Hospitals asked to properly implement TB control measures
- September 27, 2013, 6:09 pm
- National News
- 94 Views
ISLAMABAD, Sep 27 (APP): Citizens on Friday asked the
authorities of public sector hospitals to properly implement
the Directly Observed Treatment Short-course (DOTS) to support
tuberculosis patients.
According to them, the government allocates sufficient
amount to provide DOTS treatment methodology for treatment of
TB patients at hospitals, however, patients face problems due to
apathetic attitude of deployed medical staff.
They said there is need to have extensive plan to provide
best medical care to tuberculosis patients at government hospitals.
They demanded to deploy trained staff having complete knowledge of
DOTS methodology at hospitals.
According to available data, the incidence of TB per 100,000
population in Pakistan is 181, case notification per 100,000 per
year is 150 while the treatment success rate is 85 per cent.
Pakistan ranks sixth globally among 22 high tuberculosis
burden countries, and contributes 43 per cent of the disease towards
the Eastern-Mediterranean region of World Health Organization (WHO).
An estimated one-third of the world's population is currently
infected with TB due to which World Health Organization is working
on its plan to cut TB prevalence rates and deaths by half by 2015.
When contacted an official said that around 982 microscopy
centres have been established across the country to provide free of
cost diagnostic facility to tuberculosis patients.
He said more than 700,000 tuberculosis patients were treated
free of charge while 100 percent coverage of WHO-recommended treatment
strategy for detection and cure known as Directly Observed Treatment,
Short-course (DOTS) is achieved in the country.
He said external quality assurance for sputum microscopy
is implemented in 40 districts of the country while five reference
laboratories have been established including one at federal level
and one each at provincial level.
He said training and health education materials have been
developed and all health care providers have been trained.
Dr. Sharif Astori from Federal Government Poly Clinic (FGPC)
said TB is an infectious bacterial disease caused by Mycobacterium
tuberculosis, which most commonly affects the lungs.
He said the disease is transmitted from person to person
via droplets from the throat and lungs of people with the active
respiratory disease.
He said in healthy people, infection with mycobacterium
tuberculosis often causes no symptoms, since the person's immune
system acts to wall off the bacteria.
He said the symptoms of active TB of the lung are coughing,
sometimes with sputum or blood, chest pains, weakness, weight
loss, fever and night sweats. He added tuberculosis is treatable
with a six-month course of antibiotics.
