We’re proud to share our hepatitis C micro-elimination impact report for 2021-2024.
At Via, working towards eliminating hep C in our services is a key priority for us and our teams have been working tirelessly through enhanced testing, diagnosis and support, and ensuring that treatment pathways are available and accessible.
Working in partnership with Gilead Sciences, and as part of the Drug Treatment Services Providers Forum, we’ve reached many milestones over the past three years:
- To date, seven of our community service sites have achieved hep C micro-elimination.
- Our Via Harrow service was our first service to do this and the sixth London borough to reach this impressive goal.
- So far, two of our service sites have also maintained this status after six months and we expect more to follow.
- Between November 2021 and August 2024, our teams carried out 4,966 dry blood spot tests across our Via-led services.
- We also helped 156 people who tested positive to start treatment so they could become free of hep C.
Carly, who attends our Via Greenwich service, told us: ‘Starting treatment was so easy. The whole process was very professional, I felt safe. So happy with the outcome, life changing, and painless compared to old treatments in the past. Thanks for all the support.’
One of our team members in Cheshire West and Chester, Alice, shared: ‘Often our clients can struggle with engaging with medical interventions, for various reasons. Being able to support our clients at Unity House in Ellesmere Port with accessing hep C treatment has proved valuable and successful. I believe this is in part due to the fact the service is a safe space for the client. Having seen the reactions of successful treatment, the feeling of improved general health and increased likelihood of exploring health with professionals shows hep C treatment has a positive impact on all areas of life.’
Tom Sackville, Executive Director of Services at Via, said: ‘It has been fantastic to see the huge progress that has been made towards the micro-elimination of hepatitis C across Via. We know what this means for the quality of life and the wellbeing of those who use our services, so this is a really transformational achievement. I want to pay tribute to all of those within Via, as well as all the local and national partners, who have supported this work and we look forward to continuing to celebrate further progress in the near future.’
Marlon Freeman, National Hepatitis C Coordinator at Via, also commented: ‘I am pleased to present this report, which highlights the significant collaboration and organisational advancements Via has achieved in driving sustainable progress toward hepatitis C micro-elimination. It is an honour to join our partners at the Gilead Hepatitis C Drug Treatment Services Provider Forum in showcasing the meaningful impact our work has had on the communities we serve. We trust this will serve as evidence of how partnerships with the NHS and third-sector health organisations can effectively enhance health outcomes and reduce health inequalities among those who use substances.’
To find out more about hep C micro-elimination, our partnership working, what we’ve learnt on our journey to micro-elimination and what’s next, check out our Via Hep C Impact Report here.
This blog was originally published by Via. You can read the original post here.
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