P10 Injecting risk behaviours among people who inject drugs in an Australian prison setting, 2005–2014: the HITS p study

BackgroundHCV transmission remains high in Australian prisons. Understanding injecting risk behaviours in prisons is crucial to effectively develop and implement programs to work towards HCV elimination. This study investigates injecting risk behaviours in the Hepatitis Incidence and Transmission Study in prisons (HITS-p) cohort.MethodsHITS-p is a cohort study which enrolled people with a history of injecting drug use from 23 prisons in NSW from 2005–2014. Participants completed a survey at enrolment and follow-up visits to determine recent injecting behaviours. Generalized estimating equation (GEE) methods were used to assess injecting risk behaviours prior to and following prison entry and to investigate injecting risk behaviours in prison.ResultsOverall, 499 participants with a history of injecting drug use were included (mean age, 28 years; 65% male). Recent injecting drug use decreased from 71% in …