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Eliminate Hepatitis C Australia (EC Australia)

Open to students

Partnering to eliminate hepatitis C as a public health threat by 2030

The Eliminate Hepatitis C Australia (EC Australia) partnership was established in 2019. It brings together people with living and lived experience, community organisations, health services, government, and researchers and implementation scientists to help build a framework for Australia’s response to the elimination of hepatitis C as a public health threat by 2030.

View our partners on this page.

EC Australia is committed to supporting community and health services to increase hepatitis C testing and treatment. We want to maintain high numbers of people accessing hepatitis C testing, treatment and care. 

EC Australia is a flagship initiative led by Burnet Institute. Burnet is a global leader in hepatitis C research and implementation science. 

Increasing hepatitis C care 

Direct-acting antivirals have revolutionised hepatitis C care. 

Since becoming available through Australia's Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme in 2016, over 100,000 people have been cured of hepatitis C

The challenge is finding, testing and linking to care the 68,000 Australians who are living with hepatitis C infection. 

Our work aims to address this challenge. 

Our approach 

EC Australia takes a strategic, cohesive and multipronged approach to increase hepatitis C testing and treatment to achieve elimination. 

We pride ourselves on bringing together innovative ideas and evidence-based approaches to help solve the hepatitis C challenge. 

We value the dedication and passion of community leaders and elders, peers, healthcare workers, and researchers in the EC Australia partnership. 

Our collective efforts strengthen our work and progress towards hepatitis C elimination.

Key achievements

During phase 1, we: 

  • established a network of over 75 partner organisations and provided funding to implement key elimination activities 
  • delivered the first peer-led national health promotion campaign ‘It’s Your Right
  • funded and supported 21 implementation projects across all jurisdictions 
  • produced annual reports that monitor our progress towards hepatitis C elimination in Australia 
  • received $1.25M to deliver first national hepatitis C campaign for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peoples called ‘Every Yarn Counts’ 
  • mapped policy priorities and coordinated a national advocacy committee 
  • secured an additional $21M in funding for ECA partners and ongoing hepatitis C projects. 

Phase 1 (2019–2022) was funded by the Paul Ramsay Foundation. This phase focused on health system strengthening through 5 key components: 

Phase 2 (2023–2027) is funded by Burnet Institute. This phase reflects an evolution in our public health approach and our progress to hepatitis C elimination, with a targeted emphasis on 3 priority populations and 7 objectives. 

Priority populations 

  • Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peoples.
  • People who inject drugs.
  • People at risk of liver cancer.

Objectives 

  • To work in partnership to support priority populations to access hepatitis C care and meet our elimination targets.
  • To provide seed funding to support evidence-based models to better engage people who are most affective by hepatitis C and liver cancer.
  • To address concerns and barriers to care for priority populations.
  • To support capacity building of community organisations/health services.
  • To evaluate the effectiveness and cost-effectiveness of new models and interventions.
  • To address systemic barriers to accessing hep C care through policy and practice change.
  • To bring in new funds to support innovation.
  • To monitor out progress to elimination (2023–2027).
EC Australia Key Achievements Phase 1

Student opportunities

View 56 more

Elimination of hepatitis C through rapid testing and treatment in pharmacies

The project aims to explore the role of rapid testing in improving the hepatitis care cascade from infection and diagnosis to treatment and cure.

Students will be involved in implementation trials and evaluation of the effectiveness and acceptability of new rapid HCV diagnosis pathways. The outcomes will help facilitate treatment uptake and improve the quality of care.

Open to
  • Masters by research
  • Honours
  • PhD

Eliminating hepatitis C infection in Australia through harm reduction, education and treatment scale up

The project aims to explore:

  • improved harm reduction strategies 
  • workforce development and health service delivery 
  • supports needed for prescribers to start treatment. 

The outcomes will help facilitate treatment uptake and improve the quality of care.

Open to
  • Masters by research
  • Honours
  • PhD

Principal components

Health promotion

We delivered the first peer-led National Health Promotion Campaign It's Your Right, to increase awareness about hepatitis C treatments among people who inject drugs.

Posters from the Its Your Right campaign. They read: Live free of hep C, Get clear while on gear, Go to itsyourright.com.au.

Posters from the Its Your Right campaign.

The National Reference Group for It’s Your Right includes representation from partnership organisations: Australian Injecting and Illicit Drug Users League (AIVL), Harm Reduction Victoria, Hepatitis NSW, NSW Users and AIDS Association (NUAA), Peer Based Harm Reduction WA, La Trobe University, Burnet Institute and members from the AIVL National Peer Network.

