Town Hall Meeting to Address Hepatitis C
According to the Centers for Disease Control, (CDC), Hepatitis C is more prevalent among African Americans, who are twice as likely as Caucasians to be infected with the disease and unless this trend s reverses, the CDC predicts that deaths due to Hepatitis C will double or even triple in the next 20 years.
On Aug. 14, the Town Hall Community Action Forum is scheduled at Trinity United Church of Christ, 400 W. 95th St., in partnership with The Balm in Gilead’s national Healthy Churches 2020 campaign, to address Hepatitis C's choke-hold on the community.
“Within the African American community, chronic liver disease, which is often Hepatitis C-related, is a leading cause of death among people between the ages of 45 and 64,” said Pernessa Seele, founder and CEO of The Balm in Gilead, a nonprofit organization whose mission is to improve the health of the African Diaspora by building the capacity of faith communities to address life-threatening diseases. “We are not a religious organization. I’m an immunologist and our organization is the faith connection to health education. Our goal with this event is to raise awareness about the risks of hepatitis C and to mobilize the community to get tested. Screening for hepatitis C is the first step to connecting people with treatment and preventing the disease from spreading.
Seele said Hepatitis C is a quiet epidemic.
“It’s very quiet and what’s so bothersome is 70 percent of the people with the disease are “baby boomers” people who were born between1955-1965 but everybody should ask their doctor to test them for the disease," she explained. "We now have drugs that can cure the disease and more drugs that are coming out that can cure the disease. If someone does test positive for Hepatitis C, then they need to start treatment.”
A national epidemic that affects 3.2 million people across the U.S. and up to 150,000 Illinois residents, the vast majority (75 percent), of whom don’t know they are infected and “Baby boomers” – individuals born between 1945 and 1965 – are most at-risk for the disease.
But what is Hepatitis C? According to the CDC, Hepatitis C is a liver disease that results from the Hepatitis C virus (HCV), a blood borne virus transmitted through direct contact with the blood of an infected person and can range in severity from a mild illness lasting a few weeks to a serious, lifelong illness.
Today, most people become infected with the Hepatitis C virus by sharing needles or other equipment to inject drugs. People can also contract the virus from barber instruments such as unsterilized clippers, and also from unsterilized instruments used for manicures and pedicures. Before 1992, when widespread screening of the blood supply began in the United States, Hepatitis C was also commonly spread through blood transfusions and organ transplants.
Though not common, Hepatitis C virus can be transmitted through sexual activity, sex with multiple partners, the presence of other STDs, or sex with trauma.
The CDC and the U.S. Preventative Services Task Force (USPSTF) recommends screening for Americans born from 1945 through 1965.
When asked why the disease is more prevalent among African Americans, Seele said, “We get it more often because we’re in the prison population (at higher rates) or are infected with the HIV virus but we’re trying to get the word out to everybody. The CDC “strongly” suggests that everybody get tested. Working with the churches allows us to reach a broad audience. The Balm of Gilead has worked with churches for 25 years and Trinity is one of our long term partners just as some of the other churches in the Chicago area.”
The aim of the Town Hall Community Action Forum on Hepatitis C is to educate the community on the risks of hepatitis C, the leading cause of catastrophic liver damage, cirrhosis and liver cancer.
Scheduled to take place, at 6 p.m., the free event, features Grammy-Award winning gospel artist VaShawn Mitchell.
For more information, visit www.balmingilead.org.
Latest Stories
- South Suburban College Addresses Potential Faculty Strike with Commitment to Resolution and Transparency
- COOK COUNTY CLERK-ELECT ANNOUNCES LEADERSHIP OF TRANSITION TEAM
- Chicago Native Receives Grammy Nomination
- Country Club Hills School District #160 Celebrates Progress with Release of Illinois Report Card
- JARRARD INC. ADDS SENIOR LEADERS IN RESPONSE TO CONTINUED STELLAR GROWTH
Latest Podcast
A.L. Smith - Harold Washington Legacy Committee
