Hepatitis
in
Yukon
Health and Social Services
Government of Yukon
P.O. Box 2703
Whitehorse, YT Y1A 2C6
July 2012
The Facts:
The word hepatitis means literally “inflammation of the liver.” The liver is an
important organ in your body. It fights infections, cleans toxins (poisons) from
the blood, digests food and more. Although there are many forms of hepatitis
disease, the most common types are caused by viruses: hepatitis A, B and C.
The World Health Organization estimates that between 130 and 170 million
people are chronically infected with the hepatitis C virus. More than 350,000
people die every year worldwide from hepatitis C-related liver disease.
According to the Public Health Agency of Canada, an estimated 242,500
individuals are infected with hepatitis C in Canada, 21 per cent of whom don’t
know they are infected.
Things we know about hepatitis C infection:
 80 per cent of individuals infected with hepatitis C will develop chronic
liver problems. Two of the most serious complications are:
 Cirrhosis (scarring of the liver); and
 Liver cancer (three per cent of clients with hepatitis C are at risk for liver
cancer);
 Hepatitis C is a silent disease for most individuals; often there are no signs,
but the infected person can still pass the infection on.
 Alcohol and drug use aggravate the damage done to the liver by the
hepatitis C virus.
 Any form of blood-to-blood contact is a high risk to acquire or transmit
hepatitis C.
Hepatitis in Yukon
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HEPATITIS A
TRANSMISSION
Eating or drinking contaminated food/drink; not a chronic infection
PREVENTION
Vaccination, careful hand washing
TREATMENT
No treatment is necessary
HEPATITIS B
While 90 per cent of those who get hepatitis B will clear the
infection and become immune, it can become a chronic infection in about
10 per cent of infected people, and can lead to serious liver disease.
TRANSMISSION
Sexual contact, blood, bodily fluids
PREVENTION
Vaccination, avoiding blood-to-blood contact, practicing safer sex
TREATMENT
Only 10 per cent of infected individuals will need
medical assessment and may need treatment
HEPATITIS C
Hepatitis C is the most common type of hepatitis in Yukon.
TRANSMISSION
Blood
PREVENTION
Avoiding blood-to-blood contact, including not sharing any
personal care items or drug paraphernalia; there is NO vaccine.
TREATMENT
Treatment available upon consultation with a specialist
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Hepatitis in Yukon
PREVENTION
The following steps will help reduce your chances of getting infected with
hep C or infecting others:
 Be wary of using equipment that might have come in contact with
someone else’s blood, i.e., sharing drug equipment. This includes snorting,
or using a crack pipe.
 Have your own personal care items that might have blood on them — such
as toothbrushes razors and nail clippers — and not sharing them with others
 Never pick up an abandoned syringe with your bare hands.
 Use precautions every time you handle bloody materials, including lancets
used for blood sugar testing
 Be aware that alcohol and drug use can cause further liver damage. Using
those substances reduces our inhibitions, and can lead to poor decision
making. High risk exposure to hepatitis C often occurs while under the
influence of alcohol or drugs.
DETECTION
Most individuals infected with hepatitis C have few or no symptoms. The only
way to detect the infection is with a blood test. Despite the lack of symptoms,
a chronic infection can still damage the liver.
When an individual has symptoms of a hepatitis infection, they may have one
or many of the following: fever, loss of appetite, nausea, abdominal pain, and
jaundice (yellowish colour of the skin and eyes).
TREATMENT
There is treatment for Hep C, and it’s getting better all the time — more and
more people are finishing treatment and getting rid of the virus.
Yukoners can be assessed and treated through Yukon Communicable Disease
Control (YCDC) and the Infectious Diseases visiting specialist in Whitehorse.
Clients do not have to leave the territory for care (some clients who are too
sick to be treated will have to leave the territory for care).
Talk to your doctor or nurse about hepatitis C follow up.
Hepatitis in Yukon
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Hepatitis in Yukon
A. Yukon Communicable
Disease Control
#4 Hospital Road, Whitehorse (YCDC)
Whitehorse area: (867) 667-8323
Communities: 1-800-661-0408 x 8323
B.Blood Ties Four Directions
307 Strickland Street
Whitehorse, YT Y1A 2J9
Phone: (867) 633-2437
Toll-free: 1-877-333-2437
www.bloodties.ca
C. Alcohol and Drug Services —
Detox
6118 Sixth Avenue, Whitehorse
Whitehorse area: (867) 667-8473
Communities: 1-800-661-0408 x. 8473
Help Line: 1-866-980-9099
[email protected]
D. The Downtown
Outreach Clinic
Operates out of the
Salvation Army between
Third and Fourth Avenue
311B Black Street,
Whitehorse, YT Y1A 2N1
E.Kwanlin Dün
Health Centre /
Natsékhi Kù
Healing House
53 McClimon Crescent,
Whitehorse
Phone: (867) 668-7289
Hepatitis in Yukon
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SOME YUKON STATISTICS
For its population size, Yukon has a higher than expected number of
hepatitis C cases. This may reflect our aggressive testing program, which
encourages anybody who may be at risk to get tested, free of charge.
