M F AHMAD
Daltonganj, Dec16: The Additional Chief Secretary (Health) of Jharkhand, Arun kr Singh, has sent a letter to all the Deputy Commissioners of Jharkhand to strengthen the National Tuberculosis Eradication Programme (NTEP). The letter dated December 15 has outlined the measures that the DCs are to undertake and strengthen for the programme.
The Additional Chief Secretary has emphasised the importance of tuberculosis symptom testing in his letter. 15,000 tests are conducted per one lakh people.
The letter further reads that visitors coming to the OPD wards in health institutions having chest symptoms prolonging for two or more weeks should be screened in accordance with NTEP diagnostic algorithm for which medical officers should be sensitised.
Families that have cases of tuberculosis and are exposed to tuberculosis patients are also to be screened and tuberculosis preventive therapy is to be initiated for them, the letter reads.
Hashmat Rabbani, a dedicated campaigner for anti-tuberculosis here in Palamu, said that Coronavirus has put this serious disease behind which is dangerous. The pandemic has had its effect on the testing of tuberculosis among people.
There are tuberculosis patients who abandon medication mid-way little knowing the consequences of it as tuberculosis strikes back and the patient gets under multidrug resistance category, reminded Rabbani.
Sputum is collected in the falcon tube and first it be tested for the Covid and in the event of its being negative tests for tuberculosis be proceeded through TrueNat, CBNAAT, x ray etc.
The additional chief secretary has also suggested the identification of at least two ‘TB champions’ in each block who should be given training. Health, nutrition and hygiene issues matter most and where local brew is much in use. On nutritional and clinical assessment of differentiated tuberculosis patients, there should be at least a 10-bed indoor treatment facility in the district.
Notably, India has set a target to eradicate TB by the year 2030 but Prime Minister Narendra Modi wants it to go by 2025.
The task is enormously challenging as malnutrition rages high and malnutrition is the running partner of the TB, said a local doctor.
X-ray facility is available in big towns but not in that way that can help a panchayat or block-level patient to get its facility. So the state government has suggested DCs to go for MoU with private X-ray centres to extend facilities to the TB patients.
Sources said ‘ghar ghar dastak’ for finding and flushing out the unvaccinated eligibles may be used also to locate and identify suspected cases of tuberculosis.
