Hepatitis C in Australia: impact of a mass media campaign.

BACKGROUND: Hepatitis C affects over 200,000 Australians. This study evaluated the impact of a public education campaign about this disease in New South Wales (NSW), Australia.

DESIGN: Cohort and independent cross-sectional telephone surveys before and after the campaign.

SETTING/PARTICIPANTS: Random population samples of adults in NSW.

INTERVENTION: Television, radio and newsprint advertisements, posters and public display boards, public awareness events and media releases, and dissemination of information to healthcare professionals in April 2000. Data were analyzed in 2000 and 2005.

MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Campaign recall, and knowledge and attitudes concerning hepatitis C.

RESULTS: Recall of information about hepatitis C increased between baseline and follow-up, from 11.1% to 45.5% in the independent samples and 11.8% to 65.3% in the cohort. The proportion of people who knew that there was a low risk of disease transmission by kissing, sharing food utensils, or breastfeeding also increased significantly. In the cohort sample, a higher number of correct knowledge responses was associated with reporting exposure to information about hepatitis C after the campaign, postsecondary education, and a greater level of knowledge at baseline. Most people reported supportive attitudes toward people with hepatitis C and to prevention programs addressing this disease, and there was little apparent improvement in these.

CONCLUSIONS: This campaign successfully increased public exposure to information about hepatitis C and improved knowledge about the means of transmission of this disease. There is room for further improvements in community understanding about hepatitis C. Mass media campaigns have a valuable role to play in this endeavor.