News

17 February 2020

NSW Health Accreditation of Community Prescribers - S100 Highly Specialised Drus for HIV & Hepatitis B

05 February 2020

Registration now open! To be held on 1 May, the Introduction to the Nursing Care and Management of Patients with Advanced Liver Disease course has been designed specifically for Registered Nurses who come into contact with patients who have advanced liver disease.

04 February 2020

Aboriginal people with chronic HCV: The role of community health nurses for improving health-related quality of life

03 February 2020

In acknowledgement of the unprecedented bush fires experienced across Australia, and to our members, their families, friends and colleagues who have been impacted by these fires, the AHA Board wishes to extend our heartfelt sympathy and support at this very difficult time.

23 January 2020

This is an opportunity to be part of this committee, representing the AHA.

13 January 2020

Education program

06 December 2019

Speaker presentations from the 2019 Coffs Harbour AHA Biennial Conference now available for members only

06 December 2019

The AHA supports research relevant to hepatology and the efforts of AHA members to undertake research. AHA members are eligible for research scholarships which can be used to support members in their research work.

06 December 2019

ASHM has announced the launch of free online learning modules for community practitioners.

06 December 2019

Held 23rd November Australian Catholic University - Melbourne. Report back from Sally Watkinson, AHA Secretary

06 December 2019

Sally Watkinson AHA Secretary attended. Overview and achievements in 2018-2019

29 November 2019

Issue 57 of Hepatitis Research Review is now available.

08 November 2019

A recent AHA initiative has been to launch a Nurse Practitioner Special Interest Group (SIG) for AHA members. Anyone who is a AHA member AND who is a NP or is currently enrolled in NP studies or on the NP pathway can join this group, which is hosted via the AHA website portal. The SIG was established at the request of the NPs who wished to have a closer professional network to allow for easier sharing of information, general communication about specific NP matters, collaboration around project work including research projects, mentoring and other professional development issues that are unique to NPs. The numbers of current and future NPs who are working with hepatology patients is growing. We know that there are sexual health, mental health, primary care, drug health and possibly other NPs who are delivering care and treatment to people with hepatitis C and advanced liver disease. In time, this SIG is expected to provide opportunity to strengthen AHA links with both individual NPs who do not identify as Hepatology nurses and also their professional organisations.

07 November 2019

Welcome to 3 new AHA Board members and Congratulations to Sinead Sheils on being voted for a second term on the AHA Board

31 October 2019

We Rose to the Challenge!  The 2019 AHA conference, held in beautiful Coffs Harbour, brought together hepatology nurses and allied health from Australia, New Zealand and Canada. It was wonderful to see so many delegates and sponsors coming together for what was a varied and interesting program, along with 2 functions that were very well attended.

08 October 2019

The Key Findings Report from the 2019 Australian Viral Hepatitis Elimination Conference, held 5-6 August 2019 is now available. The Australian Viral Hepatitis Elimination Conference was inspired by the growing need to identify and reach those slipping through the gaps in treatment and care. The program showcased clinicians, community, researchers and policymakers and centred both the challenges of reaching World Health Organization targets for elimination, and innovative, holistic, and community-led solutions. AVHEC19 reiterated the importance of both clinical and lived experience to find a way forward in meeting the remaining challenges on the road to eliminating chronic hepatitis in Australia, and the region.

09 September 2019

The first national report on progress towards the elimination of hepatitis C virus in Australia highlights the great strides Australia has made towards hepatitis C elimination over the past two to three years, with over 70,000 Australians having accessed curative therapies known as direct acting antivirals (DAAs) by the end of 2018.

04 September 2019

FDA warns on rare instances of serious liver injury with hepatitis C regimens containing protease inhibitors in some patients with advanced liver disease

03 September 2019

Season 4 of Carla Treloar's podcast series includes a special episode on World Hepatitis Day, highlights from the Australasian Viral Hepatitis Elimination Conference, and highlights from Porto's Harm Reduction Conference.

23 August 2019

In recognition of the growing number of Nurse Practitioner (NP) members, the AHA has formed a Nurse Practitioner Special Interest Group (SIG). The purpose of this SIG is to help support and strengthen communication and collaboration opportunities for current and upcoming NPs, who are AHA members, about NP related issues in this field.

