B Informed > Foundation News > Gateway To Care 2008: Hepatitis B Foundation’s New Public Health Initiative

Improve Access to Care
The Hepatitis B Foundation (HBF) is launching a new community-based initiative in Philadelphia called Gateway to Care to help increase awareness about the problem of hepatitis B among at-risk ethnic communities and improve access to care for the prevention and management of this serious liver infection.

HBF’s Gateway to Care campaign is a multi-year initiative with long-term goals of reducing the morbidity and mortality associated with chronic hepatitis B, as well as decreasing the health disparities of chronic hepatitis B and liver cancer in the Asian and Pacific Islander (API) communities.

Philadelphia: A Model City of Care
Philadelphia is an ideal city in which to create a comprehensive model of care for the management and treatment of individuals diagnosed with chronic hepatitis B. Its small size, ethnic diversity, extensive healthcare networks and community-based organizations make it ideally suited to create a model program.

The Hepatitis B Foundation’s Gateway to Care will leverage existing screening and vaccination programs in Philadelphia to help bridge the gap between the diagnosis of chronic hepatitis B and access to care by focusing on the following components:

Identify specific barriers to care and treatment within API communities, particularly in communities with high rates of recent immigration.

Work with API community partners to initiate culturally competent awareness and education programs.

Sponsor screening and vaccination efforts to reach at-risk adults and children.

Build a Physician Referral Network of primary care doctors who’ve been educated about the importance of screening and managing hepatitis B in the API communities.

Gateway Partnerships
Hepatitis B Foundation seeks to build strong community partnerships to achieve its goals.

Asian Health Foundation
Asian Pacific American Medical Student Association (APAMSA)
Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia
Chinatown Medical Services
Chinese Health and Information Center of Thomas Jefferson University
Drexel University School of Public Health
HepTREC
Pennsylvania Department of Public Health
Philadelphia Department of Public Health
and more to be invited...