Good-bye to APCA Public Ally Volunteer

Today, we say “good-bye” to Ms. Anh Vuong, our Public Ally volunteer for the past nine months. Her assignment with APCA has come to a close. She very ably managed our volunteer program, assisted at outreach events, and otherwise served as a trusted and passionate staff member. She will continue to serve in a leadership capacity with the Advocacy/Leadership Committee of our Health Through Action – Arizona program. Anh is and will remain a part of the APCA "family." We wish her good luck with her future endeavors.

Rapid Hepatitis C Testing Now Available

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has just approved a rapid test to detect hepatitis C infection. This test, called OraQuick HCV Rapid Antibody Test, utilizes whole blood from a venous blood draw to generate a test result within 20 minutes. It does not require an instrument for diagnosis.

Orasure Technologies, the manufacturer of the test, hopes to receive FDA approval of the test version that utilizes oral fluid or whole blood from a fingerstick. This will make the test more palatable for individuals put off by a venous blood draw. The test is already approved in Europe for use with oral fluid and whole blood from a fingerstick.

In any case, this is a marked step forward in the fight to identify the many individuals who are unknowingly infected with hepatitis C. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, there are approximately 3.2 million people in the United States chronically infected with HCV and each year, about 17,000 people are newly infected. It is speculated that the majority of the 3.2 million individuals are unaware of their infection status. Earlier detection can lead to better treatment outcomes. Hepatitis C is a major cause of liver disease, leading to 12,000 deaths annually in the United States.

With more than 350 million people chronically infected with hepatitis B, it is hoped that progress can be made in developing rapid testing for hepatitis B as well. In the United States, an estimated 1.25 million individuals are infected with hepatitis B. The majority of these individuals are Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders and, as with hepatitis C, most individuals are unaware of their infection status.

-Doug Hirano, MPH, APCA Executive Director

Can We Really Eliminate Health Disparities?

For the past nine months, I’ve been meeting with some folks from other health-related organizations here in the valley. We share an interest in addressing the fact that selected groups of people systematically suffer worse health outcomes (i.e., health disparities) when compared to the general population. We are in the early stages of forming a cross-cultural institute to address the problem of health disparities here in Maricopa County. Here’s an excerpt from the draft document that we’ve been developing:

“Despite steady improvement in the overall health of the U.S. population, racial and ethnic minorities, with few exceptions, experience higher rates of illness and death than non-minorities. African Americans, for example, experience the highest rates of death from heart disease, cancer, stroke, and HIV/AIDS when compared to any other U.S. racial or ethnic group. American Indians disproportionately die from diabetes, liver disease, and unintentional injuries. Hispanic Americans are almost twice as likely as non-Hispanic whites to die from diabetes. In addition, some Asian-American subpopulations experience rates of stomach, liver and cervical cancers that are well above the national averages.”

This paragraph succinctly describes our collective problem related to health disparities. These disparities continue to exist 25 years after the 1985 landmark report from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services that originally called for action on health disparities.

I personally believe that with our current science, technology and health promotion evidence base, health disparities can be eliminated. However, this is not a quick fix. Health disparities are directly associated with multiple overlapping issues, including poverty, educational attainment, the physical environment, access to health services, and personal health behaviors. Race and culture matter as well. For even when all other factors are adjusted for, people of color in this country suffer disproportionately in terms of preventable disease and death.

APCA is glad to be involved with a group of agency representatives that is willing to expend the time and resources to tackle health disparities in Maricopa County, and we thank St. Luke’s Health Initiatives for supporting our group through its TAP Program. We have a large task at hand. We believe that our cross cultural institute must advocate for social and health policies that level the playing field so that everyone – regardless of race, ethnicity, disability status or sexual identity – has an opportunity for good health. We also believe that more work is needed in the health care and public health sectors to provide culturally proficient health services.

I will continue to update this blog about our efforts. Anyone interested in this initiative should feel free to contact me for further information.

- Doug Hirano, MPH, APCA Executive Director

The Match Game

Community capacity to conduct population-based health improvement work is severely lacking in most parts of the country. Most of the expertise in public health resides within local and state health departments and is deployed at the community level with varying levels of success. Fortunately, there is a little known program out of the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention known as the Public Health Prevention Service. This program places individuals known as “Prevention Specialists” in public health settings – both governmental and community-based – for two years. Prevention Specialists come at no cost to the participating agencies and bring Master’s level training and at least two years of public health experience, including one year at the CDC.