edition
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APRIL 2015
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PART ONE
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CONTINUED PAGE 14
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Hep C and Sp
rts
People living with hepatitis C can play lots of different sports without worrying about transmitting hepatitis. Passing hepatitis C from one person to another needs blood-to-blood contact. The risk of this happening during sports is low. Basic steps for infection control help keep players, coaches, trainers and health professionals safe from blood borne viruses like hepatitis B and C. Hepatitis B and C cannot be caught from sweat or saliva, from shared toilets, showers or spas, or from hugging or shaking hands.
If you are living with hepatitis B or C, you do not have to tell coaches, sporting teams or sporting organisations about your health. You are allowed to keep your hepatitis status to yourself. The only sporting organisations you do have to tell are some martial arts or boxing organisations that do not apply the “blood rule”. This means stopping play when someone is bleeding. The steps to prevent transmission of viral hepatitis during sport are simple and easy: ☑☑ Make sure all wounds are covered before starting a game. ☑☑ Make sure anyone looking after an injured player wears latex gloves. ☑☑ If someone is injured and starts bleeding, stop play straight away and only allow the player to return to the game after bleeding is stopped and the wound is covered. ☑☑ If a player’s blood gets in someone else’s mouth, spit it out and rinse the mouth with water. ☑☑ If a player’s blood gets in someone else’s eyes, rinse the area (with eyes open) with water or saline. ☑☑ Bandage any wounds and clean all surfaces and clothing that have got blood on them before play starts again.
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There is a vaccination available for hepatitis B, but not for hepatitis C. If you play contact sports (especially martial arts), it is recommended that you be vaccinated against hepatitis B. People who engage in behaviours with a higher risk of hep B transission should especially consider vaccination. These activities include: ➲➲ Sharing injecting equipment ➲➲ Blood-to-blood contact that might happen during sex (especially important for HIV+ men who have sex with men) ➲➲ Blood-to-blood contact among Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people ➲➲ Risk activities are heightened for people in correctional facilities ➲➲ Being born in a country where hep B is more common The hepatitis B vaccination is also part of the vaccination schedule for all infants and children aged 0-13 years. The hepatitis B vaccination needs to be taken in three doses. These are given at 0 months, 1 month and 6 months. You can get vaccinated at your local doctor, Aboriginal Medical Centre, or sexual health clinic. If you engage in any of the above behaviours, are in a relationship with someone living with hep B, or share a house with someone living with hep B, your vaccination may be free.
If a player is injured while playing sports:
☑☑ Stop the blood.
☑☑ Dress the wound. ☑☑ Clean up the blood.
Adapted from resources by the Better Health Channel, Victoria.
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R m r a h e h t Ask
Welcome to Transmission Magazine’s new harm reduction column!
Harm reduction and education is a huge part of the work of Hepatitis NSW and our sister organisations. We know that you can only avoid hepatitis C and B transmission when you’re looking after yourself in other ways. The strong link between drug use (especially injecting drug use) and transmission of hepatitis C and B means that we need to make sure our readers who use drugs are staying safe and healthy. The Harm Reduction Lady is here to answer all your questions about safe drug use. Send your questions to transmission@hep.org.au "Hi, Harm Reduction Lady. I’ve been hearing a lot about Suboxone strips lately. Can you tell me more about them? Can Suboxone get you high? What are the risks? Is it safe to inject?" -Alex Hi,Alex! Suboxone sublingual films are a form of opiate substitution therapy (OST). Doctors prescribe them to people who are dependent on opiates like heroin or morphine, but want to stop using. You put them under your tongue and they help you stop taking opiates like heroin or morphine without going through withdrawal. The interesting thing about Suboxone is that it contains a mix of buprenorphine and naloxone… yes, the same naloxone that’s in the Narcan injection that reverses overdoses and saves lives. The films are dissolved under the tongue and, when taken this way, the naloxone isn’t absorbed very well. But if you mix and inject the contents of the film, the naloxone will block the bits of your brain that are affected by opiates. They also stop any other opiates in your system from working. In simple terms, this means that if
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you’re on another opiate such as heroin or morphine when you inject Suboxone, you’ll go into withdrawal and start hanging out. So to answer your last question first, no, Suboxone is not safe to inject. As well as the naloxone, Suboxone sublingual strips contain a lot of additional ingredients, such as binding agents, that may cause painful damage to your veins. If the strips are taken sublingually (which means dissolved under the tongue), people with little to no opiate tolerance will feel a ‘high’ after using the strips. But if you use opiates regularly enough to be dependent, Suboxone is a poor choice for fun. It’s much more useful when used as prescribed to stop or cut down on your opiate use. However, the Harm Reduction Lady knows that people sometimes mix Suboxone and inject it if they have
y d a L n o i t c Redu little access to other drugs. While it’s not something she recommends, she has some advice for those who go ahead anyway.
