EMN
Dimapur, March 21
On March 21, 1882, Dr. Robert Koch had astounded the scientific community by announcing the discovery of the causative agent of tuberculosis, the Mycobactarium tuberculosis.
World TB Day is commemorated every year on March 24 to spread awareness and mobilize political and social commitment for further progress towards eliminating tuberculosis as a public health burden.
“Today, despite the availability of effective treatment, nearly one-and-a-half million deaths occur globally every year and tuberculosis remains a curse to humanity causing vast socio economic loss mostly in developing countries,” the department of health & family Welfare stated in a note issued on Saturday, marking the event.
The program against tuberculosis has achieved a part of the millennium development goals but many cases of the disease still go undiagnosed, untreated and “uncured,” the department said. “This year the theme for World Tuberculosis Day is ‘reach, treat, and cure everyone’. This is in alliance with the goal of universal access to quality TB diagnosis and treatment with quality assured drugs made available free of cost to all tuberculosis patients including those of drug resistant, HIV and other co-morbidity associated tuberculosis.”
Nagaland will be completing 13 years since the launching of the Revised National Tuberculosis Programme on December 1, 2015. So far 37,131 patients have been put on treatment. There are 44 microscopy centers including 11 district TB centers and more than 1,121 DOT centers and 389 collection centers where free investigation and DOTS treatment are provided to all.
Directly Observed Treatment Short Course Chemotherapy is the key component of the programme where a health worker or a trained volunteer from the community who is named as a DOT provider ‘directly’ watches the patient taking the drug in his or her presence.
“DOTS plus investigation and treatment for multi-drug resistant is also available in our state. Since the launch of the facility on 24th Jan 2012,217 patients are availing this 24 month course treatment out of which 10 patients have successfully completed this treatment while the rests are continuing the same,” the Health and Family Welfare department stated.
The state’s health society will be observing World Tuberculosis Day by visiting some of the ‘nearby departments’ to spread the key messages about the disease and distribute information and awareness materials.
The event will be observed in the districts across the state.
