Drink and Drugs News DDN July_August 2019 | Page 8

hepatitis C
As we approach Hepatitis Awareness Day, Ignatious Harling
shares his progress as a hep C peer educator
Vital bonds
I caught hepatitis C back at the start of the ’80s and
didn’t get treatment until 2010. I wasn’t always
treated particularly well by the medical profession
back then. It was clear they thought I’d brought it on
myself and weren’t going to offer treatment unless I
was abstinent for a year. There was also a load of
misinformation around; they used to tell me not to
worry as I’d probably die with it rather than from it.
These days, it’s different. Everyone gets treated
whether they’re abstinent or not, there’s specialist
support, and the testing and treatment is far quicker
and more effective. But not everyone knows things
have changed. And a lot of people lost trust in the
system because it didn’t support them when they
needed it.
That’s where I come in. I go to different support
groups and talk to people about hepatitis C, dispelling
the myths. I chat about my own experience and offer
to give them the test there and then. There’s
something about it coming from me, someone who
has been there and got through it, that makes a
connection with people.
It’s that connection, which I can’t quite put into
words, that drives me in this role. It has a wider
impact on people that goes beyond a simple test in
the fight to eliminate this virus. It is a psychological
step to opening up, a footstep on the road of self-care,
a toe back in the water to test whether the medical
world will accept them now. It’s the invisible benefit
of doing this kind of work and it’s hugely motivating.
Unfortunately, people who need testing the most
are those who have a history of injecting drugs and
they still expect that old-style approach. They’re
surprised to hear that these days they’ll be treated as
human beings first with a recognisable health issue.
There’s a lot of relief when they find out it doesn’t
matter what they’ve done or are still doing, that
they’re still entitled to be heard, seen and treated for
this life-threatening illness.
Some have also ignored the idea they may have
hepatitis C because they don’t want to think about it
when life is too stressful in other ways. It’s known as
the silent killer as there are apparently no real
symptoms. I think that’s particularly true when you’re
using drugs or alcohol. It wasn’t until I became
abstinent that I noticed I had chronic fatigue and
some cognitive difficulties. Up until then I just
thought that was caused by age or substances.
The treatment I went through almost ten years ago
was using the drug interferon which is very aggressive
and hammers your immune system, with a 70-75 per
cent chance of clearing the virus. It’s an elephant drug
to shoot a butterfly. The new treatment is very
targeted, much less aggressive so there’s a faster
8 | drinkanddrugsnews | July/August 2019
‘My long-term hope is
that we achieve the goal
of eradicating hepatitis C
altogether. It’s achievable
and... there’s the chance
to do so much more
along the way.’
recovery time, and it’s 98 per cent effective. It’s a
complete game changer.
My long-term hope is that we achieve the goal of
eradicating hepatitis C altogether. It’s achievable and
with peer educator projects like this, there’s the
chance to do so much more along the way. There’s a
good recovery community here in Bournemouth – I’ve
bumped into lots of people I’ve tested now and it’s
created a sort of bond. Someone else took a step to
help them and that’s planted an important seed. You
can almost see it growing, and it’s beautiful to watch.
World Hepatitis Day is on 28 July. Let us know
what you are doing to raise awareness of testing and
treatment.
ON A ROLL…
Ignatius Harling is a peer educator at
Addaction Bournemouth which has piloted
work using peers to educate and support
people to get tested for hepatitis C. The
project has been a success and is expected to
be rolled out across Addaction services
around the country. The peers were Addaction
volunteers trained by the Hepatitis C Trust.
Addaction’s blood-borne virus lead, Helen
Hampton, says, ‘The test is a simple dry blood
spot test, but we found that with the best
will in the world people didn’t come back in
to have it done. With someone like Ignatius
able to do it for them there and then, people
who have refused to be tested before are
now getting checked, which is fantastic.’
Addaction Bournemouth is now recruiting
more peer educators to expand the project.
Find out more at www.addaction.org.uk
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