Accra, March 24, GNA- The Government has been urged to invest more resources into newer, effective diagnostics, medicines, vaccines, and tools to combat tuberculosis.
Dr Yaw Adusi-Poku, Programme Manager, National TB Control Programme made the call in Accra on Thursday at the celebration of the 2022 World Tuberculosis (TB) Day.
He said Ghana has a funding gap of 20 million dollars per year, but with adequate investment, the country can end TB as planned under the Sustainable Development Goals.
The celebration of the World TB Day affords the world the opportunity to create awareness and reflect on the performance of TB control activities.
The theme for this year’s celebration “Invest to end TB. Save Lives” has the overall goal of bringing all stakeholders together to relook at the investments made to End the TB pandemic.
Dr Adusi-Poku said Ghana needs provide GeneXperts machines for TB diagnosis in the remaining half of the 260 districts across the country.
He said presently the country had 55 digital x-rays from the first phase of the Accelerating TB Case Detection programme.
He appealed to the Ministry of Health to fast-track the second phase of the project, which would provide 150 additional digital x-rays machines with artificial intelligence.
Dr Adusi-Poku also appealed to the government to replace the overaged vehicles used by the program since 2012 to help optimize its monitoring and supervisory programme.
He said the number of missing TB cases found across the nation amidst the COVID-19 pandemic in 2021 was 13,332, a 2.7 per cent improvement over the previous year’s performance of 12,629 cases.
The target is to find 44,000 cases each year.
Dr Adusi-Poku also lauded the Global Fund for the constant supply of medicines and reagent and for introducing funds for out-of-pocket expenses and therapeutic blended food for Multi Drug Resistant Patients.
“This has saved a lot of lives because some die not because they are not adhering to treatment, but simply because they take their medicines on empty stomach and therefore providing these living support have impacted positively on TB patients,” he said.
A Deputy Minister for Health, Mr Alhaji Sei Seini who launched the TB Day celebration said Tuberculosis remains a public health threat in Ghana.
He said TB was still the leading cause of death, killing some 15,000 Ghanaians yearly, and stressed the need for the country to invest experiences on the containment of COVID-19 into TB management.
Dr Patrick Kuma Aboagye, Director General of the Ghana Health Service (GHS) disclosed that the Service had signed a performance contract with its Regional Directors to roll out strategic interventions to find the missing TB cases nationwide.
He said the contract would see to the proper management of TB patients, and ensure better treatment outcomes, using strategies such as the sputum transportation and contact investigations.
The sputum sample transport particularly enables about 1000 health facilities without onsite diagnostic capacity to access GeneXperts testing of suspected TB cases.
Dr Kuma-Aboagye said TB was curable, while TB test and treatment was free in all public health facilities, and urged the public to get tested.
The WHO representative to Ghana, Dr Francis Kasolo stressed the need for increased funding from domestic sources and international donors to enable Ghana counteract the reversal of gains made in TB control in the past decades.
The government, he said, must also mobilize additional domestic financial support for TB control beyond the Global Fund co-financing commitments to fill gaps in TB diagnostics like GeneXpert’s and TB medications.
“With almost 15,000 Ghanaians dying for TB yearly, failure to invest in TB response is set to take a formidable toll on the country’s progress. Increased investment can be a game-changer and alleviate the preventable suffering and deaths of millions of people,” he said.
Tuberculosis, (TB) is a disease caused by a bacterium called Mycobacterium tuberculosis.
The bacteria usually attack the lungs and can spread to other parts of the body. Although curable, it is the second top killer infections disease in the world.
Symptoms of TB infection are cough that produces phlegm, fatigue, fever, chills, and loss of appetite and weight. Symptoms typically worsen over time, but they can also spontaneously go away and return.
GNA