Vientiane Capital, 24 March 2017 - WHO marked World Tuberculosis (TB) Day with a slogan to unite efforts to "Leave No One Behind" as we enter the second year of a two-year "Unite to End TB" campaign. It calls to action the need to address stigma, discrimination, and marginalization and overcome barriers to access care.
Dr Bounkong Syhavong, Health Minister delivered his remarks in a video said “We have a high TB burden in Lao PDR, there are about 3300 TB related deaths each year. I would like to encourage everyone who suspect that they have TB to be tested; we have sensitive diagnostic tools (digital X-ray machine and Gene Xpert) used for TB detection and treatment is available for positive patients.”
The Sustainable Development Goals ensures that no one is left behind and addressing the needs of the poor, disadvantaged, marginalized and those out of reach of the health system is one of the target for the WHO End TB Strategy.
WHO Representative to Lao PDR Dr Juliet Fleischl said “Reaching communities in remote areas and ensuring that they have access to healthcare services is one of the five priorities of WHO Country Cooperation Strategy. In 2016, 4969 TB patients were detected and treated, but 60% of the TB cases remain untreated. We need to engage a multisectoral approach and engage more stakeholders in TB prevention and care services.”
The National TB Centre (NTC) has been working with health workers, development partners, civil society and communities to disseminate and advocate TB prevention messages. TB can affect anyone, old people, working adults and even children. The disease thrives among people living in poverty, communities and groups that are marginalized, and other vulnerable populations.
The factors that contribute to TB includes malnutrition, poor housing, indoor smoke, pollution, poor sanitation compounded by other risk factors like tobacco and alcohol use, HIV, diabetes can increase vulnerability to TB. Treatment is available free of charge, however families who are not aware of this may not seek treatment as they are concerned with high medical costs. This result in a vicious cycle of poverty and ill health and the transmission of multidrug-resistant TB (MDR-TB) adds great urgency to these concerns.
To accelerate efforts towards ending TB in Lao PDR, NTC is working with Centre of Information and Education for Health (CIEH) to develop television spot and radio messages to encourage everyone to get screened. Interviews with former TB patients and health care professional will engage the public by creating awareness on TB and provide information on where they can get screened.
Free TB screening was held at Mahosot Hospital for healthcare professionals and the public. A media event was planned to sensitize journalists and presenters, and TV and radio spots will be aired during the week of World TB Day. Outreach activities will continue to reach those communities living in remote hard–to-reach areas who have no access to healthcare facilities. It is important to reach everyone and ensure that no one is left behind if we were to meet the goals of End TB Strategy.
