Next page . . . . Previous page . . . . Speeches . . . . Contents . . . . Debates(HTML) . . . .

Legislative Assembly for the ACT: 2003 Week 6 Hansard (19 June) . . Page.. 2205 ..

(2) What types of calls did this line receive, please list the top ten issues discussed;

(3) What sort of advice is handed out by staff taking calls at the Help-line;

(4) How many clients who called the line were referred to (a) hospital or (b) a doctor;

(5) What were the operational costs of Help-line in its first month of operation;

(6) As of 30 April, 2003, how many people have been diagnosed with Hepatitis C;

(7) What new strategies, if any, does the Government propose to introduce in (a) the short-term, (b) the longer-term, to counter current trends in this area.

Mr Corbell

(1) HepLine received 43 calls in the first month of operation regarding Hepatitis C. This does not include the calls made to the office of the ACT Hepatitis C Council regarding Hepatitis C. Prior to the establishment of the HepLine and the launch of the awareness campaign the Council received 1 - 2 calls per week about Hepatitis C.

(2) The top ten issues discussed on HepLine were:

transmission;

pregnancy and transmission from mother to baby;

sexual practices and transmission issues;

resources/information/services;

discrimination issues;

complaints about health workers or organisations dealing with Hepatitis C positive people;

disclosure issues surrounding Hepatitis C - regarding family, friends, work and health workers;

testing for Hepatitis C;

treatment side effects; and

fatigue and lifestyle concerns.

(3) The volunteers manning HepLine issue advice on:

the distribution of information packs tailored to the callers needs;

resources from Australian Hepatitis Council;

fact-sheets regarding a variety of issues surrounding Hepatitis C;

referrals through the use of the "Contact Book"to other services such as the Canberra Alliance for Harm Minimisation & Advocacy (CAHMA), DirectionsACT and the Canberra Sexual Health Centre; and

the support is offered to people by trained volunteers, with additional support offered via the HepSupport group (a peer run group).

(4) Through HepLine, 3 clients were referred to a Hospital and a total of 5 clients were referred to their own GP or medical practitioner.

HepLine primarily listens to and offers information and support as an addition to medical services. People have usually seen their GP and require further information or

Next page . . . . Previous page . . . . Speeches . . . . Contents . . . . Debates(HTML) . . . .