Since 1997, the Hepatitis B Coalition of WA (HBCW) has worked to increase awareness of hepatitis B, with a primary focus on the Asian Pacific Islander (API) community. Strategies include:
- The development and distribution of culturally and linguistically appropriate educational materials
- Presentations on hepatitis B to schools and local community groups
- Collaboration with national partners to raise hepatitis B awareness at the federal level
- Promotion of hepatitis B testing and immunization, including testing 749 API individuals for the hepatitis B virus since September 2006.
HBCW has developed and strengthened its relationships not only with the API communities, but with the service providers – local, state, and national – who have, and continue to support, the Coalition’s work.
However, the world in which we live is becoming more complex and diverse, as is our state’s population. APIs (along with Latinos) are the fastest growing racial and ethnic group in Seattle-King County (SKC), increasing from 8% in 1990 to 14% in SKC and 6% in the state (2004 Census estimate). In addition, diverse communities such as East Africans are making Seattle their home; unfortunately many of these communities are coming from regions where the hepatitis B prevalence is 8% or higher.
Recognizing these changes and the ongoing lack of communication among families and household (HH) members about this preventable disease, HBCW created a strategic planning process in 2008-09 that resulted in a visionary new direction for the work. The Coalition will now dedicate more time to two specific strategic population areas, while still retaining its primary focus on the API communities. These two new focus areas are: reaching out to the families and HH members of individuals positive for the hepatitis B virus, and expanding outreach and educational efforts to other high-risk but non-API populations. The latter focus area sparked the desire to update our name from the WA State Asian Pacific Islander Hepatitis B Task Force to the current Coalition name to be more inclusive of these populations.
The overall goal is to identify and build coordination between the various and complex systems, or “silos,” that either deliver or receive hepatitis B services: primarily the public health and community clinic, the family, and the medical systems. Recognizing how they work together – both the strengths and the gaps – will better enable the Coalition to assess its capacity and role in improving and strengthening the hepatitis B prevention, care, and treatment services.
To that end, HBCW will establish “talking circles” with providers (both medical and social services) within the respective groups. More commonly known as focus groups, these talking circles will allow the participants to learn (more) about hepatitis B, while providing valuable input and suggestions about sensible and appropriate strategies for health messaging and education. Information gained through this work will be used by HBCW’s Advisory Committee in early 2010 for development and implementation of pilot projects. Relationships built in these talking circles will hopefully form the foundation for future contacts and opportunities as well.
These talking circles also are just one piece of a larger, recently-developed community awareness initiative between the Coalition and one of its most active and long-standing partners, the International Community Health Services (ICHS). This initiative is being led by the Hepatitis B Patient Education Workgroup, made up of Coalition members and volunteers, and ICHS staff. This truly collaborative effort will allow for leveraging of resources and coordination of agency-specific goals so that all impacted populations can be targeted.
2010 (and beyond) will prove significant in the world of hepatitis B. While the Coalition and its partners are excited about the potential outcomes from the strategic plan, the true reward – we hope – will be when the communities’ hepatitis B needs are better understood and met, through efficient and culturally appropriate strategies.
Kim Nguyen
Hepatitis B Coalition of WA Program Manager
WithinReach
Washington State Department of Health
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