Evaluating a complex health promotion program to reduce hepatitis C among Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples in New South Wales, Australia: the Deadly Liver Mob

Carla Treloar; Kim Beadman; Mitch Beadman; Kerri-Anne Smith; Jade Christian; Aunty Clair Jackson; Beverley Tyson; Clayton Anderson; Larissa Smyth; Melinda Walker; Jennifer Heslop; Gary Gahan; Victor Tawil; Felicity Sheaves; Louise Maher; Julie Page; Donna Tilley; Ann Ryan; Kim Grant; Basil Donovan; Annabelle Stevens; Trevor Slattery; Kate Pearce; Franklin John-Leader; Andrew Walden; Jo Lenton; Margaret Crowley; Elena Cama

doi:10.1186/s12954-023-00885-9

Evaluating a complex health promotion program to reduce hepatitis C among Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples in New South Wales, Australia: the Deadly Liver Mob

Harm Reduct J. 2023 Oct 20;20(1):153. doi: 10.1186/s12954-023-00885-9.

Authors

Carla Treloar¹, Kim Beadman², Mitch Beadman², Kerri-Anne Smith³, Jade Christian⁴, Aunty Clair Jackson², Beverley Tyson⁵, Clayton Anderson⁵, Larissa Smyth⁶, Melinda Walker², Jennifer Heslop⁷, Gary Gahan⁸, Victor Tawil⁹, Felicity Sheaves⁴, Louise Maher⁴, Julie Page⁴, Donna Tilley¹⁰, Ann Ryan¹¹, Kim Grant¹¹, Basil Donovan¹², Annabelle Stevens⁹, Trevor Slattery¹¹, Kate Pearce³, Franklin John-Leader⁷, Andrew Walden¹³, Jo Lenton¹⁴, Margaret Crowley⁵, Elena Cama²

Affiliations

¹ Centre for Social Research in Health, John Goodsell Building, UNSW Sydney, Kensington, NSW, 2052, Australia. c.treloar@unsw.edu.au.
² Centre for Social Research in Health, John Goodsell Building, UNSW Sydney, Kensington, NSW, 2052, Australia.
³ Needle and Syringe Program, Mount Druitt Community Health Centre, Western Sydney Local Health District, Sydney, NSW, 2770, Australia.
⁴ Needle and Syringe Program, Nepean Blue Mountains Local Health District, Penrith, NSW, 2747, Australia.
⁵ Dubbo Sexual Health, Western NSW Local Health District, Dubbo, NSW, 2830, Australia.
⁶ Byron Central Hospital, Mid North Coast and Northern NSW Local Health District, Byron Bay, NSW, 2481, Australia.
⁷ HIV & Related Programs, Mid North Coast and Northern NSW Local Health District, Coffs Harbour, NSW, 2450, Australia.
⁸ Kirketon Road Centre, South Eastern Sydney Local Health District, Sydney, NSW, 1340, Australia.
⁹ Centre for Population Health, Ministry of Health, St Leonards, NSW, 2065, Australia.
¹⁰ Western Sydney Sexual Health Centre, Western Sydney Local Health District, Parramatta, NSW, 2150, Australia.
¹¹ HIV & Related Programs (HARP) Unit, Western and Far West NSW Local Health District, Dubbo, NSW, 2830, Australia.
¹² Kirby Institute, UNSW Sydney, Sydney, NSW, 2052, Australia.
¹³ Needle and Syringe Program, Western NSW Local Health District, Dubbo, NSW, 2830, Australia.
¹⁴ Broken Hill Community Centre, Far West Local Health District, Broken Hill, NSW, 2880, Australia.

Abstract

The Deadly Liver Mob (DLM) is a peer-delivered incentivised health promotion program by and for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Australians, and was introduced in response to the disproportionate number of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Australians who are impacted by blood borne viruses (BBVs) and sexually transmitted infections (STIs). The goal of the program is to increase access to BBV and STI education, screening, treatment, and vaccination in recognition and response to the systemic barriers that Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples face in accessing health care. This commentary introduces a series of papers that report on various aspects of the evaluation of the Deadly Liver Mob (DLM) program. In this paper, we explain what DLM is and how we constructed an evaluation framework for this complex health promotion intervention.

Keywords: Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people; Blood borne viruses; Health promotion; Hepatitis C; Sexually transmissible infections.

Publication types

Letter
Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

Australia
Australian Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peoples*
Blood-Borne Infections / diagnosis
Blood-Borne Infections / therapy
Communicable Diseases* / diagnosis
Communicable Diseases* / therapy
Health Promotion*
Health Services, Indigenous
Hepacivirus
Hepatitis C* / ethnology
Hepatitis C* / prevention & control
Humans
New South Wales
Peer Group
Sexually Transmitted Diseases / diagnosis
Sexually Transmitted Diseases / therapy