Prioritise TB treatment, foundation urges govt

The AIDS Healthcare Foundation has urged leaders at all levels of government to prioritise the prevention and treatment efforts of Tuberculosis.

The foundation said this in a statement on Sunday signed by its Advocacy and Marketing Manager, Steve Aborishade to commemorate the 2024 World TB Day themed ‘Yes! We Can End TB.’

World Tuberculosis Day is marked on March 24 every year to create awareness about the impact of the disease.

According to the World Health Organisation, TB is a disease caused by bacteria (Mycobacterium tuberculosis) that often affects the lungs. TB is spread through the air when people with lung TB cough, sneeze or spit. A person needs to inhale only a few germs to become infected.

WHO said a total of 1.3 million people died from TB in 2022 (including 167,000 people with HIV). Worldwide, TB is the second leading infectious killer after COVID-19 (above HIV and AIDS).

The global health body stated that an estimated 10.6 million people fell ill with TB worldwide in 2022, including 5.8 million men, 3.5 million women and 1.3 million children.

It said multidrug-resistant TB remains a public health crisis and a health security threat, as only about two in five people with drug resistant TB accessed treatment in 2022.

The AHF Nigeria Country Programme Director, Dr Echey Ijezie, was quoted as saying, “It is important for stakeholders to create greater awareness about TB and ensure that people get tested for TB and HIV. TB is treatable while the treatment is quite accessible and free across Nigeria.

“It is in this regard that AHF Nigeria is happy to contribute to the existing efforts of the Nigerian TB programme through awareness creation and driving greater community involvement and participation through the strategic engagement of community-based organisations and their civil society counterparts.”

AHF Nigeria noted that it is partnering with other stakeholders, particularly the TB programmes in its states of operation – Abuja-FCT, Benue, Akwa Ibom, Anambra, Cross River, Kogi and Nasarawa states to honour the millions of lives lost to TB while urging leaders at all levels of government to prioritise TB prevention and treatment efforts.

“Through dedicated radio awareness effort, AHF Nigeria with officials from the office of TB focal persons in these states shall be educating the public on TB prevention and creating awareness about the availability of free TB treatment, across Nigeria.

“Through this effort, all the TB Directly observed Therapy centres across AHF Nigeria states of operations shall be popularised so that people can be aware of where to seek help for TB treatment and be knowledgeable about identifying cases and referring them to care and treatment,” it added.