Hepatitis C and HIV in incarcerated populations: fights, bites, searches, and syringes!

Implications of hepatitis C (HCV) infection in corrections settings and learning needs of nurses whose primary expertise is care of HIV-infected individuals will be presented. This target group of nurses who provide care for HCV-infected patients includes nurses working in corrections settings, and community settings, whose clients have been or will be incarcerated, and advanced practice nurses working in a variety of settings. For nurses who work in the community setting, background information is presented on characteristics of the incarcerated and the environments of some different settings where incarceration occurs, such as county, state, juvenile, and federal institutions. Barriers to HCV prevention, testing, and treatment for incarcerated people are unique and different than for those living in the community. These distinctions are an important area of knowledge for nurses caring for patients who are HCV positive or at risk, whether they are practicing in a community or correctional setting.