BuaNews (Tshwane)
Gabi Khumalo
2 July 2008
Durban — Government is seeing the fruits of the various programmes it has in place to manage patients who default on their Tuberculosis (TB) treatment.
Speaking at the official opening of the four-day South African TB Conference organised by the Foundation for Professional Development, Health Minister Manto Tshabalala-Msimang said 72 TB defaulter tracer teams were deployed in February to those sub-districts with the highest defaulter rates.
"We are already reaping the benefits of this strategy with many sub-districts already recording reductions in their defaulter rates," the minister said.
The teams were established to help government reach the seven percent target in the defaulter rate. President Thabo Mbeki, during his State of the National Address in February, also called for a reduction in the TB defaulter rate from 10 percent to seven percent.
Government was also committed to training 3000 health professionals to better manage TB patients.
Minister Tshabalala-Msimang said government had introduced the fixed dose combination drugs which reduced the daily pill burden from about 12 to a maximum of five tablets.
This has helped in making treatment compliance by patients less of an undertaking.
The minister noted however that patients were still defaulting and urged TB patients and their families to comply with treatment requirements as part of assisting in the fight against TB which include protecting others from any possible infection.
Speaking to BuaNews earlier, TB Free Advocacy Communication and Social Mobilisation Manager, Leko Nkabinde said poverty was a factor for the high treatment defaulter rate among TB patients.
She said most people who were surviving on social grants they received for their illnesses deliberately neglected to take their TB treatment as required so that they could continue to receive the grant.
"Poverty levels are so high and some people do not want to be cured in order to continue receiving the grant.
She said there was a need for intensive treatment counselling for patients to understand the importance of completing their medication.
The four-day conference aims to further sharpen the country's TB programme and explore the roles of civil society organisations and communities in assisting government to deal with the challenges TB presents.
The minister said her department had been successfully implementing the TB and HIV collaborative interventions which were introduced in 2001.
She acknowledged the progress made since the launch of National TB Crisis Management Plan, which targets four health districts including eThekwini Metro, Amathole District Municipality in the Eastern Cape, Nelson Mandela Metro and Johannesburg Metropolitan Municipality.
"I am pleased with the progress that these districts are making even though some of them still have some way to go before they can reach the targets that we set for them,' she said.
The minister emphasised the key to reach the national TB outcome targets which is diagnose early and treat completely.
"To reach this successfully, we need co-operation of individuals, families and communities as well as trained and accessible health workforce.
"If we get these conditions right, we will be able to reach our targets, this will in turn reduce the challenges posed by drug resistant TB," she said.
All TB hospitals with Multi-Drug Resistant TB (MDR-TB) patients have been equipped and accredited to provide the required HIV-related services including treatment.
"As things stand at the moment, our health professionals test HIV patients for TB and TB patients for HIV as per our Voluntary Counselling and Testing Policy," said Ms Tshabalala-Msimang.
Conference Chairperson and Director at the University Research Co, LLC, Dr Refiloe Matji said the goal was to have a TB free South Africa
"We need to get our act together," she said, adding that everyone needed to come on board to implement the TB strategy plan.
She encouraged delegates to talk to each other, give a hand and build a national TB control team.
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