Terminology

Access

The provision of an opportunity for a health, or other, activity necessitates the prisoner being released from their cell and often escorted by a correctional officer to another location – this is often termed ‘…accessing the prisoner’.

Care cascade

The sequential steps undertaken by healthcare workers to engage, diagnose, treat, cure, and monitor individuals at risk of, or infected with, hepatitis C.

Direct acting antiviral (DAA)

Medications that target hepatitis C virus replication. DAAs have high cure rates following a short course of treatment, and very few side effects.

Escort

The process of supervised transfer of a prisoner from one location to another by one or more correctional officers.

Health clinic

A room or rooms in the prison dedicated for use by health staff to deliver health services to prisoners. The available space is often very limited.

Implementation

To put in place the infrastructure, resources, and processes to establish an effective hepatitis service.

Let-go

A systematic process during which prisoners are released from their cells by correctional officers, and allowed access to other parts of the prison, such as exercise yards, activities halls or workplaces.

Lockdown

An action taken by prison management and staff to control the movement of prisoners, typically by confining prisoners to their cells. This may be part of the usual prison routine, or unscheduled to cope with unplanned events such as security incidents or correctional staff shortages.

Movements

The highly organised transfer of prisoners between different prisons, to the courts, or internal escort to a different part of the same prison. This often requires complex logistical and security planning.

Needle and syringe program (NSP)

Provision of sterile injecting equipment with an aim to prevent transmission of blood borne viruses.

Opioid agonist therapy (OAT)

Treatment for addiction to opioid drugs (e.g. heroin, oxycodone, fentanyl). OAT medications include methadone and buprenorphine.

Polymerase chain reaction (PCR) test

A commonly used technology used to detect the genetic material (the ribonucleic acid or RNA) of the hepatitis C virus, and hence diagnose current hepatitis C infection.

Prisons

A collective term including jails (gaols) and other correctional centres in which inmates (or prisoners) are legally held as a punishment for a crime, either prior to conviction (remand) or following sentencing.

PWID

People who inject drugs.

Remand

The status of individuals who are imprisoned but not yet sentenced (…being ‘on remand’).

Scale-up

To establish or expand services to reach more of those at risk of, or infected with, hepatitis C, and to enhance effectiveness.

Security classification

The level of security associated with a prison or a prisoner, generally described as ‘maximum’, ‘medium’, or ‘minimum’ (and other variations of these terms).

Segregation

When a prisoner is separated from other inmates in an isolated area for a specified period of time either for disciplinary or administrative purposes.

SToP-C

Surveillance and Treatment of Prisoners with Hepatitis C study.

Sustained virological response (SVR)

No hepatitis C virus is detectable in the blood 12 weeks following the completion of antiviral treatment (also considered to be hepatitis C cure).

Training days

Specified days within the prison schedule that are dedicated to correctional and health staff education and training. These may be scheduled on a regular basis (e.g. monthly) and mean that the prison is in lockdown on that day.

Treatment as prevention (TasP)

Testing for diagnosis and curative treatment coverage in the target population sufficient to reduce hepatitis C transmissions.

Visits

Specified days or periods during which prisoner nominated guests (e.g. family members) may attend the prison to meet with the prisoner, usually under high security and for a limited period of time.

Wings

The section of the prison structure containing tens or sometimes hundreds of individual cells.