Hepatitis B carriers face discrimination: Expert
Hepatitis B carriers face discrimination: Expert
JAKARTA (JP): Indonesians who carry the Hepatitis B virus are
often discriminated against when applying for jobs, an expert on
the liver disease said on Saturday.
Dr. Nurul Akbar, chairman of the Association of Indonesian
Liver Research (PPHI), said many companies, including major ones,
are known to have refused to employ people who tested positive
for Hepatitis B for fear that they might infect others.
"The virus cannot be passed on easily, such as through shaking
hands or drinking from the same glass. There is nothing to fear,"
he said, adding: "Hepatitis B carriers are harmless."
"In other countries such as the U.S., Hepatitis B carriers are
allowed to work. How come it's the other way around here? They
have the right to earn a living," Nurul told The Jakarta Post
after briefing the media about an international meeting on liver
disease to take place in Jakarta this coming weekend.
Most large companies in Indonesia make medical checks
mandatory for people applying for work, on top of the regular
aptitude and attitude tests.
Nurul said he knew of two giant Indonesian companies that told
applicants who were found to carry the Hepatitis B virus to
undergo medical treatment first before commencing their job.
PPHI estimates that some 11 million Indonesians have
contracted the Hepatitis B virus.
Hepatitis is an inflammation of the liver caused by Hepatitis
viruses, which range from A to H. The most fatal are Hepatitis B
and C, but they can be cured. The virus resides in the blood,
sperm, saliva and other bodily fluids. And it is also responsible
for liver cancer and cirrhosis.
Physically, Hepatitis B carriers are just as healthy as
others, Nurul said.
Hepatitis B can be transmitted through the sharing of personal
items containing bodily fluid, such as toothbrushes, razor blades
or needles used for tattooing or injecting drugs. It can also be
transmitted through sexual contact or blood transfusion.
Nurul, who will chair the international conference, said only
10 percent of Hepatitis B carriers eventually develop related
diseases such as cirrhosis, jaundice or liver cancer.
The International Meeting on Liver Disease to be held from
Sept. 14 to Sept. 16 is intended to raise public awareness of the
various liver diseases, including various kinds of Hepatitis.
Some 40 international experts from Canada, France, Belgium,
Singapore and Indonesia will present papers on the treatment of
liver disease and related research.
The event is sponsored by the International Liver Pathology
Group (ELVES), Atma Jaya University, PPHI, the Indonesian
Association of Pathologists (IAPI) and the School of Medicine at
the University of Indonesia. (07)