Scaling up point-of-care hepatitis C testing in Canada: protocol for a multilevel implementation science study of clinical processes, barriers, facilitators and implementation strategies (SCALE-POCT study).

ABSTRACT:

Background

As the result of systemic and structural barriers, hepatitis C virus (HCV) continues to disproportionately affect people who inject drugs, those in prison, Indigenous peoples, immigrants from HCV-endemic countries, and gay, bisexual and other men who have sex with men in Canada. Point-of-care antibody and RNA testing improve access to HCV testing and enable single-visit diagnosis and treatment initiation, yet robust, context-specific strategies are needed to scale these technologies nationally. This protocol describes the SCALE-POCT study, which aims to: (i) map current HCV care pathways and future point-of-care workflows across community and carceral settings; (ii) identify multilevel barriers and facilitators to the adoption and sustainment of point-of-care HCV testing

SUBMITTER: Mooney M 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12821820 | biostudies-literature | 2025 Dec

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature