The Champion #105 – April 2022

This issue:

1. HEP CURED Mobile Mural wraps up successful hep C health campaign road trip
2. Federal Budget: 12 month funding a lifeline but 2030 hepatitis elimination goals demand longer-term investment
3. Face-to-face Chinese Community hep B info talks return!
4. Hep Connect offers the Perx app to support people on hep C treatment

HEP CURED Mobile Mural wraps up successful hep C health campaign road trip

After three weeks and several thousand kilometres on the road, with many towns and suburbs across New South Wales visited, the HEP CURED Mobile Mural rolled into its final stop in Surry Hills at the end of March. The aim of the HEP CURED mobile mural had been to raise the visibility of hep C treatments plus encourage NSW to get tested for, and get cured, of the virus – and in that respect it was successful.

Boldly stating the HEP CURED message, a colourful, eye-catching mural, was added to the other side of a truck mounted campaign billboard. Together they toured numerous rural towns as well as Sydney suburbs throughout March. The Mobile Mural travelled, and parked, around carefully chosen sites to provide repeat exposure and to reinforce the messages, and encourage action on hepatitis C testing and treatment.

Our thanks to the many dedicated NSW Health staff that helped with planning and site visit activities along the way. We liaised with the staff of Local Health Districts (LHDs) – including Hunter-New England LHD, Mid North Coast LHD, Western NSW LHD, Nepean Blue Mountains LHD, Western Sydney LHD, Sydney LHD, Northern Sydney LHD, South Eastern Sydney LHD, South Western Sydney LHD, Illawarra Shoalhaven LHD, Southern NSW LHD, Murrumbidgee LHD, and Norther Rivers LHD although, regrettably, the catastrophic flooding in northern NSW meant that visits to Lismore, Byron Bay and Tweed Heads had to be cancelled.

Activities associated with the Mobile Mural across the state-wide route varied. In some instances, it was a drive through, but frequently the truck would stop at pre-determined locations with Hepatitis NSW staff – including our wonderful Hep C Community Peer workers – and NSW Health staff engaging with the community. These road stops might have involved simply chatting about hep C cures and giving out branded HEP CURED merchandise, but often included clinic work with Dried Blood Spot Testing for hep C available.

Newcastle – being painted	Newcastle – being painted
Pete’s Place, Coffs Harbour – peers Steve and Jason	Newcastle – peers Kiah and Paul
Bathurst AutoFest ’22!	Bathurst AutoFest ’22!
Kingswood – peers Steve and Christine	St Marys
Newtown Neighbourhood Centre	Camperdown
HEP CURED Game Changer give-aways!	This is the other side of the mural!
Albury	Western Sydney

Locations around New South Wales visited by the HEP CURED Mobile Mural included:

• Newcastle (where it was painted and began its journey)
• Foster
• Woy Woy
• Gosford
• Coffs Harbour (Pete’s Place Community Centre)
• Armidale
• Tamworth
• Bathurst (AutoFest ’22)
• Katoomba
• Sydney – Penrith, Kingswood, St Mary’s Blacktown
• Sydney – Newtown, Camperdown
• Sydney – Manly (pictured at top of story), St Leonards
• Sydney – Campbelltown
• Wollongong
• Bega
• Eden
• Bateman’s Bay
• Albury
• Wagga Wagga
• Goulburn
• Sydney – Surry Hills!

It’s estimated that the HEP CURED Mobile Mural was seen by hundreds of thousands of people across New South Wales! We’ll have some video available soon.

HEP CURED has been developed by Hepatitis NSW in partnership with NUAA and the Ministry of Health.

For more information about HEP CURED>>>CLICK HERE

Federal Budget: 12 month funding a lifeline but 2030 hepatitis elimination goals demand longer-term investment

As of this edition of The Champion the Federal Election has just been called… following hot on the heels of the Federal Budget. Hepatitis Australia released a statement welcoming the Australian Government’s commitment of short-term – that is, 12 months – funding under the National Preventive Health Strategy 2021-2030. That money is to support key organisations to continue existing programs in the national response to hepatitis B, hepatitis C, HIV and STIs. However, they also highlighted that short-term money highlights an ongoing challenge to the national response where funding is often received late and short in duration.

Carrie Fowlie, Chief Executive Officer of Hepatitis Australia, said, “We support Minister Hunt’s acknowledgement at the Budget Briefing that health needs long-term investment strategies, and we desperately need to change this pattern of short-term funding for hepatitis B and hepatitis C”.

