MORGANTOWN — An outbreak of Hepatitis A in parts of the United States, including southern West Virginia, prompted Monongalia County Health Department (MCHD) to offer vaccinations around the county.
Public health nurses from MCHD’s Clinical Services program will begin visiting locations Monday to administer Hepatitis A vaccinations. They will be accompanied by Dr. Lee B. Smith, the health department’s executive director and county health officer.
Nurses will visit the Friendship Room at Milan Puskar HealthRight from 1-4 p.m. Monday and the soup kitchen at Trinity Episcopal Church from 10:30 a.m.-1:30 p.m. May 22. Times and dates for other locations, including Bartlett House, will be determined soon, said Jennifer Goldcamp, director of nursing at MCHD Clinical Services.
Nurses also will go out into the field with the WVU-based group Multidisciplinary UnSheltered Homeless Relief Outreach Of Morgantown (MUSHROOM), Goldcamp added, to identify people who are living outdoors who could benefit from these vaccines.
Additional efforts to identify one of the major populations targeted in this outreach — the homeless — will be made in a joint endeavor between first responders and MCHD, Smith said.
“We feel it’s a matter of time until members of the southern West Virginia homeless community infects others in the homeless community, and eventually, that will infect a lot of people in the state,” Smith said.
Hepatitis is an inflammation of the liver. Hepatitis A, B and C were all in the news recently. Hepatitis C, for which there is no vaccine, does have a cure. People born between 1945 and 1965 are encouraged to be tested for Hepatitis C because 75 percent of the people who have it are in that demographic.
In the U.S., West Virginia has the highest rates of infection of Hepatitis B and Hepatitis C. Hepatitis D and Hepatitis E are rare, and they are co-infections of Hepatitis B, which someone must have first in order to develop Hepatitis D or Hepatitis E. While rare, Hepatitis E is particularly virulent for pregnant women.
The Hepatitis A outbreak began in the homeless population in San Diego and spread to southern West Virginia.
The West Virginia Department of Health and Human Resources Bureau for Public Health confirmed 64 cases of Hepatitis A in Kanawha and Putnam counties and eight cases in Cabell, Lincoln, Wayne and Wyoming counties.
One case is said to involve a fast-food employee. Officials from that health department and the Kanawha County Board of Education also are working with Dupont Middle School officials to investigate two possibly linked cases at the school.
Hepatitis A is spread through contact with feces of infected persons. In children, this can happen if infected children contaminate their own fingers and then touch an object. Children who touch that object and then put their fingers in their mouths can become infected with Hepatitis A.
There is also a fear that because of the Hepatitis A outbreak, other diseases, including Hepatitis B, Hepatitis C and HIV, will also rise.
One bright spot is that there are vaccines to prevent both Hepatitis A and Hepatitis B. Doctors already recommend the vaccines for Hepatitis A and Hepatitis B as part of the vaccination schedule for infants and young children.
Hepatitis A requires two doses, and Hepatitis B requires three doses, which can present a challenge when working with a community of itinerant people without addresses.
In addition to getting the vaccine, good hand hygiene is recommended to avoid getting Hepatitis A. It is recommended that individuals wash their hands with soap and water for at least 30 seconds, or enough time to sing the “Happy Birthday” song twice.
Hepatitis A is a serious, highly contagious liver disease that can cause symptoms including nausea, vomiting, belly pain, fever and loss of appetite.
To learn more about hepatitis and to find out the various forms of transmission for each one, check out the Center for Disease Control and Prevention’s website, cdc.gov/hepatitis.
For more information on MCHD, check out monchd.org and follow us on Facebook and Twitter @WVMCHD for up-to-date information on health and safety.
In conjunction with WVU’s School of Nursing, MCHD holds a hepatitis clinic on Fridays. Individuals may be tested and, if needed, treated for hepatitis. To make an appointment for the clinic, call 304-598-5119.
The Associated Press contributed to this article.
