HEP-HOP

Duration

01/10/2025 - 30/09/2028

Coordinator

Camila Picchio

Funded by

Co-funded by the European Commission EU4H programme

Migrants and refugees in Europe often face barriers to accessing prevention, screening, and care 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) project aims to overcome these barriers by improving, scaling up, and evaluating community-based programmes for viral hepatitis screening, HBV vaccination, and linkage to care.

A critical focus will be on understanding and tackling vaccine misinformation, disinformation, and hesitancy among at-risk migrant and refugee populations in Belgium, Latvia, and Spain 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 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.

Training, Outreach, and Vaccine Confidence

• The project will also explore HBV vaccine hesitancy and strategies to help overcome vaccination mis- and disinformation among targeted migrant populations.
• The project will train community health workers and 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 will be shared broadly across Europe to inform policies and help meet the WHO viral hepatitis elimination targets in addition to aligning with Europe’s Beating Cancer Plan.

Coordination, Partners and Funding

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

Co-funded by the European Commission EU4H programme.

Total funding: 832,400€