Know Disease for No Disease
January 30, 2008
The beginning of health,” a Chinese proverb reminds us, “is to know the disease.” The wisdom behind this century-old adage captures the essence of the S.F. Hep B Free Campaign’s public awareness strategy. To defeat a deadly virus lurking in the streets, community members must first be aware that it exists.
Despite limited financial resources for community outreach, the S.F. Hep B Free Campaign is holding its second Community Education Workshop, demonstrating its unyielding dedication to the community.
The workshop will be hosted by the API Wellness Center on Thursday, Jan. 31 at noon. The workshop will provide a no-cost opportunity to educate community leaders about the dangers, misconceptions and general facts of hepatitis B. Workshops normally consist of 20 to 30 attendees who learn the basics of hepatitis B with the intent that they would disperse this information to their respective organizations and communities.
Bok Pon, commander of American Legion Cathay Post No. 384, will be speaking about his personal experience with disease. “Helping people become familiar with hepatitis B is already half the battle,” Pon said. “Knowledge becomes a matter of life and death.”
In addition to launching its first Community Education Workshop, the S.F. Hep B Free Campaign’s extraordinary accomplishments for 2007 show that the city is making tremendous strides to eradicate hepatitis B. The campaign’s success could potentially make this effort a national model, but the endeavor will require more than community action. With three major pharmaceutical companies — Gilead, Pharmasset and Idenix — on the brink of receiving government approval for their hepatitis B medication treatment, thousands of Asian Americans with hepatitis B are waiting to see whether these major scientific breakthroughs will translate to more education in their communities.
To learn more about S.F. Hep B Free Campaign’s Community Education Workshop series, contact Thanh Huynh, administrative coordinator for the AsianWeek Foundation, at thuynh@awfoundation.com.
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