The Government allocated $8.6 million in 2022-23 allowing key organisations to continue important work towards elimination by 2030, This includes a $5 million commitment to implement key activities under the Fifth National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Blood Borne Viruses and Sexually Transmissible Infections Strategy 2018–2022, to improve health outcomes for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people living with, or at risk of blood borne viruses and/or sexually transmissible infections.

This critical one-year investment in Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander BBV/STI health is strongly supported by Hepatitis Australia and Hepatitis NSW. First Nations leadership is critical to achieving hepatitis B and hepatitis C elimination.

The remaining $3.6 million is to support existing programs under the four other national BBV and STI Strategies including the National Hepatitis B Strategy and the National Hepatitis C Strategy.

Australia has committed to the elimination of hepatitis B and hepatitis C by 2030, and is currently developing new National Strategies from 2023 to 2030 to get us back on track. This long-term policy commitment needs to be matched by a long-term implementation investment. “Progress towards 2030 elimination targets has stalled in recent years and we simply cannot afford further interruptions in service delivery and access to care for priority populations. We must not surrender the hard-fought gains made by affected communities and the hepatitis sector more broadly”, said Ms Fowlie.

• Read full Hepatitis Australia Media Release >>>CLICK HERE

Face-to-face Chinese Community hep B info talks return!

Hepatitis NSW is delighted that, following a necessary recess due to COVID, we have recommenced our face-to-face Chinese Community Hep B Information Sessions.

Over the past 10 months we have had to utilise various indirect means to maintain our connection with the Chinese hep B community, and provide them with support to maintain their physical and psychological wellbeing during a difficult time of isolation.

We also continued to reach out through our partner organisations – to increase knowledge about hepatitis B with the hope of seeing more testing and less stigma.

As COVID restrictions have eased, we organised our first face-to-face education session in a long-time for the Mandarin speaking Chinese community. Held in April, at Burwood Library, we had a great outcome with 15 participants attending.

From the post-event surveys collected, all participants indicated that they understood that the hep B vaccine is the most effective way to prevent hepatitis B infection; and that blood tests are the only way to know if someone does, or does not, have the hep B virus. Eighty percent of participants commented that they would consider doing a hep B test and encourage their family members to do so.

Our bilingual staff were engaging, and the atmosphere was so relaxed that many participants opened up and shared their personal stories. This, in-turn, helped to reinforce the key messages and information from the day to rest of the audience. Providing COVID restrictions remain a thing of the past, Hepatitis NSW will continue to support people affected or at risk of viral hepatitis using face-to-face sessions.

From our experience of the last several months, we found that online education attracted more young people – a cohort that was often absent from our face-to-face session. In this respect, Hepatitis NSW will also continue to conduct online hep B information talks. Please keep an eye on our website.

Hep Connect offers the Perx app to support people on hep C treatment

Hep Connect – in collaboration with Perx health – is offering people who are starting, or already on, hep C treatment some additional treatment management and support through this free app.

The Perx app has been clinically proven to empower people to manage their health.

The Hep Connect program supports people living with hep C – from testing, through treatment, all the way to cure. People in the program can download the Perx app for free; it can assist them to stay on top of their treatment journeys, broaden their health choices and connect with those going through similar experiences. Users can schedule medication and appointment reminders and schedule when their final sustained virologic response (SVR) blood test is due following the end of treatment.

Clinicians have the option to download the app on behalf of their patients, as well as the ability to reach out to Hepatitis NSW for information on, and assistance with, the app.

Perx integrates several “motivators” into the client’s daily schedule including education, games, and coaching. Each time a user completes set tasks, they have a chance to win real rewards (up to $50 gift cards)… to keep them motivated!

Features of the Perx Health app:

• Earn real rewards – like gift cards – every time a tasks in the app is completed
• Schedule medication reminders and appointments
• Easily schedule health tasks such as medications, exercise regime, medical examination results, measurements, physical therapy etc
• Join the hep C treatment community striving toward better health outcomes

The Perx app can be downloaded onto any smartphone or tablet from either Google Play for Android or the App Store for iOS.

Hep Connect is happy to provide the Perx app for free for all patients in NSW that are managing hepatitis C treatment. Referring a patient is easy and takes less than a minute!

For more questions about the Perx app visit:

programs.perxhealth.com/hepconnect

For more information about the Hep connect Program visit:

hep.org.au/key-services/hep-connect

Clinicians can refer a patient to Perx via:

hepnsw.perxhealth.com (make sure to bookmark the page!)

Any questions contact:

• email: [email protected]
• Susanne Wilkinson Project Officer phone: 02 8217 7703
• Hepatitis NSW Infoline 1800 803 990

For app related enquiries

• email: [email protected]

We encourage you to give it a try!