Community nurses caring for homeless people in Sussex shortlisted for top award

Hepatology nurses from the University Hospitals Sussex NHS Foundation Trust have been shortlisted for a community Nursing Times Awards.

The team’s dedicated efforts to finding and treating hepatitis C in the local homelessness community has seen them shortlisted for the category ‘Nursing in the Community.’  

The Nursing Times Awards shines a light on the nursing community and recognises individuals and teams who are making nursing innovative, patient-focused and inclusive.  

Hepatitis C is a blood-borne virus that is preventable, treatable, and curable for most people. If left untreated, however, the infection over time can lead to scarring on the liver, liver failure or cancer. 

People experiencing homelessness are disproportionately at risk of getting infected, so the nursing team have set out to find, test and treat this specific group.  

Jo Smith, Hepatology Clinical Nurse Specialist, who has led this project said: “Working on this project was a great opportunity to connect with people that may not have engaged with services for a long time.

“We were able to test and treat many people who were not known to any other teams and direct them to other health care provisions that they found difficult to access.”  

She added: “Our visibility in new areas allowed people to have questions answered and raise concerns about their health regarding hepatitis C and the liver.”

Together with partner organisations, the team approached hostels, temporary accommodation, refugee hotels and more to run testing events.

This included connecting with street outreach teams and using the clinical van to test people in the evenings. 

These testing days and nights allowed the team to test more than 1,000 people experiencing homelessness.  

Samantha Readhead, Lead Clinical Nurse Specialist for Hepatology said: “By raising awareness, offering screening to identify undiagnosed cases, and ensuring accessible care and treatment, we are making strides towards our goal of eliminating hepatitis C in Sussex by 2025.

“This recognition also celebrates the collective effort of the entire team, whose invaluable support has been instrumental in achieving the project’s success.”

Winners will be announced at the Nursing Times Awards ceremony in London this October.