Live well with liver disease: A community-led intervention for cirrhosis

Liver disease, especially cirrhosis, is a growing health issue in some of the most deprived communities around Bristol. Many people living with liver disease also face challenges like poverty, poor access to healthy food, social isolation, and a lack of confidence to improve their health.

These problems are often made worse by alcohol misuse and low levels of physical activity. A pilot project called ‘Alright My Liver’ has identified a group of people affected by these issues, living in areas such as Hartcliffe, Withywood, Knowle West and Weston Bourneville.

Project aims

This project aims to create a community-based programme that helps people with cirrhosis improve their diet, increase physical activity, and reduce alcohol use. This will be adapting a successful intervention used to support patients on the liver transplant waiting list by researchers in Birmingham.

The programme will be co-designed with patients, public representatives, researchers, and healthcare professionals. The intervention will include 6 group sessions over 6 months, covering 3 key areas:

1. Exercise – A simple, home-based programme to help improve strength and reduce frailty, developed with support from physiotherapy researchers at the University of Birmingham.
2. Alcohol – Short, supportive conversations delivered by trained nurses to help reduce alcohol intake
3. Diet – Guidance on affordable healthy eating, building on an existing leaflet project called ‘Love Your Liver For Less’

What we hope to achieve

By working closely with people from the affected communities, the team hopes to develop an effective and meaningful programme that improves health, confidence and independence among people with cirrhosis.

The project will use the ‘Person-Based Approach’ to make sure the intervention is tailored to the real needs of the local population. Funding from the NIHR Bristol Biomedical Research Centre will support workshops, activity tracking and expert input.

If successful, the co-designed programme could lead to a trial in people living with liver disease and help reduce health inequalities in the region.