NZ Ministry of Health Press Release
2 June 2010
55 Women at Risk of Hep C being Traced
New Zealand and Australian health authorities are tracing 55 New Zealand women who visited a private medical clinic in Australia between 1 January 2006 and 7 December 2009 who may be at risk of having contracted Hepatitis C.
Ministry of Health Deputy Director of Public Health Dr Fran McGrath says Australian authorities identified the link between a cluster of hepatitis C cases and a private medical centre in the State of Victoria, Australia in April and are now investigating how this happened.
There is a police investigation in Victoria and media reports of legal action in Australia being planned.
“The Department of Health in Victoria, has taken responsibility for tracing, directly contacting and confidentially informing all 3,500 women concerned, including the 55 affected women giving a New Zealand address.”
The Department began contacting the New Zealanders yesterday as they worked through the 3500 women being traced. Around 1000 Australian women have been contacted and 746 tested.
Of those tested 44 have been found to have hepatitis C, around half of whom have had their infection linked to the private medical centre.
Because of the difficulties involved in tracing the women, the Ministry of Health will be working more closely with its Victorian counterpart in helping trace the New Zealand women concerned.
New Zealand women who had procedures at the Croydon Day Surgery in Croydon, Victoria from 1 January 2006 to 7 December 2009 can call Healthline in New Zealand and be transferred free of charge to a confidential Australian hepatitis line for further information.
“This is a sensitive and potentially distressing situation and the Ministry of Health here and health authorities in Australia are being careful to protect the privacy and confidentiality of the women involved”, Dr McGrath says.
Specialist staff in District Health Boards in New Zealand are on standby to offer blood testing, follow-up, support and treatment if necessary.
“Based on the results of women tested to date approximately 5% of women treated at the clinic may have contracted Hepatitis C. Based on this information we estimate that up to 3 New Zealand women may test positive.”
Any woman who has received treatment in a Melbourne private clinic in the four years from 2006 to 2009 should contact (New Zealand ) Healthline 0800 611 116 for advice.
Hepatitis C is a blood-borne virus that causes inflammation of the liver and which can have serious complications.
For more information contact Peter Abernethy, Media Relations Manager, 021 366 111
Further information can be found at the Victoria Department of Health website http://www.health.vic.gov.au/chiefhealthofficer/alerts/
Press release ends
Hepatitis C cases linked to doctor grows
AAP
The number of women infected with Hepatitis C after being treated by a Melbourne doctor has grown to 44 and is rising.
Another 32 women have tested positive to the infection after being treated by James Latham Peters, an anaesthetist at a Croydon abortion clinic, the Department of Human Services (DHS) revealed on Monday.
That number is certain to grow and the DHS has urged any women who have had abortions and been treated by Dr Peters at the Croydon Day Surgery to contact them.
The number of women infected with Hepatitis C after being treated by a Melbourne doctor has grown to 44 and is rising.
Another 32 women have tested positive to the infection after being treated by James Latham Peters, an anaesthetist at a Croydon abortion clinic, the Department of Human Services (DHS) revealed on Monday.
That number is certain to grow and the DHS has urged any women who have had abortions and been treated by Dr Peters at the Croydon Day Surgery to contact them.
More than 1100 women treated by Dr Peters since 2008 have been contacted by DHS and told to be tested, with the results of 746 women received showing 32 infection cases, Victoria’s chief health officer Dr John Carnie said.
Dr Carnie and police believe the doctor recklessly and maybe deliberately infected the women by using needles he had contaminated.
“The more cases you find in this instance, it becomes more and more difficult to explain this by any other accidental means,” Dr Carnie told reporters on Monday.
best of health
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