Healthcare Professionals
The Greater Manchester Hepatitis C Strategy Group was set up in 2005 to develop a collaborative and coordinated approach to improving hepatitis C services across Greater Manchester.
The strategy is focused around several key areas: surveillance, prevention, testing, treatment, services for prisoners, communication, research and workforce development. So far, the strategy has been successful in improving by 80% the numbers of people receiving treatment for hepatitis C and is carrying out a care pathway redesign which aims to further increase the number of individuals being tested and treated and the equity of service provision.
Greater Manchester has among the highest prevalence of hepatitis C infections in England.
It is estimated that there are over 20,000 individuals with chronic hepatitis C across the area (representing 0.8% of the overall population), of which a high proportion are known to be undiagnosed. This is mainly accounted for by the large number of injecting drug users in the area and the very high prevalence of hepatitis C infection among this group. Other ‘high risk’ groups also contribute to this burden including individuals from high prevalence countries such as Pakistan, people who have had medical or dental treatment overseas in countries of high prevalence and where infection control practices are poor, and anyone in the United Kingdom who received a blood transfusion before September 1991 or blood products before 1986.
The Strategy is made up of the following project groups:
- Blood Borne Virus Prevention
- Communication
- Prisons
- Research and Workforce Development
- Testing
- Treatment
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