— Christine M. Kukka, Project Manager, HBV Advocate
A study by University of California San Francisco researchers found that doctors often fail to adequately screen and immunize their Asian-American patients for hepatitis B–especially female patients–even though this population is at high risk for HBV infection.
Researchers scoured the medical records of 20,574 Asian-American patients treated by primary care providers. The average patient age was 52 and 63.4% were female.
They discovered only 61.5% were screened for hepatitis B and only 47.4% of HBV-susceptible patients were vaccinated.
While 148 (44.8%) doctors reported they were knowledgeable and "had a favorable attitude" toward hepatitis B screening, 43.2% were unfamiliar with HBV guidelines that require screening and immunization.
Female patients were less likely to be screened and vaccinated, as were patients of doctors with busy, high-volume practices.
"Rates of HBV screening and vaccination of (Asian-American) patients in this safety-net system are suboptimal, and provider factors play a significant role," researchers wrote in the October issue of the Journal of General Internal Medicine. "Efforts to cultivate positive attitudes among providers and expand healthcare system resources to reduce provider barriers to HBV care are warranted."
Labels: Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders (AAPIs), inadequate screening
