Malawi making impressive progress in TB fight
Tuberculosis (TB) expert Dr Daniel Nyangulu has said Malawi is making impressive progress in the fight against the disease.
Nyangulu, who made the remarks in Salima on the sidelines of a biannual review meeting on TB for Media Professionals, disclosed that Malawi is among the best-rated countries in the struggle against the disease at regional and global level.
“A number of strategies have been outlined to fight, treat and reduce the cases among the people in the country,” he said.
Some of the strategies that have earned Malawi good results in TB fight include community sputum collection, mobile van diagnosis, door-to-door campaign, collaboration with other ministries, contact tracing and isonized therapy, among others.
Nyangulu said these efforts have helped the country to be rated among the best in the fight against the disease at regional and global level.
However, the TB expert emphasized that the fight against the disease should not be left to government alone.
“Everyone must participate through screening and report any suspected case,” said Dr. Nyangulu.
The National TB Control Programme deputy coordinator Iasiahs Dambe assured that government, with funding from Global Fund and other implementing agencies, will continue to put in place mechanisms that will eliminate the disease in the country.
“We are tracing every case in our communities and put the presumptive cases on drugs,” he said.
He bemoaned late reporting of cases to the hospitals as well as Covid-19 as major setbacks to the fight.
If people can come for screening and receive drugs in time then these cases can be reduced drastically, he observed.
TB remains a public health problem in Malawi alongside malaria, HIV and Aids, among others.
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