Community Support & Engagement
Community Engagement & Support
What We Do
Who We Serve
How We Impact
What We Do
Our health information and treatment access program, Live Hep C Free is run by people who have experience of living with hep C.
The program aims to meet people where they’re at, with the healthcare they need.
Previously known as Living Well, Live Hep C Free is focused on giving people easier and simpler access to hep C testing, FibroScan, and treatment as well as information and support around hep C and liver health.
Our peers work in partnership with hepatitis healthcare workers to help get more people tested for hep C and more people cured. Everywhere that the Live Hep C Free program goes, so too does access to blood testing, FibroScanning, and hep C treatment.
Who We Serve
The program works with anyone in the community living with hep C including people in residential rehabs, people experiencing homelessness, people accessing methadone clinics and drug health services, people who inject drugs and people affected by the criminal justice system.
How We Impact
The Live Hep C Free program can operate in three distinct models depending on the needs of each service. All of these models are centred on being run or facilitated by our expert peer workers.
- A 4 week, structured and facilitated group model run primarily in residential rehabs. Over 4 sessions our peers work with people in residential rehabs to deliver information on hep C, empower participants, and bring hepatitis healthcare (testing, FibroScan, and treatment) on-site with a healthcare worker.
- A liver ‘blitz’ model where we offer a one-stop shop for hepatitis healthcare. Over a day or few hours, we work with healthcare workers to offer access to hep C testing, FibroScan, and treatment to people already accessing the service, be that a homelessness, drug health or other service.
- An outreach model where peers are paired with hepatitis healthcare workers to regularly attend a particular service such as a methadone clinic or homelessness service. Our peers engage with service users about hep C and assist the healthcare worker in increasing hep C testing and treatment.
We strongly believe in making hep C testing and treatment as easy and simple as possible to access so that people have the opportunity to live healthier, to live better, and to live hep C free.
What We Do
Our speaker service program connects the community and health workforce with personal accounts of people who have experience living viral hepatitis. Their personal stories challenge stereotypes and address the stigma associated with living with hep B and hep C. All of our speakers with lived experience of hepatitis C are now cured.
Who We Serve
Our speakers have been invited to present their stories at:
- our quarterly HNSW Get Bloody Serious in-house education sessions for health workforce
- Australasian Society for HIV, Viral Hepatitis and Sexual Health Medicine (ASHM)
- Chinese and Korean Community Leader’s forums
- Justice Health and Corrections - Education session for prisoners and workforce
- GP conferences
- Aboriginal community networks
- Pharmaceutical companies
- Australian and Australasian Viral Hepatitis Elimination Conferences
- Educational videos and webinars
How We Impact
Witnessing personal accounts of people’s lived experience of hep B or hep C develops an understanding of how issues such as stigma and discrimination impact on access to healthcare and support services. This has been shown to be an extremely effective strategy in improving attitudes, values and behaviours.
Our speakers are trained in public speaking and share their stories with participants as part of our broader hep B and hep C education sessions, and at community workshops and events.
What We Do
The new Hep Connect Program offers support to anyone in the community who is about to commence or is on hep C treatment with SMS text reminders and peer-based telephone calls. The peer-based calls provide an opportunity to speak with someone who’s been through the treatment and the SMS text messages remind clients to take their daily medication, to contact their hepatology nurse for scripts, testing and results, all the way to SVR.
Who We Serve
The Hep Connect program works in close partnership with hepatology nurses throughout NSW LHDs. Hepatology nurses offer the Hep Connect SMS text reminders and peer-based telephone support calls to patients whom they believe can benefit from some added support. All peers connecting with clients, have lived experience with hep C treatment, are trained and work from our Sydney offices.
The program aims to provide clients with the right type of support at the right time to make the journey through treatment easier and to keep their patients on track with their medication and all test appointments.
How We Impact
Hepatology nurses have reported that the SMS text reminders and peer-based calls have reduced the number of clients lost to follow-up and clients have reported that the Hep Connect program has been instrumental in their treatment compliance and adherence, all the way to cure.
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