Me at work in Sunderbyn hospital.
My name is Frida Jakobsson and I work as a senior consultant at the Infectious disease clinic in Sunderby hospital. I am also the medical supervisor of the Needle and Syringe programme in Norrbotten.
Furthermore, I am a PhD student passionate about viral hepatitis and advancing the WHO’s global hepatitis elimination goals. I recently returned from the International Network on Hepatitis in Substance Users (INHSU) conference in Athens in October, inspired by the opportunity to meet many researchers from around the world who share a great interest for viral hepatitis. It was gratifying to highlight the work we are doing in northern Sweden and provide a rural perspective.
Presenting my work at the INHSU conference in Athens.
My interest in research began during my residency, when I conducted a research project on viral hepatitis in forensic psychiatry. In 2020, I completed my residency and became a specialist in infectious diseases, just as the COVID-19 pandemic was unfolding. Working as an infectious disease physician in a smaller hospital during the pandemic was challenging, particularly in the early stages. However, it was also a unique experience to be involved in the response to a new global disease, which brought rapid advancements in knowledge, collaboration, and research related to treatment and vaccination.
In 2022, I connected with Associate professor Ann-Marie Fors Connolly after hearing about her ongoing research on various aspects of COVID-19. I had some ideas for projects involving hepatitis and COVID-19, and I was pleased that she was enthusiastic and wanted to explore them further. This collaboration led to my PhD project, and I am now a doctoral student in her research group.
Our research focuses on different aspects of patients with viral hepatitis (B and C) and COVID-19. Globally, these viruses are among the leading causes of death from communicable diseases. It remains unclear whether patients with viral hepatitis are at higher risk for severe COVID-19 or how effective the vaccination is in this population.
I presented my first PhD project at the Asian Pacific Association for the Study of the Liver (APASL) conference in Kyoto, Japan, in 2024. Attending an Asian conference was especially interesting, as both COVID-19 and hepatitis pose significant health challenges in many of these regions. There, I met members of the Coalition for Global Hepatitis Elimination, who took a keen interest in my work on hepatitis elimination in northern Sweden. They featured it in their HepEquity blog: Care Goes the Distance: Curing Hepatitis C Rural Sweden.
I presented my first PhD project at the Asian Pacific Association for the Study of the Liver conference in Kyoto, Japan.
Blossoming cherry tree in Japan
I look forward to continuing my efforts to eliminate hepatitis in Norrbotten and to conducting more research in the future.
