Practice Support Update Blog

Grace Clinic of Yadkin Valley Prevents Chronic Disease Through Hepatitis C Screening Program

Nov 3, 2021 1:36:49 PM / by Practice Support Team

Northwest AHEC Practice Support would like to celebrate great work going on in its seventeen-county region. Grace Clinic of Yadkin Valley in Elkin, NC was one of six Free and Charitable Clinics nationally that received funding from grantee: Becton, Dickenson and Company (NYSE:BDX) to provide multi-year diagnostic testing.  This initiative which began in 2017 is called Point of Care, Enhancing Clinical Effectiveness (PoCECE) program.  The PoCECE program provides a Clinical Laboratory Improvement Amendment (CLIA) waived point-of-care test system consisting of instruments, reagents and quality control to perform the following tests: Cholesterol, LDL, HDL, Triglycerides, Macroscopic Urinalysis, Microalbumin, INR, Hemoglobin A1c, Strep A, HIV, Rapid Hepatitis C, Pregnancy, Flu A & B, and RSV.  The grants also include technical support consisting of standard operating procedures, equipment setup and configuration, competency training and documentation.1

Grace-LogoGrace Clinic of Yadkin Valley used this funding to test 56 patients for Hepatitis C, a liver infection caused by the hepatitis C virus (HCV).  If untreated, chronic HCV can cause serious health problems including liver cancer and cirrhosis.  Patients with HCV may have no symptoms until the infection has caused advanced liver disease2.  Through this screening program, Grace Clinic of Yadkin Valley found seven patients who screened positive for HCV, five of whom were asymptomatic.  These individuals are now in the process of obtaining further care and evaluation for their newly identified Hepatitis C. 

 

References

1. https://www.hearttoheart.org/free-and-charitable-clinics-receive-grant-for-point-of-care-diagnostics/ 

2. https://www.cdc.gov/hepatitis/hcv/index.htm 

Tags: Primary Care, rural health, Free and Charitable Clinics, Hepatitis C, Preventive Care

  • There are no suggestions because the search field is empty.

Practice Support Services

Health care practices in North Carolina face many challenges. Our team of quality improvement coaches (QICs) have skills and expertise to support you in your transformation efforts.

To learn more about Practice Support Click Here

Apply for practice support services - fill out an application here

Subscribe to Blog Updates

Additional Resources:
Tip Sheets
Lib Guides
Interactive Resource Guides
Digital Library
New call-to-action
Join email list

Connect With Us:

Posts by Topic

See all

In Case You Missed It... Check Out These Recent Posts