Jeff Stewart’s career as a nurse has never lacked variety, colour and challenge. He had worked with MSF in South Sudan, Rwanda and Liberia, with Aboriginal health services in Yalata, with the AHPRA nursing board, and in Adelaide metropolitan hospitals – always meeting new challenges, learning new skills and engaging with new communities.
Given that, it says a lot that work as a Viral Hepatitis Nurse had provided enough challenges, lessons and colour to hold Jeff for 15 years. Sadly, that came to an end in December as he said goodbye to the hepatitis sector and moved to a new role with Aboriginal health services at Noarlunga and Clovelly Park.
“There is still so much to do in hepatitis, plenty of exciting and important work… but I have done this job for 15 years – it’s time to do something different… learn some new skills. I know if I stay on, I’d become stuck, too comfortable to try something new,” he said in a farewell conversation with Hepatitis SA Community News.
“Working in viral hepatitis has been an interesting and varied experience. I have learnt a lot… clinical knowledge and skills, project management, running screening clinics, learning how to collaborate with other organisations.
… I look forward to watching as you continue to eliminate hepatitis C, and engage more and more people with hepatitis B in care
“It’s sad to leave. I will really miss the people, especially the clients who are such a colourful, interesting lot with so much resilience.”
The new treatments for hepatitis C became available some six years after Jeff started as a viral hepatitis nurse, changing the goal of hepatitis C treatment from management to cure. “It changed things completely… from helping people live with and manage their hep C, our focus became finding people who had become lost to the system, and supporting them to get cured,” he said.
The change in hepatitis C services was further accelerated when reliable rapid finger prick diagnostic testing was introduced a few years later. And when an innovative peer worker in Hepatitis SA worked out ways to bring testing to the community, Jeff was there providing the support and clinical backup.
In addition to regular work as a viral hepatitis nurse in SA Health’s highly successful program, Jeff worked actively to organise outreach testing clinics in regional areas, supported community organisations in testing clinics at shopping centres, community clubs and homeless centres, was there for testing in prisons, sat on many consultative committees and was a Hepatitis SA board member. And he even found time to complete his study and accreditation to become a nurse practitioner!
“There is also a lot happening still in the hepatitis area in terms of research into treatment and disease management, and policy development,” he said. “With the cure for hepatitis C and point of care testing being rolled out, focus is shifting to hepatitis B and that is a whole new community – communities in fact – given the diverse cultural origins of people who are at-risk. It will be rewarding and fascinating work for those taking over my work at the QEH, and for all of you working in this sector.
“I will miss working with the people in this sector, especially the clients, but I look forward to watching as you continue to eliminate hepatitis C, and engage more and more people with hepatitis B in care.”
The feeling is mutual. Lisa Carter who leads the Hepatitis SA’s hepatitis C treatment and support team, summed it up nicely, “Jeff is one of the most effective workers I have had the pleasure of working with. His dedication and tireless efforts to eliminate viral hepatitis were enormous, he personally got SA closer to achieving the targets and he will be missed by all at Hepatitis SA and the sector.”
Last updated 27 January 2026
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