Survey on measures for hepatitis B and C in liver specialty hospitals other than regional core centers

This study was conducted in 2021, wherein we investigated in-hospital measures for patients positive for hepatitis virus in 288 hospitals specializing in liver diseases in 13 Japanese prefectures. Our results showed that even at specialty hospitals, the overall countermeasure implementation rate was low (56%). The rate was higher in hospitals that had a higher bed capacity (>400), more full-time hepatologists, and more hepatitis medical care coordinators. Of these three factors, implementation rate was most influenced by coordinator enrollment, with highest involvement by clinical laboratory technologists. Therefore, clinical laboratory technologists should be trained to improve countermeasure rates for both treatment of liver disease and safety management in hospitals. Furthermore, the improvement in the implementation rate of measures for patients positive for hepatitis virus will help in providing better treatment.