For more information:

Workforce development

We’ve funded and supported 21 implementation projects across all jurisdictions. These projects focused on reducing structural barriers to accessing hepatitis C testing and treatments and aimed to improve the delivery of health services and the streamlining of the hepatitis C care pathway. A number of these projects went on to secure additional funding respectively, resulting in a total of $21M in additional funding for EC Australia partners and ongoing hepatitis C projects, as a result of their initial work with EC Australia.

Workshops

Four workshops have been delivered to members of the Eliminate hepatitis C Australia (ECA) partnership. The topics and length of these workshops were developed through consultation with project partners participating in ECA. Watch the recordings:

See also on this page:

Implementation research

This component created a partnership with Kirby Institute to prepare national annual reports with the latest hepatitis C data across Australia. The report is called ‘Australia’s progress towards hepatitis C elimination.’

Aboriginal health plan

This strategy cut across the other 4 key components of EC Australia. It supported a holistic, comprehensive and culturally safe approach to hepatitis C care for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peoples. This stream of work developed the first national hepatitis C campaign for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peoples called Every Yarn Counts.

Reports

Authorship guidelines

Workforce development infographics

Practice support toolkits

Poster presentations

Recordings and webinars

  • EC Australia showcase

    The showcase was held between 9 and 10 November 2022.

    Day 1 recordings on YouTube Day 2 recordings on YouTube
  • ASHM and EC Australia: eliminating hepatitis C during COVID-19

    Melinda Hassall from ASHM discusses her organisation's success in moving face-to-face BBV and STI training online during COVID-19 restrictions.

    ASHM and EC Australia video
  • QuIHN and EC Australia: Eliminating hepatitis C during COVID-19

    Esha Leyden, peer harm reduction worker at Queensland Injectors Health Network (QuIHN) shares how she has consulted with hepatitis C patients over the phone during COVID-19 restrictions, and how she ensures they got onto treatment.

    QuIHN and EC Australia video
  • TasCAHRD and EC Australia: eliminating hepatitis C during COVID-19

    Robert Johnston from the Tasmanian Council on AIDS, Hepatitis and Related Diseases (TasCAHRD) discusses how his organisation has pivoted to deliver hepatitis C education via Zoom, and the success of this initiative.

    TasCAHRD and EC Australia video
  • SHST and EC Australia: eliminating hepatitis C during COVID-19

    Megan Hughes and Karen Moore from Sexual Health Service Tasmania (SHST) discuss the success of running hepatitis C testing days at a local needle and syringe program in the greater Hobart region, where many patients feared the stigma of visiting a general practitioner or don't tend to engage with GPs.

    SHST and EC Australia video
  • Other recordings

    View more videos and recordings on the EC Australia YouTube channel.

    EC Australia on YouTube
  • Workshop series

    Four workshops have been delivered to members of the Eliminate Hepatitis C (EC) Australia partnership. The topics and length of these workshops were developed through consultation with project partners participating in ECA.

    Workshop 1: How to write a survey Workshop 2: Introduction to REDCap Workshop 3: How to visually present data Workshop 4: Hepatitis C surveillance 101

Partners

Partners (A-M)

  • Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Community Health Service 
  • Aboriginal Health Council of Western Australia 
  • Aboriginal Health Services TAS 
  • Aboriginal Victoria 
  • ACT Health 
  • Alfred Health 
  • Alfred Hospital 
  • Australasian Society for HIV Medicine 
  • Australian Federation of AIDS Organisations 
  • Australian Hepatology Association 
  • Australian Injecting and Illicit Drug Users League 
  • Australian Medical Association 
  • Australian Primary Health Care Nurses Association 
  • Barwon Health 
  • Cairns Sexual Health Service 
  • Canberra Alliance of Harm Minimisation and Advocacy 
  • Centre for Social Research in Health 
  • Country SA Primary Health Network 
  • Danila Dilba Health Service 
  • Department of Health NSW 
  • Department of Health NT 
  • Department of Health QLD 
  • Department of Health TAS 
  • Department of Health WA 
  • Department of Health and Human Services VIC 
  • Doherty Institute 
  • East Melbourne Primary Health Care Collaborative 
  • Gastroenterological Society of Australia 
  • Harm Reduction Victoria 
  • Health Central Adelaide 
  • Hepatitis ACT 
  • Hepatitis Australia 
  • Hepatitis NSW 
  • Hepatitis QLD 
  • Hepatitis SA 
  • Hepatitis VIC 
  • Hepatitis WA 
  • Hunter New England Local Health District 
  • Institute for Urban Indigenous Health 
  • Kirby Institute 
  • Kirketon Road Centre 
  • La Trobe University 
  • Liverpool Hospital 
  • Menzies School of Health Research 
  • Monash University

