Building Trust and Participation for Hepatitis B Serosurveys in Indonesia through Community Engagement

Funded by:
PCE Seed Awards grant

Time:
2026-ongoing

The Scalable Public Health Empowerment, Research, and Education Sites (SPHERES) is a data-driven initiative to strengthen integrated primary healthcare in Indonesia. As part of the SPHERES Project, “Building Trust and Participation for Hepatitis B Serosurveys” funded by the PCE Seed Award, carries this opportunity forward by providing momentum and open an opportunity to actively involve community representatives in shaping awareness of Hepatitis B within their communities.

Hepatitis B remains a significant public health concern in Indonesia, with mother-to-child transmission representing a key route of infection among children. SPHERES programme as a collaborative initiative between the Ministry of Health, Purbalingga and West Lombok District Health Offices, and OUCRU Indonesia. The project has been established to strengthen primary healthcare through the use of data, including monitoring progress towards the prevention of mother-to-child transmission of Hepatitis B. As part of this work, a Hepatitis B serosurvey will be conducted among children to evaluate the impact of the programme.

While SPHERES has been implemented in close collaboration with District Health Offices, there are limited opportunity to intentionally involve community members in the design of research implementation activities. Building Trust and Participation for Hepatitis B Serosurveys, supported by the PCE Seed Award, addresses this gap through participatory community meetings that actively involve community representatives in shaping how the serosurvey is implemented within their communities.

To deliver this, the project will train local facilitators from Puskesmas through a Training of Trainers (ToT) programme, equipping them with the principles of Public and Community Engagement (PCE), practical facilitation skills, and interactive tools to explore community perspectives on Hepatitis B and blood-based testing among children. These facilitators will go on to independently conduct participatory community meetings, systematically document community feedback, and contribute to the development of community engagement strategies for future health study implementation.

The Community Participatory Meeting aims to provide a two-way platform for dialogue, enabling community representatives to share their concerns and recommendations regarding Hepatitis B, blood-based testing among children, and their preferred approaches to community engagement. The meetings are designed to inform culturally appropriate engagement strategies, strengthen trust between researchers and communities, and contribute to more meaningful community participation throughout the implementation of the serosurvey.

Key informant:

Dr. Anuraj Shankar
dr. Edward Sutanto, MPH
Ragil Dien
Ris Heskiel Najogi
Nilahadinil Yakin
Nur Ayu Fitriani
Dilla Rossa
Ainun Permata Shanie

July 2026

(Pre-implementation phase): Training of Trainers for Community Participatory Meetings and Community Participatory Meetings were conducted in Purbalingga and West Lombok. Participants represented diverse age groups, genders, religions, ethnicities, educational backgrounds, and livelihoods.

August 2026–March 2027

(Implementation phase): Community engagement activities will be implemented, including community discussions, educational talks, printed materials, and other locally selected engagement channels.

April 2027

(Post-implementation phase): Post-implementation community feedback sessions will be conducted to inform participants on serosurvey results and recommendations.