The Agency proudly united the world in commemorating World TB Day 2024 in Koforidua, with the theme ‘Yes, we can end TB’. The launch was held to celebrate the remarkable achievements made in reducing the burden of TB in the country, the challenges it faces and the path towards eradication of the disease.
The Director General’s speech, delivered by the Director of Public Health, Dr. Franklin Asiedu-Bekoe, highlighted two remarkable achievements during the celebration of World TB Day 2024. These achievements include the significant increase in TB detection and the completion of MDR TB treatment and the center of excellence in Nsawam. The Service has not only expanded access to TB services, but has also ensured timely distribution of essential drugs and diagnostic tools, even in remote areas. Service points are now well equipped to manage and care for TB patients. The Director-General underlined the urgent need for awareness and education as key efforts to fight the epidemic and achieve the goal of ending TB by 2030. He passionately called on all stakeholders to come together to end TB once and for all.
Dr Yaw Adusi-Poku, the Program Director for the National Tuberculosis Control Programme, commended health professionals, policy makers, media and other stakeholders for their unwavering commitment to reduce the burden of TB in the country. He revealed that last year, over 19,000 TB cases were detected, which is a significant improvement over the 2022 detection of 16,500 cases. He highlighted the impressive treatment success rate of 87%, meaning that 9 out of 10 people detected with TB in Ghana were successfully treated with appropriate TB drugs, while 29,700 contacts of TB patients were enrolled in Preventive TB Treatment. He also cited the impressive improvement in the death rate, which now stands at 6.1% compared to the previous 10%.
Despite these remarkable successes, Dr. Adusi-Poku called for an intensive fight against the disease, especially in children, hinting at a gap in the management of pediatric TB in the country. He noted that the TB program has started using stool samples to screen for TB in children and raised the need to increase and strengthen testing of children who cannot produce sputum using stool samples. Dr. Adusi-Poku noted some challenges in the fight to end TB, such as financial resources, low support, especially in the media space, and suggested the need for enhanced social and behavioral change communication that would reduce the stigma and mortality associated with TB. tuberculosis. He further encouraged employers and all well-meaning Ghanaians to add screening to their workplace policies so that their staff are screened annually for TB. The Program Manager called for a collective effort to end the epidemic.
Dr. Anthony Ofosu, the Deputy Director General, delivered a speech on behalf of the Minister of Health, reaffirming the government’s unwavering commitment to ensure that every person affected by TB has access to comprehensive health and social support packages. The Minister stressed the need to intensify efforts to identify missing cases of tuberculosis, with special emphasis on the detection of tuberculosis in children.
The Minister of Health further urged NHIA offices in all districts to continue their collaborative efforts with the Health Service by ensuring that every TB patient is registered with NHIA. In addition, the Ministry in partnership with the Global Fund completed a state-of-the-art facility in Nsawam to manage drug-resistant TB cases, offering renewed hope to people battling drug-resistant TB and their families.
The Minister emphasized the importance of raising awareness about tuberculosis and participating in the fight to end it. With strong determination and collective efforts, we can prevent the devastating economic impact of TB on patients and their families.
SOURCE: PUBLIC RELATIONS UNIT, GHS