Geographical
Area Covered

..Tayside

Background
Information:

Blood Borne Viruses are a major health problem and present a major burden for affected individuals, families as well as the community at large. BBVs are life-threatening illnesses - and in the case of HIV, there is still no cure. BBVs affect some of the most excluded and disadvantaged groups in our communities.

Community Planning Partners in Tayside developed a BBV Strategy in 2007, which sets out the priorities for action needed to prevent transmission and shift the balance of care over the next three years.

The key recommendations are highlighted below:

-To improve strategic and clinical leadership and co-ordination through the development of a Managed Care Network¨

-To realign health promotion activities from more broad-based generic interventions to those that focus primarily around BBV prevention¨

- To increase testing for all three Blood Borne Viruses¨

-To increase the uptake of immunisation for Hepatitis A and B¨

-To redesign harm reduction and needle exchange services to improve access ¨

-To redesign the care pathway to increase the numbers of infected individuals in treatment and to improve integration across all services for people affected by BBVs¨

-To increase awareness of hepatitis C amongst health professionals and 'at-risk' groups in the community

Contact:

Website
Address:

NHS Tayside Blood Borne Virus MCN - STAFFNET Webpage
http://staffnet.tayside.scot.nhs.uk/OurWebsites/BloodBorneVirusManagedCareNetwork/index.htm

External Link to BBV MCN - SHOW Website
http://www.nhstayside.scot.nhs.uk/BBVMCN/BBVwelc.shtml