The experience of discrimination of individuals living with chronic hepatitis B in four provinces of China

OBJECTIVES: To assess chronic hepatitis B (CHB) patients’ knowledge about hepatitis B and their experience of discrimination with regard to study, work, and daily life. METHODS: We administered a questionnaire to 797 CHB patients in four provinces of China and used one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) and a generalized linear model (GLM) to identify factors associated with discrimination. RESULTS: CHB patients had low levels of knowledge about hepatitis B. Patients under 40 years of age with a junior college education or above knew more about hepatitis B than CHB patients over 40 years of age who had only a high school education. Three-fourths of patients had experienced discrimination because of their hepatitis B infection, with no differences in the proportion experiencing discrimination by sex or age. People with more education reported less discrimination. Patients in Beijing and Henan province perceived less discrimination than those in Shaanxi and Guangdong provinces. Discrimination was significantly associated with negative emotions. CHB patients had little awareness of China’s anti-discrimination laws and policies. Among patients who had experienced discrimination, fewer than 10% knew organizations or institutions that could offer help. Over 60% of CHB patients who experienced discrimination chose not to respond. CONCLUSION: CHB patients in China commonly experienced discrimination, which was associated with significant, negative emotional stress. To mitigate the damaging effects of discrimination, our study suggests raising general population knowledge about hepatitis B, raising awareness of the availability of legal protection and organizations that can fight discrimination, and providing psychological support for CHB patients.