South Australia has done well in progressing towards hepatitis elimination. More than half of people in the state with hepatitis C have been cured, but momentum has slowed, and with hepatitis B targets, we still lag behind the national averages in treatment and care uptake, as well as diagnosis.
One of the strategies for accelerating progress to achieve elimination by 2030 is to go into communities, to raise awareness, and take services directly to them. The successful liver scan clinic at a local shopping centre in Arndale was just one of a number of out-reach activities popping up during the 2024 World Hepatitis Day campaign.
Barbecue, Chat and Test
Community Access and Services SA is a grass-roots organisation in Adelaide’s west which offers services including Aged Care, Disability support, drug and alcohol services, gambling, mental health and wellbeing, and adult education. Originally set up by Vietnamese immigrants to meet the needs of their community, CAaSSA has grown and now works with a range of other immigrant communities, including those from regions of higher hepatitis prevalence including the Middle-East, Africa and Southeast Asia.
During the World Hepatitis Day (WHD) campaign, CAaSSA workers saw the opportunity to start conversations by hosting a friendly barbecue, an information table and, with support from Hepatitis SA, bring hepatitis C point-of-care testing to their communities.
Hepatitis SA’s Hepatitis C Treatment, Support and Information Coordinator, Lisa Carter, said 17 people were tested at the event on the day. Many of whom would not have considered doing so, had the risk factors for blood-borne virus not been explained to them.
Provided under the Australian National Point of Care Testing Project, the testing clinic offered hepatitis C antibody tests and in appropriate situations, hepatitis C RNA, HIV and hepatitis B tests as well.
Participants also received information about hepatitis B and together with their families, were referred to their own GPs for testing. Arabic and Vietnamese interpreters were present to facilitate the process and viral hepatitis nurses were on hand via telephone, if required, to arrange for liver scans in the work-up for treatment, and to quickly and easily arrange prescriptions for direct acting anti-viral treatment.
Hepatitis SA Needle and Syringe Program Peer Projects Coordinator, Carol Holly, was on hand at the event to provide harm minimisation information.
Art, Craft and Education
Aboriginal Community Connect (ACC) is a one-stop service provided by Uniting Communities. It supports First Nations people who want to change their use of alcohol and other drugs, to stay connected to their culture and community. ACC has shared houses in north-west Adelaide, Mount Gambier, Murray Bridge and Renmark.
Hepatitis SA has been working with ACC in Prospect in sharing hepatitis-related information and education through art and craft projects and for 2024 World Hepatitis Day, the participants put together some special artwork to showcase what they’ve learnt in that journey.
In all some 15 people participated in the project over three weeks. ACC’s Social and Emotional Wellbeing Worker, Nat Loadsman, said learning about hepatitis testing and treatment was an important for the community. “Raising awareness encourages action. About 70 per cent of our clients have been tested,” he said. “We’ve spoken about having another project later, maybe creating a montage of the artwork, and sharing a healthy lunch.”
Hepatitis SA Education Coordinator, Jenny Grant, said it was a wonderful project to work on. “Sharing knowledge and producing some beautiful artwork with health messages. It was a privilege to work with ACC and their community. Hepatitis SA look forward to working with ACC into the future.”
Square Dance, Tai Ji and More
Chinese Welfare Services (CWS) in the city has been around in Adelaide for over 30 years. It is one of two peak Chinese community service organisations in Adelaide. CWS provides a range of aged care related services and runs classes and activities that include fitness, dance, and Cantonese opera. It also run a weekend Chinese language school in the city.
For WHD 2024, CWS created an informative display ad, distributed through their newsletter and social media, encouraging members to find out more about viral hepatitis.
Community members were encouraged to participate in the week’s square dance and taiji activities where hepatitis B education was incorporated into the schedule.
Hepatitis SA educator, Jesse Chen, fluent in both Cantonese and Mandarin, was able to engage with participants explaining the basics of hepatitis B, how it could be prevented and how they could get tested, including how to approach their GPs to request testing should they think they might be at risk.
CWS Executive Officer, Kam Chiu said both events were “highly successful” attracting 75 participants. “The Square Dance Group and Fitness Tai Chi Group activities were well-received, encouraging physical fitness and healthy living, contributing to the overall goal of raising awareness about viral hepatitis,” he said.
“The brief educational sessions on Hepatitis B raised significant awareness among the participants. The distribution of sample letters and flyers helped participants understand what a referral letter looks like and its general content.”
Last updated 22 August 2024
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