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Retrospective targeted HCV lookback using centralized contracted notification service.
Sunita Saxena1, Ira A Shulman, Judith Pachciarz
1Department of Pathology at Los Angeles County Medical Center, Los Angeles, California, USA. saxena@usc.edu
Transfusion
|May 22, 2003
Summary
Outsourcing Hepatitis C virus (HCV) recipient lookbacks to a vendor effectively met FDA deadlines for Los Angeles County hospitals. This strategy allowed staff to focus on critical tasks, though cost-effectiveness requires further evaluation.
Area of Science:
- Public Health
- Transfusion Medicine
- Infectious Disease Control
Background:
- Mandatory Hepatitis C virus (HCV) lookback requirements strained resources at Los Angeles County Department of Health Services (DHS) hospitals.
- DHS implemented a centralized process using a contract vendor to manage HCV lookback procedures.
Purpose of the Study:
- To evaluate the effectiveness of a centralized, vendor-assisted process for conducting HCV recipient lookbacks.
- To assess the impact on transfusion service staff workload and compliance with FDA regulations.
Main Methods:
- A DHS public health nurse served as the HCV lookback coordinator and vendor liaison.
- Cases were electronically sent to a vendor for chart review, patient tracking, and recipient notification.
- Vendor was responsible for pretest counseling and documenting all contact efforts.
Main Results:
- Of 411 identified recipients, 243 were handled by the vendor. The vendor successfully contacted 21% of recipients, with 82% of vendor-processed cases completed on time.
- The vendor successfully contacted 35 cases that hospitals had previously been unable to reach.
- Delays attributed to the vendor were less than 2%, with a cost of $322 per case forwarded.
Conclusions:
- Engaging a professional service for HCV recipient notification is an effective method for meeting regulatory deadlines.
- This strategy enables transfusion service staff to concentrate on essential duties.
- The long-term cost-effectiveness of utilizing external vendors for HCV lookback requires additional investigation.