Journal of Infectious Diseases and Diagnosis

Abstract

How to Prevent Hepatitis B in Pakistan: Role of Social Marketing

Nadir Suhail, Sumera Aziz Ali and Savera Aziz Ali

Hepatitis B is a deadly infectious disease, which is increasing now days in Pakistan. This disease is also rooted in the poverty and illiteracy. There are huge discrepancies in health conditions between rural and urban areas and among different socio-economic strata, played role in increased burden of this deadly disease. Furthermore, multiple social and cultural barriers are prevailing in the country might have played an important role in increasing the burden of this disease in the society. The most important step is to target high risk groups including injection drug users, health workers and recipients of blood transfusion. The first step is to change the behaviour of these high risk groups through education and counselling by adapting the innovative approaches. One of these strategies is social marketing, which might help people to change their behaviour. Thus, the purpose of this review was to use the social marketing approach as the innovative strategy to change the behaviour of people. This change in behaviour might play role in preventing the epidemics of hepatitis B across the world and particularly in developing countries.