From 12-14 August 2026, the 16th Australasian Viral Hepatitis Conference (VH2026) took place in Walyalup (Fremantle), on the traditional lands of the Whadjuk Noongar people. The conference brought together people living with hepatitis, peers, nurses, GPs, specialists, researchers and decision-makers to share practical, evidence-informed solutions that strengthen prevention, testing, treatment and long-term care in every setting.
Cherie Bennett, Nursing Policy and Advocacy Lead at ASHM, reflects on the conference below, highlighting the strong presence and impact of nurses in viral hepatitis care, and how they exemplify this year’s tagline: Turning ambition and experience into action.
Reflecting on nursing at the 16th Australasian Viral Hepatitis Conference
By Cherie Bennett, Nursing Policy and Advocacy Lead at ASHM.
The 16th Australasian Viral Hepatitis Conference (VH2026) was a timely reminder of something many of us working in viral hepatitis already know: nurses are everywhere in this work.
And at VH2026, that presence was certainly felt.
From the opening plenary through to the closing ceremony, nurses were visible not only in the audience, but on the stage, contributing to discussions, presenting research, sharing models of care and helping shape the conversations about where viral hepatitis care needs to go next.
One of the highlights was seeing the breadth of nursing represented across the conference. There were nurses working in hospitals, primary care, prisons, public health, community organisations, peer-based services, outreach and research. There were clinical nurse consultants, nurse practitioners, research nurses, clinic nurses and nurse researchers. Different titles and settings, but a common thread: finding ways to make hepatitis prevention, testing, treatment and care more accessible, responsive and person-centred.
Day two began with the dedicated Nursing Breakfast focused on nurse-led innovation. It was a great way to start the day with a room full of passionate nurses and colleagues sharing their experiences and hearing directly from nurse leaders working across various settings.
What struck me the most was that these weren’t conversations about innovation as an abstract concept. They were real examples of nurses identifying a need, building partnerships, navigating systems and finding practical ways to make things happen. Whether it was prescribing in general practice, integrating hepatitis care into public health work, working within a peer-led organisation or delivering care in prisons, each example demonstrated what can happen when nurses are supported to work to their full scope and respond to the needs of their communities.
That theme continued throughout the conference.
We heard about nurse-led outreach models, decentralised hepatitis B care, point-of-care testing, remote prescribing, telehealth treatment services, community engagement, prison-based programs and innovative approaches to improving treatment uptake. Nurses were also contributing to discussions around liver health, hepatocellular carcinoma surveillance, hepatitis B prevention and the future of testing and care.
Importantly, this visibility comes at a particularly relevant time for nursing in Australia.
The recently released National Nursing Workforce Strategy identifies priorities around enabling nursing innovation, including nurse-led models of care, and elevating the nursing profession through leadership and greater recognition of the contribution nurses make. VH2026 felt like a very practical demonstration of what those priorities can look like in action.
The conference theme was ‘Every Voice, Everywhere: Turning ambition and experience into action’. From a nursing perspective, this felt particularly fitting.
The examples of real-world action shared throughout the conference show that nurses are not waiting on the sidelines for change to happen. They are leading it, adapting care to different settings and communities, building partnerships and finding new ways to reach people who may otherwise miss out.
Of course, visibility is only one part of the story. If we are serious about elimination, innovation and improving access to care, we also need to ensure that nurses have the structures, support, education, recognition and scope to continue doing this work.
But VH2026 provided plenty of reasons to feel optimistic.
The nursing presence was strong. The innovation was evident. And perhaps most importantly, the conversations reflected a profession that is already turning ambition into action.
