HEPATITIS C ON THE RISE FOR BC

The Hepatitis C Council of B.C. has put out a mayday call as B.C.'s
infection rate has risen to twice the national average.

"People are dying from Hepatitis C needlessly," said council chair
Ken Thompson.

The council estimates more than 6,000 people are currently living
with the disease and another 1,500 to 2,400 new infections will be
reported this year.

Statistics from the B.C. Centre for Disease Control indicate between
60 and 80 of those will occur in the Northwest.

But the real tragedy said Deb Schmidt, a council member from
Smithers, is that most of these cases are preventable and that many
others go unreported and untreated. The problem is awareness, she said.

"Hep C is an invisible disease and there's still lots of stigma
attached to it. People want the awareness because it's not an easy
thing to get."

Hepatitis C is a liver disease that is usually spread through
blood-to-blood contact, particularly the sharing of syringes for
illicit drug use.

But despite the fact May is Hepatitis C Awareness Month, Schmidt said
the council has no events planned for this area.

"[The effort] very much relies on volunteer power and everybody's at
a pretty low ebb this year," she said.

But Northern Health continues to run its education programs through
the schools, said Community Public Health Nurse Kathy Davidson.

"The message is to protect yourself," she said.

Davidson said outside public education, the most important component
of their prevention program is the Smithers needle exchange. Last
year more than 20,000 needles were exchanged.

The Hepatitis C Council of B.C. has put out a mayday call as B.C.'s
infection rate has risen to twice the national average.

"People are dying from Hepatitis C needlessly," said council chair
Ken Thompson.

The council estimates more than 6,000 people are currently living
with the disease and another 1,500 to 2,400 new infections will be
reported this year.

Statistics from the B.C. Centre for Disease Control indicate between
60 and 80 of those will occur in the Northwest.

But the real tragedy said Deb Schmidt, a council member from
Smithers, is that most of these cases are preventable and that many
others go unreported and untreated. The problem is awareness, she said.

"Hep C is an invisible disease and there's still lots of stigma
attached to it. People want the awareness because it's not an easy
thing to get."

Hepatitis C is a liver disease that is usually spread through
blood-to-blood contact, particularly the sharing of syringes for
illicit drug use.

But despite the fact May is Hepatitis C Awareness Month, Schmidt said
the council has no events planned for this area.

"[The effort] very much relies on volunteer power and everybody's at
a pretty low ebb this year," she said.

But Northern Health continues to run its education programs through
the schools, said Community Public Health Nurse Kathy Davidson.

"The message is to protect yourself," she said.

Davidson said outside public education, the most important component
of their prevention program is the Smithers needle exchange. Last
year more than 20,000 needles were exchanged.