16 August 2019

The Gilead Australia Fellowship Research Grants Program has extended its deadline for applications until 30 August 2019. Total available funding is $250,000. Researchers at Australian hospitals, clinics, universities, institutes and organisations are encouraged to apply.

15 August 2019

In Australia, access to care and treatment for hepatitis B or hepatitis C is good compared to many other countries. However, not everyone is taking up this golden opportunity. The Golden Ticket represents hope for a healthy future but unfortunately many people living with hepatitis in Australia are not getting the care they need. In keeping with the global theme of ‘Find the Missing Millions’ World Hepatitis Day in Australia we are asking the question - Why Miss Out?

On World Hepatitis Day we can all build on the momentum and accelerate progress towards achieving the goal of elimination by 2030. Talking about and raising community awareness of new affordable cures for hepatitis C and the importance of vaccinations against hepatitis B and having regular liver health checks will help. Contact the hepatitis organisation in your state to find out what events may be happening near you.

13 August 2019

Word is out that Hepatology Clinical Nurse Consultant Sue Mason, is retiring after 30 years working at Royal Prince Alfred Hospital in Sydney. On behalf of the AHA Board and members, we would like to acknowledge the enormous contribution that Sue has made to the development and progression of Hepatology nursing and to the AHA as an organisation.

04 August 2019

This one-day forum, held on Sunday 4 August, was organised for nurses from diverse settings to come together, share knowledge and discover new ways of working towards elimination of viral hepatitis.

20 June 2019

The June 2019 newsletter from the Chief Nursing & Midwifery Officer, Debra Thoms, is now available. Debra retired on the 30 June 2019, and this is her farewell note. Click on the website link below to read her message.

15 May 2019

The AHA is proud to release a new edition of the Consensus Based Guidelines for the Nursing Care of People with Hepatitis B, Hepatitis C, Advanced Liver Disease and Hepatocellular Carcinoma (2019). The document has been significantly revised and refreshed to reflect best practice. The AHA Board wishes to acknowledge the hard work of our working groups, comprised of AHA members, and external expert reviewers and endorsing organisations. We encourage you to use the Guidelines in your practice and refer them to your nursing colleagues as contemporary examples of the nurses’ role in caring for people with liver disease. You can access the guidelines on the AHA website under Resources.

01 March 2019

Congratulations to the Advanced Liver Disease Course Working Group for a successful re-launch of updated material which includes an Advanced Liver Disease Webinar as pre-reading. A big thank you to the Working Group (Jane Bradshaw, Melinda Caspersz, Megan Collins, Matthew Maddison, Susan Mason and Sally Watkinson) with extra special thanks to Working Group members Sinead Shiels and Rachel Wundke. We encourage you to spread the word about the course to anyone who may benefit by enrolling in one of our upcoming courses.

21 December 2018

I would like to extend my appreciation and congratulations to AHA board members and AHA members on your contributions and achievements extended to the AHA. This year has been extraordinary year of activity and events in which AHA members have demonstrated increased participation and collective engagement. Our notable achievements include:

01 August 2018

Congratulations to Deb D’Arcy and Tracey Jones for being awarded the inaugural AHA life membership awards. Deb and Tracey are two longstanding members who have contributed enormously to the AHA organisation since its beginnings.

01 July 2018

Canadian Association Hepatology Nurses (CAHN) invited Sally Spruce (AHA President) to be an international advisor to the 2018 CAHN special conference held in Toronto during the Global Hepatitis Summit (GHS) which occurs every 3 years at different regions of the world.

10 May 2018

A very big CONGRATULATIONS to our longstanding NSW AHA member Katherine Mc Quillan for recognition of her tireless efforts to increase hepatitis C testing and treatment in the Bathurst region. Well done Katherine on being nominated for the HESTA nurse of the year award!

04 April 2018

Victoria’s Hepatitis C Testing and DAA treatment Community of Practice (CoP) are inviting AHA members to join the CoP if they are interested. CoP have already delivered 2 community based forums on the DAA therapies and also on community models of care increasing access to treatment.

21 February 2018

Are you included in this chart? We have a number of members in our database with no address details - make sure your address is provided, so we can count you in your state!

12 January 2018

Queensland Hepatology Nurses meetings have continued in a new format in 2017. Our meetings are often fondly referred to as HENN’s (Hepatology Education Nurses Network) which have been operational for over 15 years though we try to create a festive meeting ambience.