HEP-HOP

Durada

01/10/2025 - 30/09/2028

Coordinador

Camila Picchio

Finançadors

Co-funded by the European Commission EU4H programme

Migrants and refugees in Europe often face barriers to access and navigate prevention, screening, and care services for viral hepatitis (HBV and HCV), often leading to late diagnosis, worse health outcomes, and a higher burden of liver disease. These barriers, often systemic and sociocultural in nature, are compounded by the infections' silent nature.

A Health Equity Initiative

The Health Equity Programme: Hepatitis Outreach for Migrant Populations (HEP-HOP) is an which aims to contribute to overcoming these barriers by improving, scaling up, and evaluating community-based programmes for viral hepatiti screening, HBV vaccination, and linkage to care in Belgium, Latvia and Spain.

A critical focus will be on understanding and tackling vaccine misinformation, disinformation, and hesitancy among at-risk migrant and refugee populations in all three countries to support HBV vaccination uptake.

Participatory Research and Community Engagement

HEP-HOP will use participatory research methods in all three countries to explore both personal and structural barriers, incorporating the perspectives of migrants and refugees, alongside other key stakeholders, such as policy makers, into the design and delivery of community-based viral hepatitis programmes. In Belgium and Spain, the project will build on existing outreach efforts, while in Latvia, it will conduct a context-specific needs assessment to guide future implementation based on lessons learned.

Vaccine Hesitancy, Training, and Outreach

• The project will train community health workers and community teachers to deliver culturally and linguistically adapted screening programmes. These programmes will offer decentralised screening and vaccination opportunities, supported by expedited referral pathways to ensure participants are linked to care and retained in the health system.
• HEP-HOP will assess the impact of these programmes on vaccination uptake and the prevention of viral hepatitis-related liver cancer.
• The findings of the project will be shared broadly across Europe to inform policies and help meet the WHO viral hepatitis elimination targets for 2030 in addition to aligning with Europe’s Beating Cancer Plan.

Scientific Advisory Board Members

The Scientific Advisory Board is composed of leading experts who provide strategic guidance and scientific oversight to support the HEP HOP project’s goals and maximize its impact.

Viral Hepatitis & Liver health/disease:

• Dr Kaushik Agarwal - King’s College Hospital NHS Foundation Trust, UK
• Dr Philippa Matthews - Francis Crick Institute, UK
• Dr Maria Buti - Hospital General Universitari Vall d’Hebron, Spain
• Catherine Freeland - Hepatitis B Foundation, USA

Migrant health

• Dr Sally Hargreaves - St George's University of London, UK
• Prof Sonia Dias - NOVA University of Lisbon, Portugal

Health literacy and health promotion

• Dr Orkan Okan - TUM School of Medicine and Health, Germany
• Dr Eric Breton - École des Hautes Études en Santé Publique, France

Coordination and Partners

HEP-HOP is coordinated by ISGlobal Public Health Liver Group and partners include the University of Antwerp & Viral Hepatitis Prevention Board (Belgium), University of Barcelona (Spain), and Riga Stradiņš University (Latvia).

Synergies with Joint Action SHIELD

To create impactful synergies and opportunities for collaboration, HEP-HOP will work closely with the Joint Action (JA) SHIELD, also funded the under the EU4Health 2024 program. JA SHIELD aims to develop a comprehensive prevention program across Europe, involving 68 partners from 25 EU countries, focused on strategies to eliminate cancers caused by infections, including HPV, viral hepatitis (HBV and HCV), tuberculosis, and HIV.