➲➲ Keep in mind that if Suboxone is going to make you feel anything, this probably means you have a low tolerance to opiates. It won’t take a lot to get you high. Small doses of Suboxone get big results. Overdose isn't common, but it can happen if you take a lot. ➲➲ Overdose becomes much more likely if you mix Suboxone with other drugs, benzos, or alcohol. You may feel that you need to use more of another opiate to ‘shoot through’ the Suboxone. But this makes it more likely that you'll overdose before reaching the effect you’re looking for.
➲➲ Use a wheel filter. Also known as a micron filter, these are a really important health-saving tool for anyone choosing to inject drugs. The filter will let the drug through, but block all the nasties like fungus, bacteria and ‘filler’ found in pills and strips. You can get wheel filters from many NSPs, but you may have to pay for them. ➲➲ Always use new injecting equipment and never ever share with anyone. This includes needles, syringes, filters, tourniquets, spoons and water. Even the amazing wheel filters can’t protect you from viruses like hepatitis B and C.
*“"Harm reduction” refers to all the work done by groups, workers and peers to reduce the harms of drug use to people who use drugs. These pages inspired by resources produced by AIVL (http://bit. ly/AIVL_subs). For more harm reduction resources, visit your local peer drug user group nuaa.org.au. stock image ©2004-2015 xiao-stock. Not the Harm Reduction Lady herself.
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no problem piercing r mates. Go to a Want to get pierced? Don’t trust you cing. pier professional for a safe and healthy uld make sure there is a Registered professional piercers sho . A piercer who isn’t tact very low risk of blood-to-blood con know-how to sterilise or ent registered may not have the equipm should have a they ed, ster their equipment. If someone is regi ewhere in their som d laye certificate from the local Council disp shop or studio. a really high risk of bloodGetting pierced in prison comes with to get sterile equipment and to-blood contact. It's a lot harder B and C are much more blood-borne viruses like hepatitis common. cing in prison, call the If you're thinking about getting a pier (dial #3 on the Common info Prisons Hepatitis Infoline for more Calls list - it's a free call). with a needle? Backyard What about your mate who's good blood-to-blood contact piercings are much higher risk for ent used for piercing will ipm because you can't be sure the equ be properly sterilised. s is a registered Your best bet for no-problem piercing you safe. But if you are p professional who knows how to kee ys use new equipment, alwa going to pierce yourself or others, people, and rent diffe don't use the same equipment for ly. safe rps remember to dispose of your sha
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Head to http://bit.ly/PiercingFactsheet for a complete brochure on safe piercing and tattooing
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PART TWO
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*there's a six to twelve week 'window period' between hep C exposure and the time an antibody test will produce a result. The test results will come back in around a week after the blood is taken from you.
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ANSWERS 1) Brown hair has turned blonde 2) Bob's razor has no shaving foam 3) Bathroom door is a different colour 4) Mitch's shirt is a different colour 5) Mitch's facial hair is gone 6) Mitch has turned the tap off 7) The maroon toothbrush is missing from the ledge 8) The guy brushing his teeth has no eyebrow
the difference
picture a
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spot 8 differences between pictures a&b
picture b
word search K B L O O D E O I G R Y I S M O C N C G M P R N E E T U R A Q N I H S O C I Q V V R S R B M O D T B Y T X B H I K Z A D W I P F S C R V O V L S M E D H T W V E E U I E V S F J E F T A I J E H L A N T I B O D Y A N N R G I E D G G H J H T O T I U J O N N L E Q E Z R N V T C Z H R C O M X E N Z P Q W O C L U S V E O O R N J N S X O A Y C E E B D X D W Y S T A M V G S L O C N I F N U F N O V P D T J M Y E S A A O B A J Q W D R O L K Z O Y Q Q C B L
Find the following hep C words in the puzzle above: ANTIBODY BLOOD CONDOM FINCOL ANSWERS GLOVES INJECTING LIVER NEEDLESTICK SYRINGE TATTOO VACCINATION VEIN VIRUS
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EDUCATION AND TRAINING SESSIONS Hepatitis NSW offers a range of education and workforce development workshops. Our packages will inspire, educate and upskill you, your community and your staff. We design workshops and education sessions for people who work with communities affected by hep C and hep B. We can come to you or you can come to us. We can tailor our workshops to suit the needs of your attendees. Most of our workshops include a session with a C-een & Heard team member. They’ll share their personal experiences of living with hep C and you’ll have the opportunity to ask questions. All of our trainers are Cert IV qualified.
