7 Hepatitis clinics to open soon

CEBU, Philippines - Seven new clinics will soon be opened in seven major hospitals in Cebu City to combat hepatitis.

Hepatitis clinics will be inaugurated starting July 28 by the Cebu Gastroenterology (GI) Group, in cooperation with the Hepatology Society of the Philippines.

The new clinics aim to improve awareness and curb cases of hepatitis, which is considered as a potentially fatal disease.

Hepatitis is the inflammation of the liver and can be caused by a wide range of things. One of the most common causes of chronic or long-term hepatitis is viral infection. Hepatitis B and C are two of such viruses and together kill approximately one million people a year.

According to the World Health Organization, approximately 500 million people worldwide have either hepatitis B or hepatitis C. If left untreated and unmanaged, these types of disease can lead to advanced liver scarring or cirrhosis and other complications, including liver cancer.

The clinics will be situated in different participating hospitals’ Out-Patient Departments. These hospitals are Cebu Doctors University Hospital and Chong Hua Hospital, which will open on August 1; Cebu Velez General Hospital and Perpetual Succour Hospital on August 3; Cebu City Medical Center and Vicente Sotto Memorial Medical Center on August 5.

With the theme “This is hepatitis,” organizers of this year’s observance of Hepatitis Day will focus on the global threat of viral hepatitis, and the real-life impact of the disease on Filipinos.

Cebu GI group will also host a lay forum on July 28 at 1 in the afternoon at the Cebu Provincial Capitol to increase awareness among provincial health workers. Free hepatitis B screening will also be conducted during the event.

To conclude the series of activities, Cebu GI Group will host a Fun Run on August 7, with the theme: “Run for your Liver…Your Liver, Your Life” or the “LiverRun,” which will begin at the parking lot of Chong Hua Medical Arts Building at 5:30 am.

Those who are interested may join the 3K, 6K or 12K categories with registration fee of P300. Exciting prizes will also be raffled off to lucky participants.

First launched in 2008 by the World Hepatitis Alliance, the World Hepatitis Day is an annual event that provides international focus for patient groups and people living with Hepatitis B and C.

The worldwide event has been an opportunity for interested groups like Cebu GI to raise awareness and influence real change in disease prevention and access to testing and treatment around the world.  (FREEMAN)