NYC Department of Health & Mental Hygiene June 2010 NYC Viral Hepatitis Newslette

NYC Department of Health & Mental Hygiene

Office of Viral Hepatitis Coordination

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June 2010 NYC Viral Hepatitis Newsletter






Newsletter Contents

Upcoming Events

New Resources, Education & Training

News

Funding
Upcoming Events

§ Liver Life Walk. American Liver Foundation. June 6th, Battery Park City .

§ HCV & HBV Advocacy Committee Meeting. June 10th (10 AM-12). New York Organ Donor Network: 460 West 34th St. , 15th Fl. New York , NY 10001-2320 . All interested in getting involved in Hepatitis B & C advocacy and awareness are welcome.

§ Viral Hepatitis Clinical Studies in Australia Lecture. June 10th (4 – 5PM). Department of Health: 125 Worth Street , 2nd floor Auditorium. No registration required. Presenter: Pip Marks BSc, MPH, Clinical Trials Manager, Australia ’s National Centre in HIV Epidemiology and Clinical Research. Effective treatment of injecting drug users with recently acquired hepatitis C virus infection. Gastroenterology, 2010. Will present on Studies:

§ HCV management in Opiate Substitution settings

§ Risks and mechanisms of sexual transmission of HCV

§ Natural history and treatment of Acute Hepatitis C

§ International collaboration of AHC databases

§ HCC epidemiology and prevention

§ Australian HCV observational database

§ Introduction to Benefits Management. June 10th (1:30pm-4:30pm). Coalition of Behavioral Health Agencies: 90 Broad St. , 8th Floor, NY. FREE half day training offered in various locations across the city designed for clinicians and other staff interested in learning the nuts and bolts of benefits management. The latest changes in SSA guidelines will be discussed. Facilitator: Margie Staker and Patricia Feinberg, MS.

§ New York Organ Donor Network Volunteer Orientation. June 10th (6-8PM). 460 West 34th Street , New York , NY 10001 (corner of W.34th 10th Ave ). Basic orientation and training about volunteer opportunities.

§ Community Health Workers of NYC Annual Conference. June 14th (8AM – 4PM). New York Pennsylvania Hotel, 401 Seventh Avenue (at 33rd Street ) NY, 10001. Scholarships available for Community Health Workers ($20).

§ Fourth Annual Peer Specialists Conference in NYC. June 15th (8:30am-4:30pm). NYU Kimmel Center , 60 Washington Square South, NY . How can we, as Peer Specialists grow into positions of leadership in our jobs and our careers? Free.

§ Queens HCV Task Force Meeting (Subgroup of Queens Consortium on Substance Abuse & Alcoholism Committee) June 16thnd (3-5PM). Queens Borough Hall 120-55 Queens Blvd , Queens , NY 11415 ~ Room 213. Will discuss Far Rockaway Hepatitis C Regional Training and Outreach Plan.

§ Disability Workshops on Fundamentals of Medicare, Medicaid & Social Security. Provided by Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS). June 25th (9AM – 3PM). 26 Federal Plaza, New York 10278. To Register contact: Frank.Winter@cms.hhs.gov.

§ In-depth Coding & Billing for Gastroenterology Physicians & Practice Coders. Sponsored by American Gastroenterological Association (AGA). 2 Day Seminar: Wednesday, July 14 & Thursday, July 15, 2010. (9AM – 4PM). LaGuardia Airport Hotel: 100-15 Ditmars Blvd. , East Elmhurst , NY 11369 . Register online or call for more info (800) 227-7888.

Ongoing NYC Hepatitis B & C Patient Support Groups

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New Resources

§ NYC Hepatitis B Coalition Website

§ NYC Hepatitis C Task Force Website

§ NYS DOH Hepatitis C Media Campaign Materials – Posters and other printed material available to order.

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Education & Training

§ Clinical Care Options – Online Education HBV & HCV Education (CME)

§ PracticePointHepatitis.com. Exclusively dedicated continuing medical education website for hepatitis.

§ Health Literacy for Public Health Professionals Online Training. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) FREE program to educate public health professionals about limited health literacy and their role in addressing it.

§ The City University of New York Adult Lit/GED Program. The Program serves 10,000 students on 14 campuses located throughout the City's five boroughs. Free classes in English for Speakers of Other Languages (ESOL), Basic Education (BE) and GED preparation are offered days, evenings and weekends. (212) 794-5302.

§ Department of Consumer Affairs, Office of Financial Empowerment. Offering Free Financial Counseling and Coaching. The City’s free Financial Empowerment Centers can help you take control. One-on-one financial counseling is provided for free by professional counselors in person or by phone in English and Spanish.

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News

§ Virus Spreading: High Hepatitis C, Liver Cancer Rate In Borough Population. ( Queens ).

§ Rate of Primary Liver Cancer Type Still Climbing. Rates of hepatocellular carcinoma in the U.S. continue to increase, according to the CDC. From 2001 to 2006, the rate of the disease rose from 2.7 per 100,000 to 3.2 (P<0.01), CDC researchers reported in the May 7 issue of Morbidity and Mortality...

§ Liver Transplant Recommendations Revised (CME/CE).

§ Living Donor Stories Spur Increase in Liver Donation (CME/CE).

§ Indian Spice May Prevent Liver Damage (CME/CE). (Turmeric)

§ Hair Dyes, Smoking Raise Risk for Liver Disease (CME/CE)

§ Hepatitis C Drug Raises Cure Rate in Late Trial. New York Times.

§ Liver Cell Culture System Might Test New HCV Drugs (CME/CE)

§ Telaprevir Said to Benefit Hardest HCV Cases (with audio). Adding an investigational protease inhibitor for hepatitis C virus (HCV) to standard treatment induced rapid and sustained virologic responses in many patients with poor responses to standard therapy alone, researchers said here.

§ Vitamin A Boosts Response to HCV Treatment (with audio). Early and sustained virologic responses to standard treatment for hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection were markedly improved when patients also received high doses of vitamin A, results of a small trial showed.

§ Treatment for HCV Can Work for IV Drug Users (with audio). Antiviral treatment for hepatitis C (HCV) is appropriate -- and can be successful -- for IV drug users who are on opioid substitution, researchers said here.

§ APA: Monthly Shot Cuts Opioid Use (CME/CE). A once-monthly injection of naltrexone (Vivitrol) kept more patients off opioids than did placebo, researchers reported here. After six months, the median percentage of opioid-free urine screens was 90% among those on the long-acting...

§ Injectable Heroin Keeps Addicts Clean (CME/CE). Heroin addicts had almost a threefold increase in negative urine specimens when treated with supervised heroin injection rather than with oral methadone, data from a British study showed. Overall, 72% of patients had negative specimens at least 50% of...

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Funding

$ Drug Policy Foundation: General Fund Announcement.

$ Faith in Action: Replication of the Interfaith Volunteer Caregivers Program.

$ Frances L. and Edwin L. Cummings Memorial Fund: General Fund Announcement.

$ Frank E. Payne and Seba B. Payne Foundation: General Fund Announcement.

$ Merck Family Fund: General Fund Announcement.

$ NYS Recovery Funding Handbook