Partners (N–Z)

  • Northern Territory AIDS and Hepatitis Council 
  • NSW Users and AIDS Association 
  • Peer-Based Harm Reduction WA 
  • Pharmaceutical Society of Australia 
  • Princess Margaret Hospital 
  • Queensland Injectors for Advocacy and Action 
  • Royal Adelaide Hospital 
  • Royal Australian College of General Practitioners 
  • Royal Melbourne Hospital 
  • Royal Perth Hospital 
  • Royal Prince Alfred Hospital 
  • SA Health 
  • Sexual Health and Blood Borne Viruses Evaluation Network (SIREN) 
  • Social Policy Research Centre 
  • South Australia Health and Medical Research Institute 
  • St Vincent's Hospital Melbourne 
  • TasCAHRD 
  • Tasmania Statewide Sexual Health Service 
  • Tasmanian Users Health and Support League 
  • Telethon Kids 
  • University of Melbourne 
  • University of NSW 
  • University of Queensland 
  • University of Sydney 
  • VHITTAL Committee of the North West Melbourne PHN 
  • Victorian Aboriginal Community Controlled Health Organisation 
  • WA Primary Health Alliance 
  • Western Australian Network of Alcohol and Other Drug Agencies 
  • Youth Link 
  • You Yangs Medical Clinic 

Funding partners

  • Paul Ramsay Foundation (2018-2022)
  • Commonwealth Department of Health (‘It’s Your Right’ and ‘Every Yarn Counts’ campaigns)(2021- 2022)
  • Commonwealth Department of Health and Aged Care (It’s Your Right)( 2025-2026)
  • Burnet Institute (2023-2027) 

Project contacts

Main contacts

Associate Professor Alisa Pedrana

Associate Professor Alisa Pedrana

Eliminate Hepatitis C Australia Coordinator
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Professor Margaret Hellard AM

Professor Margaret Hellard AM

Deputy Director, Programs; Adjunct Professor, Monash University, DEPM.
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Group mailbox

EC Australia

Student supervisor contacts

Professor Joseph (Joe) Doyle

Professor Joseph (Joe) Doyle

Deputy Program Director, Disease Elimination; Co-Head, Infectious Diseases Clinical Research; President, Hepatitis Australia; NHMRC Clinical Research Fellow
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Project team

Associate Professor Alisa Pedrana

Associate Professor Alisa Pedrana

Eliminate Hepatitis C Australia Coordinator; Deputy Discipline Head, Public Health
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Professor Margaret Hellard AM

Professor Margaret Hellard AM

Primary Investigator and Technical Lead, Implementation Research; Adjunct Professor, Department of Epidemiology and Preventive Medicine, Monash University
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Professor Joseph (Joe) Doyle

Professor Joseph (Joe) Doyle

Technical Lead, Workforce Development and Health Services Delivery; President, Hepatitis Australia
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Paul Armstrong

Paul Armstrong

Co-Lead, Policy and Advocacy
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Troy Combo

Troy Combo

Program Manager, Aboriginal Health Plan
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Emily Adamson

Emily Adamson

Program Manager, Health Promotion
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Freya Saich

Freya Saich

Lead Policy Officer, Implementation Research
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Dr Jacqui Richmond

Dr Jacqui Richmond

Program Manager, Workforce Development and Health Services Delivery
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Professor Mark A  Stoové

Professor Mark A Stoové

Technical Lead, Evaluation and Surveillance; Head of Public Health
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Dr Anna Wilkinson

Dr Anna Wilkinson

Research Fellow
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Associate Professor Nick Scott

Associate Professor Nick Scott

Head, Modelling and Biostatistics Group; Evaluation and Surveillance
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Associate Professor Jessica Howell

Associate Professor Jessica Howell

Co-Head, Hepatitis B and Liver Cancer; Senior Research Fellow
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Stephanie Franet

Stephanie Franet

Project Manager
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Shannon Christensen

Shannon Christensen

Research Assistant
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Nicole Matthews

Nicole Matthews

Research Coordinator, Connect C
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Dr Joshua  Ginnane

Dr Joshua Ginnane

Public Health Registrar
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Dr Thi Nguyen

Dr Thi Nguyen

Data Manager
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Dr Daisy Gibbs

Dr Daisy Gibbs

Senior Evaluation and Research Officer
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Tiffany Pe

Tiffany Pe

Research Assistant
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