfully: 1) Provide education, screening & prevention services to a significant number of foreign-born adults with limited access to preventative health care. 2) Define a model for linkage-to-care hepatitis B services in Seattle, Washington. 3) Identify incentives and successful recruitment and retention strategies for clients. 4) Develop effective and sustainable partnerships with key medical and cultural community facilities to offer and expand managed health care for global populations. Community-based public health efforts where partnerships reflecting the focused populations and providers, and the true incorporation of their feedback have a greater chance for long term success.