The Ashanti Regional Director of Health Services, Dr Fred Adomako-Boateng, has called for concerted efforts by stakeholders to remove all barriers to hepatitis prevention and treatment in the country.

“We must fight stigma, lack of awareness and gaps in health services, while expanding access to vaccination, testing, diagnosis and treatment. Our goal is to contribute to the elimination of viral hepatitis as a public health threat by 2030,” he stressed.

He made the remarks while addressing a ceremony to commemorate this year’s World Hepatitis Day at the Adansi North District Hospital at Fomena last Tuesday.

It was held on the theme, “Hepatitis: Let's break it down”.

World Hepatitis Day is celebrated on July 28 each year to raise global awareness of viral hepatitis, honour the birthday of Nobel Prize-winning scientist Dr Baruch Blumberg, who discovered the hepatitis B virus and its vaccine and push for the global elimination of the disease by 2030.

Viral hepatitis causes more than 1.3 million deaths globally every year.

In Ghana, about three million people are estimated to be living with chronic Hepatitis B, while about 500,000 are living with Hepatitis C.

In the Ashanti Region, it is estimated that more than half a million people may be living with chronic Hepatitis B, with many unaware of their status.

Hepatitis B is a major cause of chronic liver disease, liver cirrhosis and liver cancer in Ghana.

He said the introduction of the Hepatitis B birth-dose vaccine within 24 hours of birth would also help prevent mother-to-child transmission, saying “Ghana has approved its nationwide introduction and preparations are underway”.

“We must ensure that people who test positive are linked to care and receive appropriate treatment.

Access to affordable treatment is also essential in winning the fight against the disease,” he added.

Dr Adomako-Boateng said the government alone cannot eliminate hepatitis and equally needed the support of health workers, traditional and religious leaders, the media, development partners, Civil Society Organisations (CSOs) and communities.

In the region, he said they would continue to increase public education and awareness, expand hepatitis screening, strengthen surveillance and reporting, improve linkage to care, among others.

He called on health workers to ensure that hepatitis screening becomes routine in Out-Patient Departments (OPDs), antenatal clinics, blood donation exercises and outreach programmes, stressing “do not wait for patients to ask; offer the test for them at all times”.

“Let us choose prevention over complacency, screening over ignorance, compassion over stigma and action over excuses.

Together, we can eliminate hepatitis, save lives and protect our communities,” he stated.

Speaking at the event, the Medical Superintendent, Adansi North District Hospital, Dr Abena Konadu Yawson, advised the public against waiting to experience symptoms of the disease before seeking medical care.

She said, “It is essential for people to get screened voluntarily so that if the disease is detected in their blood, they can receive comprehensive care.

Waiting to experience the symptoms may be too late”.

“I urge the public to desist from excessive alcoholism and injection of illicit drugs into their bodies as it exposes them to the disease,” she mentioned.

In a remark, the District Chief Executive for Adansi North, Charles Kofi Ogbeh, said the government would continue to spearhead interventions and measures to combat the disease.

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