Kohima, March 23 (MExN): On World TB Day, the Governor of Nagaland and Aurnachal Pradesh, PB Acharya has appealed to all concerned departments, civil society, NGOs, student organisations, etc. to create awareness and ‘Unite to End TB.’
Acharya said that India has a large burden of the world’s TB and called on to take measures to prevent spreading TB by getting the right treatment quickly and follow it through to completion. He also added studies reveal that each year, about 2.2 million people develop TB in India and an estimated 2,20,000 people expire due to the disease. In North East five percent of TB patients die annually on an average.
“These data clearly indicate that we need to take more steps to eradicate this killing ailment from the world,” Acharya added.
The Governor’s message send to the media through the PRO, Raj Bhavan stated that World TB Day, falling on March 24 each year, is designed to build public awareness that tuberculosis today remains an epidemic in much of the world, causing the deaths of nearly one-and-a-half million people each year, mostly in developing countries.
He called on organised groups like ex-servicemen, university students, Bharat Scouts & Guides, Red Cross Society, enlighten citizens etc to come forward in their individual and organisational capacities to banish TB as a National Agenda. The Governor said that in a democracy it is not only the Government but also enlightened groups that play a role in nation building.
He said that TB is a completely curable disease at very low-cost through the Directly Observed Treatment Short Course (DOTS) treatment administered by the government. However treatments and diagnostic tests should be accessible by each and every person affected by tuberculosis all over the world and death rate of this disease should be brought to zero.
NUN and ARK highlights need of TB drugs
Kohima: The Nagaland Users’ Network and ARK foundation, in observance of the world TB day 2017, has called for the need for an aggressive programme to combat the aged old disease.
A press release issued by the NUN stated that India, considered as the highest TB burden country in the world and also with the highest number of Multi drug resistant TB cases, it is essential that the theme “Unite to end TB” also emphasized on access to better and friendlier diagnosis and treatment drugs such as Bedaquiline and Delamanid to combat the resistant strain of the Mycobacterium Tuberculosis.
In the context of these two drugs, as a result of the Delhi high court‘s judgment to provide the drug to a girl from Patna, since she was rejected the treatment with this drug due to domicile issue. The India RNTCP program was providing 600 doses only to 6 cities in 5 states, posing a low threshold to treat the numerous DRTB cases in India, also based on conditional access. As for delamanid, though the Civil Society in India along with affected community Networks has pushed for making the drug available in the country and Otsuka (the manufacturing company) is also awaiting the response for the government.
NUN and ARK have called upon the states RNTCP division to propose the need for these drugs to the central TB division in Delhi.
Need to intensify awareness on treatment and facilities available
It also stated that Nagaland being a state, where TB is not considered as a serious health threat by many due to poor awareness and lack of poor infrastructure for diagnosing and treating the already infected people and ever since then, the Nagaland State’s Revised National Tuberculosis Program has been rolled out in Nagaland in 2001 and has been providing services relating to TB.
Further, they added that the programme becomes more challenging more so, with a reported cases of 19606 (since 1999) HIV / AIDS with and TB being the commonest opportunistic infection, the two epidemics are closely related, it is of utmost important that the joint initiative be more efficient.
Though minimal, it is also alarming that death cases of XDRTB also have been reported in Nagaland but treatment for this strain of TB infection is not available in the state.
Meanwhile, NUN and ARK also informed the national TB Program has allocated another 5 Gene Xpert machines for Nagaland. There is already one machine at NHAK (DTC). With regard to this, NUN and ARK have urged the Tuensang and Zunheboto Health department to immediately install the machine to enable services to the people suffering from TB.
It also expressed resentment about the absence of the Tuensang DTO from office since last August 2016. In this regard, NUN and ARK called the Deputy Commissioner and CMO of Tuensang to take immediate action on the erring officer.
It also further urged the states RNTCP to enable optimum usage of the machine already installed at Kohima, Dimapur, Mokokchung, Mon and also has informed the public to avail this free facilities.
With the launching of Isoniazid preventive therapy and daily DOTS programme, in the month of December 2016, NUN and ARK foundation has urged the RNTCP to mobilize the PLHIV community in availing the services, since according to information made available to NUN, the enrolment to these two services are considerably low, in spite of having registered 2881 cases of TB patients amongst PLHIV in 2014.
NUN has lauded the HIV/TB division for inducting NUN in the STWG and expressed optimism that the partnership between public and NGOs will strengthen the programme.
