Principle 3 – Gather Allies
Why?
We cannot eliminate viral hepatitis alone, the effort demands strong and sustained collaboration across not only diverse stakeholder groups, but across diverse sectors as the burden of viral hepatitis goes beyond the healthcare system. By bringing stakeholders from diverse groups and sectors, resources and expertise can be combined, efforts coordinated and more effective, long-lasting solutions created. Collaboration strengthens the overall viral hepatitis response, enabling more informed decision making, better service delivery and stronger community engagement.
What?
Working across sectors better enables responses that address other dimensions of viral hepatitis such as stigma, discrimination, drug use, maternal health, immigrant health, cancer prevention, vaccine efforts and how they affect diagnosis and care. Combined expertise can ensure a more patient-centred approach that improves outcomes and reaches populations that are often overlooked, underserved and in high burden and endemic areas.
Through sharing your insights and expertise with allies across sectors, you can create shared value and strengthen elimination efforts, with the added benefits of wider exposure, contacts and resources.
How?
A few quick steps to get started:
- Identify and reach out to local healthcare organisations, policy bodies and advocacy groups. Each offers a unique opportunity for collaboration:
- Healthcare organisations: Collaborate on service delivery such as integrating hepatitis B and hepatitis C screening into routine care
- Policy groups: Advocate for evidence-based hepatitis policies and support implementation of best practices
- Advocacy groups/NGOs: Partner with organisations working in related areas like HIV, maternal health and harm reduction to strengthen joint advocacy and outreach efforts
- Reach out to local community groups, many of them welcome medical professionals to ensure the board has a wide range of skills, experience and knowledge.
- Find ways to align hepatitis B and C with other efforts – cancer screening and prevention, maternal and child health, vaccine campaigns, health equity, drug user and prevention efforts, etc.
Other Resources To Help
- Connect those affected by hepatitis B with HepBCommunity.org, a global peer-led, volunteer-driven forum to support those living with and affected by hep B supported by the Hepatitis B Foundation (USA) and Westmead Hospital Foundation (AU). They can connect with verified experts in the field who provide trustworthy and accurate advice.
Case Study
PRINCIPLE 3: GATHER ALLIES – CASE STUDY
“The problem of hep C seemed like quite a reasonable thing to treat. So, it seemed like it was within my power to be able to do it.” – Dr Logan