one staff representative - to be elected from amongst their number at the staff meeting taking place soon after the Annual
General Meeting.
The role of the Board of Directors is governance rather
than management, which is the preserve of the Manager. Governance
is about ensuring the organisation maintains a clear mission
and an effective strategy and is well managed for the benefit
of all. The Board ultimately provides insight, wisdom and good
judgement.
Our Strategic Framework
To find out more about Hepatitis C Victoria's goals and our strategies to achieve them, see Strategic Framework 2004 - 2007
Our Constitution
Download a copy of our Constitution here.
Annual Reporting
Our Annual Reports are available to read: 2002/3; 2003/4; 2004/5
Our History
In late 1992 two meetings were held in Melbourne for anyone interested in hepatitis C. The meetings were lead by gastroenterologists who were starting to see a number of patients diagnosed with hepatitis C and were becoming increasingly aware of the need for support outside of the clinical environment. At the time, a support group was operating in New South Wales and a call was made to establish something similar in Victoria.
Joan Alter, a woman whose husband had recently died from hepatitis C, attended both meetings and became a driving force in the forming of what was initially called the Hepatitis C Support Group (Victoria). The group had no funds and relied on the NSW group for communication and information.
The group started regular meetings in the members’ private
homes and a telephone support line was established. Through
information nights and less informal gatherings, membership
of the group began to grow.
In December 1993, an offer of office space and equipment
was made by Fairfield Hospital and gratefully accepted. This
gave the group a focus and credibility as well as providing
crucial links with professionals in the field of hepatitis
C treatment and research. In April 1994, the group changed
its name to the Hepatitis C Foundation of Victoria, became
incorporated and applied successfully for funding to the Sidney
Myer Foundation. This favourable turn of events led to the
employment of the first part-time paid worker.
It was in June 1995 that the recognition of the organisation
was further enhanced by a grant from the then Victorian Department
of Health and Community Services. In late 1997, the Foundation
changed its name to the Hepatitis C Council of Victoria in
order to be in line with its sister organisations in other
Australian states and territories. In 2008, We became Hepatitis C Victoria. Since then, the organisation
has continued to steadily grow both in terms of human resources,
breadth of activities and degree of impact on the sector.
As the complexity of issues generated by the impact of hepatitis C on the Australian community has grown, so has the capacity of the Hepatitis C Victoria to meet its many challenges.
