Principle two: Raise awareness

You raise awareness among key audiences of viral hepatitis as a human and economic issues, and the urgent need to act.

Raising awareness

You raise awareness of the burden of viral hepatitis, as well as the positive impact of diagnosis and treatment, among peers, partners and the public. Through sharing data and stories, you create both motivation and a sense of urgency.

Why?

Key stakeholders – including fellow medical professionals, partners, patients and the public – must understand the human and economic impact of viral hepatitis to be motivated to drive change.

What?

Viral hepatitis is a global killer responsible for 1.4 million deaths a year. Chronic hepatitis B and hepatitis C are life-threatening infectious diseases that cause serious liver damage, cancer, and premature death, with 257 million and 71 million people living with hepatitis B and hepatitis C, respectively.

Eliminating hepatitis B and hepatitis C as public health threats by 2030

Will save approximately 10 million lives
Will reduce inequalities and enhance lives, ensuring healthy futures and reducing stigma among marginalised populations
Is cost-effective and feasible, protecting patients against catastrophic healthcare costs and productivity losses

Case study

Dr Philip Bruggman

After realising that many GPs and opiate substitution units in Switzerland were not testing for hepatitis or offering treatment, Dr Philip Bruggman and his organisation began training and educating relevant medical professionals to test for hepatitis and oversee patients’ treatment.

[btn url=”https://www.nohep.org/news-resources/medical-visionary-case-study-dr-philip-bruggman/”]Read the full case study[/btn]

A group of men wearing NOhep t-shirts

The benefits of advocacy

Advocacy has become such an important part of the healthcare system and determines how resources are allocated. Unfortunately, the advocacy voice in hepatitis is not strong enough to have the impact needed. Advocacy can produce an increased priority for hepatitis and more investment in resources. Combined voices are heard better.

The importance of advocacy

Advocacy is powerful and brings many benefits both to patient and to healthcare workers, because it forces increased attention on viral hepatitis. If viral hepatitis becomes more important for governments and health ministries, more funding is allocated to build infrastructure, increase staffing and treatment capacity and opportunities for research.

[btn url=”https://www.nohep.org/news-resources/nohep-guide-for-medical-professionals/”]Download the NOhep Guide for Medical Professionals[/btn]

Other resources to help

Visit the World Hepatitis Alliance’s ‘Wall of Stories’, a collection of stories from around the world, to find moving and impactful patient testimonials to use as part of your presentation.
Use the viral hepatitis disease discussion guide as a resource to support your conversations with peers
and colleagues. This outlines key messages and data associated with the burden of disease and provides a framework and flow that highlights the human and economic cost of viral hepatitis.