Reflecting on World Hepatitis Day 2022

We at LiverWELL would like to extend a huge thank you to everyone who has been involved in the range of events and campaigns this World Hepatitis Day 2022.

Our partner organisations hosted incredible events for their communities that helped to raise awareness of viral hepatitis and aid in diminishing the stigma and misinformation surrounding the disease. These included:

Salvation Army (Flagstaff and Open Door), Barwon Health, Alevi Community Council of Australia, Springvale Neighbourhood House, IndoChinese Elderly Refugees Association of Victoria, Dardi Munwurro, Healthworks Footscray, The Centre for Culture Ethnicity and Health, Gundijimarra, and the Vietnamese Australia Foundation.

Events included barbecues, morning teas, and incentivised hepatitis C testing with an integrated hepatitis nurse.

The health promotions team also provided workshops at the events and had hepatitis chats with residents and clients of the services.

The IndoChinese Elderly Refugee Association (IERA) received incentives from LiverWELL for World Hepatitis Day to host an education session for people connected to their organisation who were born in July. 70 participants attended the session on 25 July, which was conducted by our team. We provided a general overview of how to take care of your liver health, with a strong focus on hepatitis B, C and getting tested. A celebratory lunch was also provided after the session.

We were also able to light up monuments around Victoria green, which included the Bolte Bridge and Tullamarine Soundtube; the Ballarat clock and fountain; the Bendigo Conservatory; and the catenary lights in Geelong.

We ran promotions on Facebook, which included a series of animated ads that supported the international World Hepatitis Day campaign message ‘Hepatitis Can’t Wait’.

Melbourne Today ran two articles with information for the Chinese community about hepatitis B, including transmission, vaccination, treatment, discrimination, and stigma, receiving 2600 views. These, paired with our online webinar, aimed to educate the Chinese community in Victoria on testing and treatment options.

First Melbourne Today article – 20 July
Second Melbourne Today article – 28 July 

A hepatitis B education session was also held at Glen Eira Adult Learning Centre with over 30 participants, including those from Chinese, Ukrainian, and Afghan communities.

We hope our efforts allowed Victorians to gain a greater understanding of viral hepatitis and were encouraged to get tested and treated. For more information on World Hepatitis Day, click below!