Ruth leads a Hepatitis NSW Get Bloody Serious education workshop.
For more information about our education and training services, please email rbearpark@hep.org.au or sclayton-freedman@hep.org.au If you’re a member of an hepatitis-affected community, or work with hepatitisaffected communities, and you want to be part of Transmission Magazine, please email transmission@hep.org.au. We can put together a training package for your organisation and help produce a story that could become a future edition of the magazine.
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Have you seen our new, mobile-friendly Hepatitis NSW website? Check it out at www.hep.org.au It's full of information about hep C, hep B and how to look after yourself and protect yourself and others.
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You can have Transmission Magazine delivered to you. Sign up as a Hepatitis NSW member at www.hep.org.au or call 1800 803 990.
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n o i t s e u q r e w s n a &
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Q “ A“
HEPATITIS INFO, SUPPORT, REFERRAL
I’ve been exposed to hep C. Should I get tested? What
”
should I expect from the test?
Before you get tested, your doctor (or person giving you the test) should talk to you about testing. This should include your level of risk, what the testing process involves, and how you might react to the results. The test should only happen when you give what’s called ‘'informed consent': you agree to be tested and you understand what you’re agreeing to. Tests for hep C are blood tests. It should take about a week to get your results. The doctor should explain what your results mean and talk to you about what happens next.
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Remember: a positive response to a hepatitis C antibody test just means you've been exposed to the virus. You will need a second test (called a PCR test) to tell you if you have hep C now. If you get a negative antibody test and your exposure was more than 3 months ago, then you have never had hep C.
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SPECIAL THANKS . . . to the young people from the youth drug & alcohol court (YDAC) residential induction unit
EDITOR/DESIGNER Heather McCormack EDITORIAL COMMITTEE Tim Baxter Bruce Cherry Jenny Douglas Paul Harvey Peter Middleton Sonam Paljor Kate Pinnock Rebecca Miers Rhea Shortus Robert Wisniewski COMIC WRITER Lawrence Gergich
The Residential Induction Unit is a transitional accommodation program for young people aged between 14 and 18 years who are entering the YDAC program. The Unit houses young people who are unable to return home while waiting for a placement in a rehabilitation program.
COMIC ARTIST Daryl Toh www.gestaltcomics.com
The Unit is funded by Justice Health and managed by Parramatta Mission.
ASIDE FROM HEPATITIS NSW EDITORIAL CONTENT, VIEWS EXPRESSED IN THIS MAGAZINE OR FLYERS ENCLOSED WITH IT ARE NOT NECESSARILY THOSE OF HEPATITIS NSW. NEITHER ARE SUCH VIEWS NECESSARILY THOSE OF OUR FUNDING BODIES. TRANSMISSION MAGAZINE DOES NOT PROMOTE OR CONDONE THE USE OF ILLICIT DRUGS. RATHER, IT SEEKS TO PROVIDE ACCURATE INFORMATION THAT WILL HELP PEOPLE WHO ALREADY INJECT DRUGS TO REDUCE RISKS AND MAKE SAFER CHOICES. NOTHING IN THIS MAGAZINE SHOULD BE TAKEN AS RECOMMENDING DRUG USE.
If you are a youth or health worker and would like to know more about how your clients can contribute to the development of Transmission Magazine call the Hepatitis Infoline on1800 803 990 or email hmccormack@hep.org.au
Hepatitis Infoline 1800 803 990 (freecall) Hepatitis NSW p: 02 9332 1853 f: 02 9332 1730 PO Box 432 Darlinghurst, NSW 1300 info@hep.org.au Level 4, 414 Elizabeth Street Surry Hills Sydney 2010 www.hep.org.au Hepatitis NSW is proud to acknowledge Aboriginal people as the traditional owners and custodians of our lands and waters. ABN 30 408 095 245 A non-profit health promotion charity funded by the NSW Ministry of Health. Accredited by the Quality Improvement Council of Australia (QIC). Donations of $2 and over are tax deductible.
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