Hepatitis testing is available, accessible and free in all Yukon communities.
 Similar to Canadian statistics, 65 per cent of Yukon individuals infected
with hepatitis C likely acquired the infection from past or present drug use.
The remainder have had other form of blood to blood contact.
 Since 1994, 775 cases of hepatitis C have been diagnosed in Yukon.
 43 per cent of the hepatitis C-infected clients in Yukon have been assessed
by the Infectious Disease Specialist in Whitehorse.
 127 clients have received treatment, with an expected success rate
of 70 per cent.
It is better to know about the infection, so we can make informed choices. It’s
important to start a conversation in Yukon about liver health and hepatitis C.
We need to reduce the transmission and disease progression of hepatitis C.
Talk to your health care provider about hepatitis C. Testing is available
at all health care centres except the Whitehorse Health Centre. In
Whitehorse, you can obtain testing through your doctor, Yukon
Communicable Disease Control, and Kwanlin Dün Health Centre.
Tips for a healthy liver
The Canadian Liver Foundation offers a list of tips to LIVERight and keep
our livers healthy. We don’t have the space to reproduce them here, but
we encourage you to visit www.liver.ca/liver-health/liver-diseaseprevention/tips-for-healthy-liver/for excellent information on the
following topics related to liver disease:
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 Healthy home
 Alcohol consumption
 Travel
 Nutrition and exercise
 Drug safety
 Pampering your body
 Safe sex
 Liver health for youth
Hepatitis in Yukon
LOCAL RESOURCES
Yukon Communicable Disease Control
#4 Hospital Rd., Whitehorse (YCDC)
Whitehorse area: 667-8323
Communities: 1-800-661-0408, extension 8323
Yukon College campus clinic in Whitehorse:
Offers Blood-STI testing/treatment, immunizations, emergency birth control,
condoms and pregnancy testing: Mondays — 9:00 am to 3:00 pm
Confidential testing available Monday – Friday, 8:30 am to 4:00 pm
Appointments available in the mornings. Drop-in between 12:30 pm and 4:00 pm
C1122 in Wellness Room (next to campus bookstore)
Call 667-5080 or drop in during clinic hours
Blood Ties Four Directions
Provides support to those living with HIV/AIDS and hepatitis C, and those
at high risk. Drop-in centre with counselling, housing navigator and
naturopathy. Needle exchange and harm reduction. Prevention workshops
available across the territory. Wednesday afternoons, 1:00 to 3:00 pm, meal
program and outreach nurse with STI testing available.
Monday – Friday, 8:30 am to 4:30 pm (closed for lunch between noon – 1 pm)
307 Strickland Street
Whitehorse, YT Y1A 2J9
Phone: (867) 633-2437
Toll-free: 1-877-333-2437
www.bloodties.ca
Kwanlin DÜn Health Centre
Monday – Friday, 8:30 am to 4:30 pm
53 McClimon Crescent, Whitehorse
Phone: (867) 668-7289
NatsÉkhi KÙ Healing House
Counselling, referral and support: Monday – Friday, 9:00 am to 4:00 pm
(closed for lunch between noon – 1 pm)
53 McClimmon Crescent, Whitehorse
Hepatitis in Yukon
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Outreach Van
Counselling, support and referral services to Blood Ties and YCDC; harm
reduction equipment; education; food and clothing.
The Downtown Outreach Clinic
Operates out of the Salvation Army between Third and Fourth Avenue.
Weekly outreach clinic: information on hepatitis, support and referrals; wound
care; immunizations; foot care; nursing assessments and treatments; health
promotion and harm reduction education; advocacy; assistance navigating
the health care system and referrals.
Wednesdays, 11:00 am to 3:00 pm
311B Black Street, Whitehorse, YT Y1A 2N1
Alcohol and Drug Services
 24-hour medically supported detoxification program for safe withdrawal
 The Outreach YCDC nurse provides blood and STI testing to clients on site
 Outpatient/Inpatient Treatment
 Prevention services provides information on substances and strategies
on how to quit or reduce substance use to prevent further harm and/or
support someone still using
6118 Sixth Avenue, Whitehorse
Whitehorse area: 667-5777
Communities: 1-800-661-0408, extension 5777
Help Line: 1-866-980-9099
[email protected]
Community Health Centres
Information, testing and monitoring
 Dial prefix of your community + 4444
 Watson Lake 536-7483
Online Resources:
Public Health Agency of Canada: www.phac-aspc.gc.ca/hep/index-eng.php
Health Canada: www.hc-sc.gc.ca/hc-ps/dc-ma/hep-eng.php
Canadian Liver Foundation: www.liver.ca/
Blood Ties Four Directions: http://bloodties.ca/
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Hepatitis in Yukon