NOhep News: April 2020
Welcome to your round-up of everything happening in the NOhep world! If you want to receive future editions of NOhep news, sign up to our movement here.
The COVID-19 pandemic has changed our lives dramatically, but NOhep supporters around the world have adapted amazingly. Many not only continue the fight to eliminate viral hepatitis, but have taken up a new mantle and are active in the COVID-19 response. One NOhep hero who has been working to make sure patients still have access to hepatitis C medication is this month’s Supporter Spotlight, Louise Hansford. The World Hepatitis Alliance has also released an online hub of information for people living with viral hepatitis during the COVID-19 pandemic.
As you may have noticed, we have also refreshed our own website with brand new resources and a useful translation feature. We hope you find it useful and make the most of the resources to raise your voice for a NOhep world.
We are also delighted to bring you great news about improved access to treatment in Australia, as well as news about an exciting new test which could provide an on-the-spot hepatitis B diagnosis.
If you have a story you’d like to share with us, or you’re interested in being featured as a future Supporter Spotlight, please email us. We’d love to hear from you!
Supporter Spotlight: Louise Hansford
Louise Hansford’s journey to being cured of hepatitis C wasn’t an easy one. After being cured in 2007, she wanted to support others to get tested and access curative treatment. She founded peer support organisation Hep C Hants P2P, which has supported more than 325 people in the South of England to access treatment.
Louise now has a new role and is involved in the new “Hep CU Later” campaign which aims to help an additional 6,000 people in England put hepatitis C behind them. Read Louise’s inspiring story here.
NOhep Community Activity
NOhep heroes offer support to COVID-19 response
It has been amazing to witness the many ways in which #NOhep supporters have been putting their skills and experience from the fight against viral hepatitis to use to support the COVID-19 response. Are you volunteering or involved in the response to the coronavirus pandemic? We’d love to hear what you’ve been doing – email us on connect@nohep.org to let us know how you’re helping. Don’t forget to follow #NOhep on social media to see what your fellow NOhep heroes are up to!
Medical Visionaries and civil society come together in Bali
The NOhep Medical Visionaries meeting held in Bali during APASL 2020 brought together medical professionals with leading civil society organisations in the region to discuss how decentralisation could accelerate hepatitis elimination efforts.
Articles and Stories
World Hepatitis Alliance hub provides up-to-date information for people living with viral hepatitis during COVID-19 pandemic
To help you stay up to date with the latest relevant information, the World Hepatitis Alliance (WHA) has launched a hub of resources for people living with viral hepatitis. The hub will be updated regularly with any news or information that emerges. It can also be translated into different languages; use the Google Translate function in the top right-hand corner to translate it into your language.
Hepatitis C treatment set to become more accessible in Australia
Australia’s Pharmaceutical Benefits Advisory Committee (PBAC) has endorsed authorised Nurse Practitioners to prescribe hepatitis B and C medicines under the Highly Specialised Drugs (HSD) programme.
This new development should make treatment more accessible, especially to those from remote or rural communities, and to people from marginalised communities including people experiencing homelessness and people in prison.
Read more about this great step towards NOhep and health equity here.
A new diagnostic test will be able to provide an instant hepatitis B diagnosis. The test, which uses a saliva sample, can be administered by non-specialist medical staff in low-resource settings, which will make testing and diagnosis more accessible.
Olga Kazakova, science area leader at the National Physical Laboratory in the UK, said: “Patients can be tested and receive their first dose of treatment at first presentation without having to return. Where healthcare is sparsely available, this opportunity to test, identify and begin immediate treatment leads to reduced transmission.”
Read more about this exciting development here.