In line with national guidance, Hepatitis B and C screening has now been introduced at Croydon Hospital. The purpose of the initiative is to identify cases of these diseases in patients who may not know they have them, so treatment can be offered early.
Early detection can significantly improve a patient’s outlook. This is an opt-out initiative, so unless a patient specifies that they do not want these tests done, they will be carried out.
Hepatitis B and C and HIV screening is already carried out at St George’s and St Helier hospitals. HIV screening was introduced at Croydon Hospital in May 2020 as part of a pilot programme to introduce ‘opt-out’ testing. The programme resulted in diagnosis rates for HIV tripling and the team at Croydon won a ‘Top Global Winner’ UNIVANTS award for the initiative.
Hepatitis B and C screening will be introduced at Kingston Hospital over the coming months. Until then, the laboratory at Croydon will be carrying out the screening tests for Kingston Hospital.