A Community Model for Increasing Awareness of Hepatitis C among Community Care, Health, and Social Service Providers in at-risk Ethnocultural Population
In 2009, the Canadian
Ethnocultural Council (CEC) received funding from the Public Health Agency of
Canada (PHAC) to develop “A Community Model for Increasing Awareness of Hepatitis C Among
Community Care, Health, and Social Service Providers in at-risk Ethnocultural
Populations”. This Community-based Model arose from the
four-part project “Engaging
Ethnocultural Communities on Hepatitis C” which began in 2005 and was
completed in 2009. This project was a partnership with the Canadian Liver
Foundation (CLF) and funded by the PHAC. The project involved 40 focus group
discussions with representatives from four ethnocultural communities (Chinese,
Egyptian, Filipino, and Vietnamese)* in five cities
(Toronto, Ottawa, Montreal, Calgary, and Vancouver) across Canada. The goal was
to determine the best ways to provide knowledge and resources about hepatitis C
to high-risk ethnocultural communities. Two
of the main findings that emerged from the focus group consultations were
the limited knowledge of hepatitis C among health care and service providers and
the lack of culturally appropriate resources. Based on the findings of the
four-part project, in 2009-2010 the CEC developed a Community-based Model to
build a network of community health care providers, provide them with current
information about hepatitis C, and equip them with skills and resources to share
this knowledge with their peers and colleagues. The model, created in
partnership with the CLF and other community partners, was funded by the PHAC
and involved the communities from the 2005-2009 project (Chinese, Egyptian,
Filipino, and Vietnamese) but broadened the consultations to six cities
(Toronto, Ottawa, Montreal, Winnipeg, Calgary, and Vancouver). The participants
were healthcare and social service providers who had the capacity to train or
share information with their colleagues using the resources developed in this
project.
In brief, the key components of the Community-based Model are:
· Establishing a Project Advisory Committee;
· Holding Consultations to review existing resources, identify training needs, and identify potential trainers and facilitators;
· Developing a Training Guide on hepatitis C that outlines issues surrounding hepatitis C, compiled demographic and background information on hepatitis C, and identified existing services and resources;
· Developing a PowerPoint presentation and Screencast (video with narration) on hepatitis C;
· Translating a hepatitis C brochure into Arabic, Chinese, Tagalog, and Vietnamese;
· Conducting a one-day “Train-the-Trainer” workshop for 24 trainers from each of the four communities in each of the six cities;
· Conducting Community Training Sessions by each of the 24 trainers in their own city. The approximately 240 workshop participants, from the community and workplace, can share this information with their peers and colleagues;
· Creating a Database of the 240 project participants to facilitate networking and information sharing in their respective communities;
· Evaluating training workshops to assess training and resource effectiveness.
The Community-based Model was designed from a cross-cultural perspective. Health care providers can adapt and build on this to create awareness of hepatitis C; address the prevalent myths, transmission (including risk behaviours), and treatment of hepatitis C; and provide effective strategies to prevent hepatitis C in ethnocultural communities.
The positive outcomes in both the train-the-trainer workshop and the community training sessions were significant. Participants from all four communities demonstrated increased awareness and knowledge about hepatitis C and its transmission, and a better understanding of hepatitis C prevention. Participants also indicated increased confidence in their ability to train other health care providers.
The success of the Community-based Model is evident from the significant post-training activities voluntarily undertaken by the trainers. To increase awareness of hepatitis C in their respective communities, the trainers conducted additional workshops, translated some tools to use in presentations, and used ethnic media (newspaper, T.V., and radio) to increase the visibility of hepatitis C.
*Selection of
the four ethnocultural communities was based on (i) the percentage of immigrants
to Canada from these countries, (ii) the prevalence of hepatitis C infection in
their country of origin (3%
or higher), and (iii) the means of hepatitis C transmission (through cultural
practices or improperly sterilized needles for administering vaccines and other
medications).
For
more information contact:
Canadian
Ethnocultural Council (E-mail: cec@web.ca or (613) 230-3867 ext. 225)
Canadian
Liver Foundation (E-mail: bpokonjak@liver.ca or 1-800-563-5483 ext. 4932)